If you enjoy irreverent stand-up and are prepared to dine out on a feast of anti-Bushisms, anti-Iraq Warisms and a modicum of bad language, of the same order as classic stand-up performances from Eddie Murphy and Richard Pryor (I would have added Robin Williams, but he is genuinely funny), then Bill Maher I’m Swiss will be right up your red-necked street.

Actually being ‘red-necked’ is not what Bill Maher is about, because his politics are far more liberal than that, as he is only too happy to point out during this 80-minute diatribe. Yet, rather than being ‘dire tripe’, which it could have been so easily, so outspoken are Maher’s critical comments, I found his monologues not merely amusing but also surprisingly well considered (and researched). Remember that this is a comedian, who is renowned for being almost as ‘shouty’ as the protesters, who tend to frequent the front doors at his gigs.

He is neither averse nor afraid to turn the subject matter around to annoy his audience and, whether you think that this is either a brave or foolhardy action on his part, it is certainly a radical departure from watching a cosy Rory Bremner on a Sunday evening spouting much the same sort of information but in a typically British way.

While hardly the most memorable of stand-up performances and, despite being released only recently on DVD, dating back to 2005, prior to Barack Obama becoming President of the United States, his social and political commentary does serve to remind us of just how bad things really were under George W Bush’s stewardship. Treated more as wry semi-political humour, without an ounce of political correctness, rather than seeking a ‘funny-ha-ha’ programme, treat this as a semi-social report and you will not be far off. Maher is mostly quite engaging and is certainly not stupid, even though his audience is typically supportive.

There is an interesting Q&A session that is included in the DVD’s ‘extras’, as well as the run-up to the show, which is largely forgettable. It will have a narrow field of response.