Josh Earl: Josh Earl Vs The Australian Womens Weekly Children's Birthday Cake Book

Josh Earl is at his best when he is less restrained. The cake cookbooks that Women's Weekly released in the 80s is the topic and Earl is perfectly relaxed as he plays with the wonders and oddities of the books. The show is a delight as Earl, mic in hand, discusses the different cakes, from the pool cake to the calculator cake, with the audience, and his life, in a relaxed manner.

The show is peppered with songs about cakes and childhood, sometimes played on guitar, sometimes with a backing track. Earl has to keep his lyrics in sync with slides on a screen, or keep time with the cues on the backing track. The rigid structure unfortunately hampers Earl and the easy, enjoyable atmosphere of his show. Earl is hard working but the more relaxed, playful moments of his routine are what makes the audience smile.