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Who said the Americans can’t make cheese? They certainly can. That said, this particular cheese would benefit from a little more processing and some maturation. But behind the glitz The Texas Tenors are three men with great voices and great charm. They seduced the audience, even me, and I enjoyed most of their set, excluding a few clumsy operatic arias. But there was good harmony work and a few excellent country songs that really worked. ‘Shenandoah’ was superbly rendered but perhaps that stood out as the band, a shoddy and amateurish outfit, did not play.
24 August, Theatre Royal Brighton
3/5
Andrew Kay

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is a massive, sprawling monster, showcasing the great, the good, the bad and the downright evil to the cultural masses, be they television executives or ordinary punters. So naturally the creative types of Brighton and East Sussex have been up there in force.

Local boy Seann Walsh’s first solo show is selling out over at the Pleasance Courtyard, with his observational humour very successfully hitting a chord and garnering him more and more attention. The way that he throws himself physically into the show, acting out some of his gags, provokes an equal level of engagement from his audience with their laughter.
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Ricky Gervais would be a kind of modern comic genius, if geniuses hailed from Reading and thought skits about drinking gallons of spunk were the highest form of humour. Science, a blend of expertly told anecdote and faux school lesson, was in places very funny and original. Gervais is at his best when insolent – about fat Americans, Ken Dodd, Amanda Holden or the absurdities of Christian teaching. But his chirpy bloke-in-the-pub style means he doesn’t come across as cruel. A likeable show, perhaps lacking a coherent theme, but his meandering chat-over-a-drink attitude made it work. Does his material deserve to be called offensive? Possibly. But you’d hear worse in the playground.
Brighton Centre, 17 August
4/5
Rachel Pegg

A packed crowd were treated to a very pleasant and enjoyable evening with the consummate performer that is Mr Des O’Connor. An informal first half saw Des recite humorous emails from his Countdown days, some anecdotes from his varied career, plus a few songs with his talented MD Ray Monk. The second half was more music orientated, including hits from Frank Sinatra, Buddy Holly and The Beatles. These were hung on funny and poignant anecdotes about the songs themselves, his parents, his Royal Variety Performances or comedians he has worked with and admired. A warm and friendly evening.
22 August, Pavilion Theatre, Worthing
3/5
Lee Stevens