John Hegley bends and twists the English language into the most unexpected meanings and shapes.

His sardonic wit, delivered with a magician's eye for misdirection and a musician's ear for rhythms, makes him one of the most quietly devastating comedians in this or any country.

He certainly gave the capacity crowd at the Pavilion Theatre more than a few chuckles.

Whether he was reading his deliciously off-beat poetry, singing and playing comedic compositions, talking about people and places or merely bantering with the audience, one was left in no doubt this was observational humour of the highest quality.

There was lots of enthusiastic audience participation, including one brave soul translating a poem from French. But there was also a sense of intimacy in Hegley's performance.

Talking about his relationships with his father and the birth of his daughter, he wandered through that happy/sad no man's land where so much great comedy comes from. It was both deeply touching and extremely funny.

Most comedians are like balls rolling - John Hegley is like an egg. Cracking stuff.