Bill Bailey - Vaudevillian Tour

Bill Bailey is playing the M&S Bank Arena on Saturday 14 November, part of his Vaudevillian Tour. The name isn't just for show — it's a nod to vaudeville, the variety entertainment that ruled the theatre in the early 20th century, and the whole night is built around that old-school format.

Bailey's stripped the material back to how things worked before streaming, television, cinema and radio. What's left is a night of comedy, songs and a restless display of skills, with the music and the humour given equal weight. He describes himself as a jack-of-all-trades, multi-lingual and multi-instrumental, and the show leans into that: he's as much a purveyor of musical prowess as he is of comedy, so you'll hear him playing as much as you'll hear him talking.

It's a broad set, and the vaudeville angle gives it a bit of room to wander. The comedy sits alongside the songs, and the musical skills are woven in rather than kept as separate bits. If you've seen him before, you know the musical side is a big part of what he does, but here it's the starting point rather than an add-on. The whole thing is held together by that variety-hall spirit — a bit of this, a bit of that, and a lot of it coming from one person on stage.

It's Bill Bailey at the M&S Bank Arena on Saturday 14 November, with comedy, songs and musical skills making up the night.