The Plebs need to have a pow wow. The world is a mess, our leaders aren't stepping up and it's time for us to do the necessary. That's where you come in. At each show, Ian Stone will choose some major issues. And together, we'll sort them. It could be the potholes that life throws up, what punishment is suitable for irritating behaviour in a public place or how to be sure that tropical fruit is fresh. One day, we might do the Middle East. Imagine that being sorted! **** The Times

September 2, 2026    EdFringe Review

Is a stand-up comedian going to be able to solve all the world’s problems? Probably not – at least not in the hour he is given here – but it’s not like the people whose job it is to fix those problems are doing very well, so Ian Stone might as well give it a go.

We are the plebs, he declares, and we must figure out what we are to do about all this. So he has with him a printed-off list of fifty questions, all debates about the various ills that plague our modern society. They range from the existentially threatening (climate change, the war in Gaza, AI) to the comparatively minor (out-of-season fruits, his own ADHD diagnosis, the overuse of the word “innit”). Anecdotes, call-backs and crowd interactions are rattled off at an astonishing speed, barely giving you time to think before the next topic is brought up.

The amount of writing and planning that must have gone into the show is really quite impressive when you think about it: each of the fifty questions has some sort of pre-written joke or story attached, and of those fifty, only around ten will be brought up per show. Presumably, going down the whole list would take at least another hour.

Stone is a master of the off-the-cuff delivery style and effortlessly builds rapport with the audience. When a woman in the front row somehow mishears 'give me another' as 'give me a Sandra', he immediately decides to make a progressively-updated list of famous people with that name. Inevitably some awkward moments do arise – impossible to avoid in crowdwork-heavy sets – but they are deftly and swiftly navigated by a practiced hand.

Some of the material is clearly geared towards an older audience (I for one had never heard of Hazel Blears), but enough of it is universally appealing, and Stone’s stage presence carries the show alone. It’s a warm, charming hour of comedy, and Stone doesn’t even charge for the privilege, though the multitude of people queueing up to donate after the show should speak volumes.

The Pleb’s Pow Wow might not have solved our problems, but it certainly let us laugh at them. And that’s all you need, really. Click Here For Review

August 21, 2026    North West End

And if you do end up with a Rhino-sized hamster in your kitchen, make damn sure it has its trousers in order and understands the recommended toilet manoeuvres. You get meh?

‘Mon there, keep up. Especially Keith from Canada. There’s audience sympathy for Keith, for so quick and break-neck is the pace of this show, it’s a tall ask. Speaking of which, just take a moment to contemplate the diminutive Hazel Blears given the responsibility for floods back in 2007? Speaking of politicians, there’s a brief assessment of prime ministers from Tony Blair, Gordon Brown et al up to and including Andy Burnham. It’s exhausting, impossible to take your eyes off him or take even a second to pass comment to your neighbour. There are twists and turns, but Stone doesn’t slow down for any of them. It’s a delightful, apparently ungoverned ramble… maybe ‘rampage’ would be a more accurate term… Stone describing his default state as ‘angry, irritable, with a hint of impotence’. The word ‘apparently’ reflects the fact that Stone’s a seasoned campaigner (check CV alert) because there’s skills-a-go-go evident; as the audience enters, he dances and greets, the words ‘infectious’ and ‘enthusiasm’ clearly coined with characters like him in mind. He ponders thoughtfully on the theme – and modern-day importance – of storytelling, highlighting how wrong’uns like Henry VIII and/or Cromwell (Brexit 1) or Boris Johnson (Brexit 2) were able to get away with illogical nonsense, yet (Sir) Keir Starmer failed so sadly. He also riffs on language (the pedantic pursuit of), homemade hash cakes, Ibiza, sleep, ADHD (wouldn’t be the Fringe without, would it?), the Australian immigration ‘points’ system, pets, phones, even finding a moment to – almost – hilariously excuse Hitler. A man let’s just say, with less to lose than those he persecuted. Although the Golf reference seemed to sail over a lot of heads.

None of the above are spoilers since, based on today’s evidence, the topics will shift and alter from show to show. The only thing that grated was the frequent use of the phrase ‘I think you’ll/we’ll all agree…’ It belongs in the bin with ‘Let’s face it/be fair’. Click Here For Review

August 8, 2026    One4Review

It is day one. His first show at Fringe 2026. Some people I would never go and see this early, however Ian Stone is someone I will. He is always a safe pair of hands and guaranteed to provide an hour of top notch comedy. And I was not alone. The large venue was packed out with queues round the block.

Stone greets one and all, settles them down and warms up the crowd with the definition of plebs and examples of past PMs. He has 50 prepared questions about how we, the plebs, can maybe find a solution that our esteemed politicians cannot. Involving the audience with calling out numbers, he runs through a selection of his questions, discusses the issued raised and notes down possible solutions; each and every one providing gales of laughter from the get-go.

The hour in his hand passes way too quickly. He is a consummate pro, a hugely erudite talker and above all an extremely funny man. Ian has been a regular Fringe visitor for more than 20 years now and I have seen him countless times. Go see him. You should not miss out.

As part of the Laughing Horse Free Festival, it is free to get in, but the bucket collection at the end is there for donations. Considering the prices of other (often less talented) performers, don’t be mean with your contributions. Click Here For Review

August 8, 2026    Entertainment Now

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