Review: DAN TIERNAN: GOING UNDER, Soho Theatre

“London’s not as sensitive as they said”

Going from being a dinner lady to a full-time comedian? It may be more likely than you think. Dan Tiernan: Going Under, gives the Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer-nominated comic a solid debut hour discussing how the past year of his life has gone.

The show begins with Tiernan commenting on his appearance, describing himself as a person who looks like he likes baked beans, starting a running joke of him referring to himself as a “beany boi.” He shares his experiences growing up dyspraxic, a co-ordination disorder affecting movement, including a brilliant joke about being a “slow of hand” magician. There are several jokes throughout that acknowledge his disorder, including a bit in which he claims he has longer than 60 minutes as removing him from the stage would be a hate crime. 

A highlight of the show is when Tiernan is talking about his time as a “lunch lady” in a school canteen, recounting the strange things he experienced, including a boss who sniffed a sandwich to figure out which child it belonged to and a Jehovah’s Witness who was afraid that Tiernan would turn his coworkers gay, an irony made quite clear through Tiernan’s storytelling. There is then a bit in the show in which Tiernan discusses how many have thought he was lying about his sexuality, but he promises the women in the audience that they don’t need to be nervous and tells the men, “You could not be in more danger” with a smirk.

Tiernan specialises in what I could classify as “aggressive” crowd work, getting up in the faces of audience members and confronting them before pulling away with a cheery “thank you for coming to the show.” The way his victims (sorry, audience members) react becomes a part of the show and Tiernan is able to seamlessly add them as characters to his stories throughout the hour. The aggression isn’t just applied to the audience - Tiernan has a particular hatred for his mother’s boyfriend, Nick, whose name he screams out with vitriol every time it comes up. 

As with most shows that have come from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Going Under takes a darker turn towards its end, as Tiernan focuses on his relationship with his sister who has been diagnosed with leukemia. But, even with the dark subject and Tiernan expressing his personal struggles with the situation, he manages to make the situation funny, painting his sister as a lovable and sassy sibling who is ready to fire jokes right back at him, even in life-or-death situations.

Ultimately, Dan Tiernan: Going Under is a fun show that does a great job of taking some serious subjects like illness and making them situations the audience can laugh at without feeling guilty. I look forward to seeing more standup (and aggressive crowd work) from Tiernan in the future! 

Dan Tiernan: Going Under ran at Soho Theatre. Tiernan will be going on a UK tour - information and tickets can be found here.

Photo Credit: Drew Forsyth

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