Preview: The Other Side Comedy Club, Basement Bar, City Screen, York, July 27

12:14pm Friday 25th July 2008

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AS the saying goes, all good things come to an end and this Sunday’s show at The Other Side Comedy Club is not only the last of the Edinburgh Festival previews, but also the last gig until September.

Before the summer break, Markus Birdman and Tom Wrigglesworth see out the season with an hour each in the Basement Bar of City Screen, York.

Birdman, follows his sold-out 2007 Edinburgh show, Son Of A Preacher Man, with another take on the life of an atheist living in the midst of a very religious family in Sympathy For The Devil.

His father is a vicar once taught by CS Lewis. “Consequently, I never went near a wardrobe my whole childhood,” says Birdman. His uncle is the official exorcist to the Bishop of Bath and Wells. “Consequently, I never went near a wardrobe my whole childhood,” he says again.

Being the son of a preacher man can lead to a confusing and conflicting upbringing, when half your family talk to gods, devils and demons for a living. “If you thought there was a monster under the bed, there was a good chance there actually was. Consequently I’m an atheist, thank the Lord,” Birdman says.

In his new show, the contentious comedian explores the flipside to his 2007 enterprise by getting down with the Devil.

“I’ll be exploring topics such as: Is it so bad being bad? Did Jesus really die for our sins? What’s so deadly about the big Seven Sins? Is cleanliness next to Godliness? And so what? Atheism is next to athlete’s foot,” he says.

Co-headliner Tom Wrigglesworth is a lanky Yorkshire raconteur who won Channel 4’s So You Think You’re Funny? competition in 2003 with his dark-humoured one-liners and twisted tales.

After making his Edinburgh debut in 2006 in a double bill with Tom Allen, and taking part in AAA Stand at the Pleasance Courtyard last year, he has graduated this summer to his first full-length solo show, I’m Struggling To See How That’s Helping.

Doors open at 7pm for Sunday’s 7.30pm start. Tickets: £8 on 0871 704 2054.