HE spoke at a million miles an hour and the jokes were quickly fired at the audience in the Pavilion last night.

Dara O'Briain, who stars in our TV screens as the host of BBC's Mock the Week, is quick-witted, taking the people's responses to his questions and turning them around with intelligent responses at lightning speed.

He is also hugely observant and brings the kind of laughs that require little prior knowledge and more common sense. Topics covered by the comedian included TV box sets, the Bournemouth Balloon, his own lack on sincerity after watching Star Wars and a little piece of building machinery used to create the Channel Tunnel that he nicknamed Chuggy.

It was a packed crowd of mixed ages who turned out for the show, shunning the Eurovision Song Contest on TV for a night of live entertainment in their hometown and the TV star didn’t disappoint us.

Dressed in a smart suit and jacket, Dara O'Briain is a true entertainer and a laugh-a-minute, who incorporates audience interaction in his show and then encouraged people to cheer for those who took part at the end.

He also poked fun at the old theatrical custom of bidding everyone a farewell on-stage and the audience applauding, before returning to complete the set.

Dara is a fine example of a great in-offensive comedian who can be as funny off-screen as he is on it.