Acopalypse Yesterday
Posted on 21st September 2025
Fans of Alfie Moore’s radio show might be surprised that there were markedly fewer ethical dilemmas to grapple with in his live show. The occasional quandary was bounced off the audience — would you breathalyse your mum if she was driving erratically and immediately in front of your police car? — but for the most part the evening revolved around a shaggy-dog story reminiscent of those told by Ronnie Corbett back in the day.
There wasn’t a spare seat to be had at the Corn Hall for what was a return visit for Moore, offering up yet more anecdotes from his time serving on the force. While his radio show confronts us with challenging moral dilemmas — and thIs was definitely for a Radio 4 audience — the evening was an altogether more reflective experience. Along the way, the occasional fascinating fact was lobbed in. Disconcertingly, I found out David is statistically the unluckiest name on record, while anyone called Dave can fix anything — but badly. We also learned that Binley Woods is the unluckiest place to stop for a break, and Richard III died in 1485. All of which punctuated his retelling of his time as a policeman when required to serve while riding a bike. His undistinguished duties ranged from arresting Freddie the protester to mediating Eric’s domestic land grab. To say more about his meandering tale would be to spoil his big reveal, but suffice to say there was a deceptive elegance to his storytelling that drew together seemingly disparate strands with a pleasing symmetry.
Moore is, after all, more a teller of tales than a stand-up, and while he sprinkled his set with the occasional good gag, he is more wit than comic, eliciting chuckles rather than belly laughs. There’s nothing wrong with that, of course — far from it. The art of gentle, knowing humour is something precious in the face of abrasive, polarising opinion. What Moore delivers is a beacon of reasonableness in a time of divisiveness. Little wonder that he took the time to shake the hand of anyone in the audience who cared to take a moment to say their goodbyes.