The Fringe! How good it is to be back again, now my sixth year. As ever, we launch straight into the whole affair not three hours after our train arrives (a brief coffee pit stop and dropping bags off at our Airbnb notwithstanding) and soon find ourselves in Monkey Barrel 3, already a sweat box at 4 in the afternoon, for our first show of the year. I’ve been wanting to see John Kearns live for some time now, and I’m very glad to cross this off the bucket list. It’s fascinating to watch Kearns adapt to his newly found semi-fame following Taskmaster - for all he talks about not dulling the character, it’s telling that he does walk on stage sans costume before donning it, as if to reassure the new fans that it is him. This is very much a “new dad” show, as he recalls an extended battle with his small child, swinging an empty wine bottle around his head, but elevated by his inimitable style. A routine towards the end on Marco Pierre White’s online cookery course is a tour de force routine, the perfect mix of bafflement and distress. Here’s to, hopefully, a second wind bolstered by hosting Antiques Roadshow.