Review by Natalia Milne. Venue 33. Pleasance Courtyard – Beside.

★★★★☆

Nabil Abdulrashid is flawed and he is very willing to talk about it. His show is about masculinity and how far he has come in his pursuit to be a better husband and father, and how far he is yet to go. Some of the sharpest and funniest moments of the show come from Nabil calling out the comedy scene for the pervasiveness of white middle-class male voices. He explains that fears are only real if they are tangible (like the bailiffs paying you an unexpected visit), and you are firmly middle-class if your fears are conceptual (not living up to your full potential). He describes how privileged comics can have one bad thing happen in their life and they subsequently base an entire show around that one thing. He (himself) was criticised for packing too many of the bad things that have happened to him in his (one) show.

As a man who has been diagnosed with ADHD (when he was a small child), Nabil bemoans the phenomenon of the newly diagnosed adults blaming every fault and negative personality trait on ADHD. He then talks about his life and upbringing in Croydon. His side-splitting anecdote about the Halal butcher is a real highlight of the evening. 

Have you heard of being ‘pilled’? I envy the peaceful obliviousness of those who have not. It probably means you are not terminally online, and honestly, God bless you. The term originates from the film The Matrix. The main character Neo is given a choice: take the blue pill and stay in the world as you know it, or take the red pill and learn the truth. Being pilled (or red-pilled) has been hijacked by many online sub-cultures. Being purple-pilled is to reject the extremes of both sides and fall somewhere in the middle. This is an apt name for this show. But the one criticism I have is that this is never explained. Nabil does state that he is not on the left or the right, but that he is able to see both sides.

Towards the end of the evening Nabil speaks briefly about struggling with mental health issues in an extremely tender and vulnerable way. As a woman who is keenly aware that we are living in a world in which young men are increasingly being radicalised by the far right (idolising misogynist figures such as Andrew Tate), and becoming incels, I think this is a really important show. Nabil is invested in doing better and he delivers his message in a way that is engaging and funny. If you are a person who cares (or is interested) about toxic masculinity, or are just generally trying to be a better person, then get a ticket to see this show.