IF there are laughs to be had using an overhead projector and a pointy stick, then Dave Gorman is the man to get them.

Gorman practically invented his own kind of comedy when he decided to base entire shows on his increasingly bizarre missions, the best known of which, I am Dave Gorman, followed his pledge to meet, photograph and shake the hands of 54 other Dave Gormans.

Next week The Lowry will play host to two of Gorman's lesser known undertakings, his one man Edinburgh Festival show in 1999 called Dave Gorman's Better World and his first mission, the 1998 Reasons To Be Cheerful.

Better World came about, so the legend goes, after a night on the beer when Dave woke up in his garden with a beer mat, on which was written "Do a show that will make the world a better place".

Taking himself at his drunken word, Gorman wrote to 2,000 local newspapers requesting advice on how he should go about it.

The show follows Gorman's attempts to carry out those suggestions which included, rather bizarrely, a request for more freight on the canals and a pair of shoe castanets.

The second show Gorman will be performing is based on the 1979 chart hit from Ian Dury and The Blockheads. In this show (which was created after a bet in a pub - see the common link here?) Gorman examines every lyric of the song.

The comedian, whose credits include writing for the Mrs Merton Show, deserves praise, not only for the way his shows translate on to stage and TV, but for the freshness of his ideas, which have brought something original to an often-stagnant comedy world.

A reason to be cheerful indeed. Dave Gorman will perform at The Lowry on November 13, 14 and 15.