Greg Davies: Firing Cheeseballs at a Dog

For those only able to identify Greg Davies as "that bloke from The Inbetweeners", or perhaps "the really tall one who's sometimes on Mock the Week", the likely expectation for his solo show at The Stand tonight would be something along the lines of capable but underwhelming. But that's a flawed assumption, as it turns out - Davies possesses a subtle but instantly striking charisma in his stand-up style, with its consistently approachable ease.

The show's premise is an innocent one: to recall and recount all the moments in his life during which Davies felt blissfully happy; where all the worries of life dissolved for a few seconds and joy reigned supreme. It is from this concept that the bizarre title stems, as Davies admits that he has rarely been happier thant when he found himself in Spain tossing cheeseballs at a stubborn and, by all accounts, horrendously arrogant dog. He is silly without compromising his intelligence; unassuming while retaining authority. Most importantly, however, he is deeply likeable, and by the end of his hour leaves you wanting nothing more than to be his friend.

One of the show's highlights comes with Davies' lengthy discussion of his days as a high school drama teacher - 'the dark days', as he remembers them. Teaching a class which includes a boy who said only the word 'beard' for five years and a girl who spoke solely in the voice of a 1940s broadcaster provides Davies with plenty to revel in, and it is this abundance of material that likely helped the show win a Fosters' award nomination at this year's Fringe.

What Davies' TV appearances fail to show is his effortless confidence with other people. There's a guaranteed laugh every twenty seconds, but we're left consistently unaware of how hard he's working to achieve that reaction. Balancing the crude and the sentimental means Davies is able to lay himself bare and explore the nitty-gritty of his life without becoming bogged down in it, and it's this precision that makes Firing Cheeseballs at a Dog such a faultless performance.