A friend once told me women comedians aren't as funny as their male counterparts.

Sara Pascoe proved this absolutely is not the case when she took to the Marlowe Theatre stage on Friday.

The star of Twenty Twelve and the Thick of It appeared at the Canterbury venue as part of a new stand-up night, Live At The Marlowe, alongside king of the pun Stewart Francis, comedy magician Pete Firman and double Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee Andrew Maxwell.

Anyone who hasn't seen Pascoe's many appearances on the likes of QI and Mock The Week may initially be disarmed by the well-spoken, articulate blonde.

But make no mistake - she is outrageously rude. Holding nothing back, she candidly recounts darkly hilarious stories from her youth, which she freely admits "will make you hate me".

Following in her huge footsteps was Pete Firman. The word "magician" usually provokes a collective groan, but Firman uses his industry's corny reputation to his advantage. Yes, there were card tricks, a handkerchief illusion and a disappearing bank note, but he is no children's party clown.

Foul-mouthed Firman delivered his blend of comedy and impressive showmanship with an ironic wink to the audience. The crowd erupted with laughter as he showed zero patience for those unfortunate enough to sit in the front row who were called upon to participate.

Arguably the biggest draw of the night was Live At The Apollo regular and master of the one-liner, Stewart Francis.

Known for his quick-fire comedy style, the Canadian comic had the audience in stitches with a constant stream of feed-line, punch-line gags.

Some were Tim Vine-esque tame and cheesy, but this was tempered with others so near-the-knuckle, they provoked a mass intake of breath.

The evening was weaved together seamlessly by Irish comedian Andrew Maxwell on compering duties. Very quick-witted, hecklers were in for a rough ride as he engaged with the audience and identified members who had travelled from the furthest away.

There were the inevitable jokes about Brexit, and his observations about Kent went down well.

Maxwell revealed he had recently moved to the south of the county, and waxed lyrical about his love of the gorillas at Port Lympne Animal Park - and his glee at the fact they have a slide in their enclosure!

The auditorium wasn't packed to the rafters, but once word spreads about the quality of acts on offer at Live At The Marlowe, it will be a sell-out.

More of the same, please.