Dave Hughes – Fully Furnished @ The Box At The Garden Of Unearthly Delights, Adelaide 17/2/2024
Nobody was safe from Hughesy’s set, not the audience, not his wife and children, not even his late rescue dog, Bubbles.
The famous fifty three-year old started his show a touch later than expected last night, but all for a good reason. The Box was so packed that fans were literally lining up against the walls of the small venue. The staff hurried to source additional seats in a timely manner and didn’t keep the crowd waiting too long. Quite literally rubbing shoulders with other attendees, it was certainly a tight squeeze. We all leaned forward as our host for the evening finally took centre stage. With his arm in a sling, and admittedly likely high on endone, he was ready to roast just about everyone and everything.
Hughesy kicked off the show by thanking everyone for choosing him over Taylor Swift, although he highlighted there probably wasn’t much of a choice there at all. Taylor Swift wasn’t the only famous name to be dropped throughout the night, he spoke of his friendship with Russell Crowe, his outings with Spice Girl, Mel B, and his slight jealousy towards the loveable Hoppo from Bondi Rescue. Confessing that he loves the fame, the attention and the news articles, Hughesy was more than happy to tell all, and we were totally there for it.
‘Hands up, who loves The Masked Singer?’ he asked in his raspy, thick Aussie accent. There was an awkward silence from the crowd. The stand-up comedian disclosed that half the time he has absolutely no idea who they are either, even when they take off their masks. ‘The guessing continues!’ he joked.
Now this show states that there is “occasionally” coarse, mild language. I would love to know how many f-bombs were dropped in those sixty minutes. It could be a world record for all we know! His children, his wife, his vet – just about everyone was told to ‘f*** off’ at some point and it had the audience in stitches.
His deadpan delivery paired with intense eye contact had us all splitting sides. He took us on a journey that none of us will forget any time soon, whether for the right or wrong reasons. As the show wrapped up, he told us sarcastically for what felt like the fiftieth time that we were ‘the best crowd he’s ever had’ and that it was ‘great to be here’ – none of which anyone believed, certainly not Hughesy himself as he held a deep stare towards the audience. His not-so-humble self declared that he was indeed ‘the best comedian’ and that he truly ‘doesn’t give a f***’ about what anyone has to say on the matter. Apart from his kids, who desperately don’t want their mates to know who their dad is…
Dave Hughes truly is a master of his craft and the perfect addition to the Adelaide Fringe. If you want to hear outrageous, close to the mark views on COVID, vaping, sex and the oldest living person in Australia, then this is the show for you.
Grab a ticket to one of his shows on the 24/2/2024 to hear stories of how he tore his rotator cuff, the passing of his beloved dog, Bubbles, and the lengths he will go to avoid his children from hearing him and his wife, Holly, in the bedroom. None of which should be funny, but bloody well are.
Fully Furnished was a wild ride, but for that hour it was Hughesy’s world, and we were all just living in it.
Fringe Review By Mia Hole
For tickets and show information head to FringeTix…