Joe Wells: Daddy Autism

Joe Wells brings his new show, Daddy Autism, to The Lowry in Salford on Sunday 18 October. It's a stand-up set that looks at fatherhood through the lens of neurodiversity, so the whole thing is built around the experience of parenting from an autistic perspective.

Wells has made a name for himself by being open about his own autism, and that's exactly where this show starts. Rather than treating it as a side note, he puts it front and centre, working through the day-to-day realities of raising a child when your brain doesn't quite work the way most people's do. It's a subject that doesn't get much airtime in comedy, and that's precisely why it works here—he's talking about the specific, often overlooked frictions and absurdities that come with the territory.

If you've seen his previous work, you'll know he doesn't shy away from the personal stuff, and Daddy Autism follows that same thread. He takes the things that might seem like small, domestic struggles and stretches them out until they become the punchline, finding the humour in the gap between how things are supposed to go and how they actually play out. It's a look at a very particular kind of family life, told with the same directness he brings to everything else.

The show runs at the Aldridge Studio within The Lowry, which is a smaller, more focused space than the main house, and it starts at 8pm. If you're around Salford that Sunday evening, it's a good one to have on your radar.