COMEDIAN Mark Steel was 'in town' last night, but for once the focus was on him rather than the locale.

For alas, the 50-something stand-up recently got divorced and has rather a lot to say about it.

Steel's latest tour might be called 'Every Little Thing's Gonna Be Alright' but sitting through it, one often felt otherwise.

Gone is the gentle mockery of British communities from his popular Radio 4 series Mark Steel's In Town, replaced instead by a three hour moan about everything from his own woes to Brexit and modern society.

Yes, splitting up sucks, but it's a shame when someone whose appeal lies in offering a different kind of material resorts to the same hackneyed topics as his peers.

Which comedian these days doesn't rant about over-complicated technology, Donald Trump, social media and dealing with call centre staff?

It all felt a bit tired and depressing, dwelling on his ex-wife's criticism of all his flaws, such as his obsession with sport and his nomadic career.

His very divorce papers and a hat stand she had hated made up the simple stage set, and the audience heard all about his divorce mediation proceedings.

Sadly, when Steel quipped: 'Maybe I should have waited a year for this, until I was less bitter' after a joke about Hitler, one felt inclined to agree with him.

The best bits of this show lay in the ad libs. As it neared to a close, someone heckled: 'When are you going to talk about Poole?', allowing Steel (who had already referenced Poole bus station, Sandbanks and Thomas Hardy) to gently mock the interjector.

And his bemusement at the ruination of porridge ('It's the simplest invention. Why would you put chocolate in it?!') was amusing.

It must be hard to carve a new path after you've found success with one formula, and hats off to Steel for trying.

He's clearly still a talent, and raised a few laughs, but this performance left you feeling he could do much better.

Any middle-aged male comic can do these miserly, jaded jibes. With Steel, one expected more.