AN Irishman, an Irishman and an Irishman walk into an arena and…

Well, that’s why they were the ones on stage entertaining the masses and I’m the one writing about it.

The Three Fellas – Irish stand ups Ardal O’Hanlon, Dylan Moran and Tommy Tiernan – brought “the biggest comedy show we’ve ever ‘ad” to Liverpool on Saturday night, in the words of compere John Bishop, and it worked brilliantly.

It was the idea of Liverpool-born promoter Mick Perrin to host a huge comedy show at the arena in 2008 to celebrate the links between Liverpool and Ireland, providing the biggest audience to date for all the acts concerned.

And it was a meeting of minds that worked a treat. O’Hanlon and his bamboozled observations, Moran’s embittered whimsy and Tiernan’s riotous smut offered a wealth of comedy riches for the 6,000-strong crowd.

John Bishop seemed to enjoy himself, with material geared towards the home crowd and the huge contingent of visiting Irish. As the first of the Three Fellas onstage, O’Hanlon was wide-eyed and as overwhelmed as his best-loved character, Father Ted’s Dougal McGuire.

Perhaps sometimes underestimated as a stand up, his charming set can flow now almost without the ghost of the dippy priest hanging over it, and he provided some of the most consistent laughs of the evening.

Dylan Moran received a rock star’s welcome as, glass of red in hand, he reamed off his latest grievances with typical poetic scorn; again having managed in some way to move away from the over-the-top bile of his own creation, Bernard Black of Black Books. Hecklers were few and far between and roundly ignored, except for Moran who swiftly shut up one dissenter with incredible skill.

Tiernan, although probably the least known of the three in England, is a huge draw in Ireland and it was immediately clear why he had been saved till last. His style (shouty) and delivery (flinging himself around the stage like a whirlwind) was a world away from what came before.

Although Tiernan’s humour is often base and somewhat tasteless with it, his performance, reminiscent of Billy Connolly, is about more than that; a reminder that the best comedy is fearless and can take on any subject, no matter how near the knuckle.

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