Hassan al-Habib: Death to the West review (Midlands) – a scintillating debut from the British-Iraqi standoff | comedy

forBritish-Iraqi comedian Hassan Al Habib’s riveting show revolves around his coming from a part of the world plagued by poverty, danger and negative preconceptions about the world. But that’s enough about Birmingham. There’s plenty more where that came from in Death to the West (Midlands), the masterful solo debut of the so-called “interesting Arab”, the son of Middle Eastern expats now coming to terms with his complex sense of belonging. The entire show balances his “Brummie” identity with his Iraqi identity, making references to the stereotype of his immigrant father, his upbringing during the Second Iraq War, and finally – visiting his alleged homeland as an adult.

It’s a highly polished introduction to the lover and his talents; Maybe it’s a bit sleek and brilliantly designed, and wants some grit in its hardware. One factor in this may be familiarity with the courtship formula as a second-generation novel. This is not to doubt the truth and emotional significance of our host’s stories of being ashamed of his Iraqi background when the country was at war with the UK and trying to pass as white British to fit in. If any of this sounds tortured, it certainly isn’t in the telling: the lover’s touch couldn’t be lighter as he speaks wisely about Margaret Thatcher’s value of contraception, Jack Grealish as the Brummie archetype, and how his father learned to love. The Jewish people.

In the hands of the former Footlights man, these things sparkle like sunlight on the Tigris (or should that be the Grand Union Canal?), as he teases us about Islamic terrorism and the impending Muslim takeover of the UK. Ballast is provided by the harrowing story of his father’s life under Saddam (later published as an unexpected cautionary tale in a UK park), and elsewhere by incidents of everyday racism directed at seven-year-old Hassan and his courageous father – whose relationship with his son is painted here in a simple but eloquent paternal portrait. It’s a witty and entertaining show, finally, about what it’s like to belong for a man stuck between the Middle East and the West Midlands.