Occasionally at the Fringe, you have to stop, look around and ask yourself: how did I end up here?

Well, today’s “here” is the makeshift bar at the Hilton DoubleTree, whilst waiting for a Singaporean comedian who has flown in from Australia (where she is now based) for her Fringe debut.

The reason we’re here is that one of our crew got a recommendation from a mate, which is always a lovely way to hear about new clowns. Except that the last recommendation she received from this mate was for the “comedy” series Agent Kim, which is about a brutal Korean double agent who has defected from North to South, and whose daughter is almost murdered and then kidnapped.

Ha ha ha ha… wait, what!?

But let’s not hold that against our clown. Or our pal, who took us to NQ64 for some gaming silliness and pre-show drinks – y’know, just in case this also wasn’t exactly “comedy”.

Luckily for everyone, Ting Lim is actually an incredibly likeable clown. Her distinctive Singaporean accent occasionally breaks into an Aussie twang, which adds a nice extra dimension to her delivery.

The spine of the show is really her relationship with her traditional mum, and their interactions over the years as Ting navigates her way through life and the choices she has made.

The storytelling is solid, with a nice selection of interwoven jokes, but you can see where she is still honing her craft. She talks about going on stand-up comedy courses, and whilst the rigidity of those courses has clearly provided her with some structure, sticking to it too closely is actually costing her some of the more natural laughs that her material deserves.

There’s a really engaging comedian here, with plenty of good material and a likeable stage presence. The more she trusts herself to step outside the rules she’s been taught, the more I suspect this show will start to fly.

An enjoyable debut from an engaging clown who can only go from strength to strength by running the trial by fire that is the Edinburgh Festival.

Clown Stars: * * *

@Hoots, Apex, Edinburgh