If anyone in the audience at the Eventim Apollo was expecting Jerry Sadowitz to rein things in after the spot of bother he ran into at the Edinburgh Fringe in August, then they were quickly disabused.

Confidence, says Helen Bauer, is a good thing. As a woman who casts herself as the leading lady in any situation, including funerals, she has oodles of it – as well as bucketloads of energy in a show that starts with a declaration of intent: “I'm going through a very confident phase and I think you should be there for me.” The audience is on board straight away, such is the force field she exerts from the moment she walks on stage.

Although PowerPoint has been around since 1987, and several comics have incorporated it into their shows, it's Dave Gorman who remains king of the form. And here he is again in PowerPoint to the People, an amiable evening in which he, as ever, delves into the nooks and crannies of modern life that the rest of us might overlook, and charts a delicious long-form joke for the audience to enjoy long after they have seen the show.

Some people learned how to make sourdough bread during the pandemic lockdown, while others discovered the joy of Zoom quizzes. Dara Ó Briain, on the other hand, wrote this brilliant show, So... Where Were We?, his most personal yet.

It has been a long time since Harry Hill went on tour – 2013 – so one can assume that many of the youngsters in the multi-generational audience hadn't seen him perform live before, but were there because they know him from his deliriously funny television work, much of it available online. I hope they weren't disappointed – but I suspect, judging by the lack of laughter around me, that at least some were.

A dead pigeon. A dead squirrel. A dead fox. Lots of maggots – very much alive. I might be describing your worst nightmare (throw in a rat or two and it would be very close to mine) but this array of wildlife forms an important part in Kim Noble's latest show, Lullaby for Scavengers. I warn you, it takes a strong stomach to sit through it – and I have to confess I had to shield my eyes at several points. The show comes with a content warning for a reason.

It's a pleasure to see Rob Rouse back doing standup, as these days he's as well known for his acting – he plays the idiot savant Bottom in BBC's Upstart Crow, the theatre version of which is opening shortly in the West End after its 2020 premiere run was truncated by Covid.

The Dave Edinburgh Awards went abroad this year – Australian Sam Campbell won for best show at the Fringe, while American Lara Ricote won best newcomer.

Joseph Parsons, The Mash House ★★★

Jake Lambert, Pleasance Courtyard ★★★★

Jake Lambert warms up the audience by describing how much he enjoyed lockdown (despite a relationship break-up), and he suspects that football players enjoyed playing for a season without spectators too – “Whose job wouldn't be improved by removing thousands of people calling you a wanker?”