Comedy Night: Kielty's Comeback
Sophie Clarke
Dundrum-born comedian Patrick Kielty took to the stage of the Diamond Hall at Ulster University Coleraine on 19 November to perform his latest comedy show Borderline.
It has been nearly thirty years since Kielty last performed in the Diamond Hall, however his initial reception could be taken one of two ways. Either people were incredibly keen to hear from him again after so long or he may not have been missed all that much as the jubilant cheers and applause fell quiet before he had even reached the mic. However, despite this lukewarm welcome by the Coleraine crowd, it was clear Kielty was raring to go and ready to win this crowd over.
Throughout his set, Kielty takes the audience on a journey starting in the early 1980s when petrol bombs and paramilitaries made for an unsafe childhood but, as he acknowledges, so did second-hand smoke and a distinct lack of seatbelts. He describes the first time he witnessed a burnt-out car on the news and didn’t initially realise these scenes were being broadcast live from Belfast. He compared this to when you realise the numbers on a toaster are timings rather than levels of toasty-ness, which, I must confess, was news to me.
He also touches on the idea of identifying as Irish but not being quite Irish enough, a feeling of dual-identity that is entrenched in Northern Irish culture. Kielty quite rightly points out that ‘we were nonbinary before it was a thing.’
Kielty is astutely aware of the fact his show touches on many controversial topics, often stating ‘some are jokes, others are just facts’ after delivering some risky punchlines. Yet, as a whole, the show predominantly acts as a satirical love letter to his homeland and the love-hate relationship he has had with Northern Ireland throughout his life, particularly after his father was murdered by paramilitaries when he was just sixteen. There is something exceptional about taking a very personal trauma such as this and finding a way to make a room full of 700 strangers laugh about it, and Kielty appears to do this with practised ease.
The show also touches on Kielty’s time in America and involves a rather surreal anecdote about getting invited to a pool party at John Legend’s house and forgetting his togs – demonstrating the fact that, while you can take the man out of Northern Ireland, you can’t take Northern Ireland out of the man.
Borderline is warm, funny and thought-provoking. Kielty accepts that peace is a difficult concept to grasp and acknowledges the difference between peacefulness and happiness, ending on the rather hopeful note that in terms of finding peace, although we aren’t there yet, we’re ultimately doing okay.
Sophie Clarke is a Masters student in Journalism at Ulster University.