CANADA’S king of deadpan blitzed his audience with a barrage of slick one-liners.

Francis had the crowd tittering from the off, save for an awkward microphone-related mishap when he walked out on stage. Or was it just an off-the-wall opening gag? Who knows?

No topic is taboo for the sometime Mock the Week guest, who has supported Ricky Gervais and Michael McIntyre in recent weeks. Issues such as racism, sexism and homophobia were all tackled, albeit with a heavy dose of irony.

A few of his one-liners were either just a little bit too off-colour for the audience, or perhaps something was lost in their transatlantic translation. But, to be fair, 90 per cent of his gags went down an absolute treat.

Audience members familiar with Francis’ delivery will not have been expecting heartfelt tales of his childhood or longwinded write-what-you-know comedy.

And he did not disappoint on that score.

It is probably fair to say he is an acquired taste for some, but those in the know lapped it right up.

Andy Walker