Lawrence Mooney successfully channelled Malcolm Turnbull, riffing on "Beetrooter" Barnaby Joyce – "the first politician to resign to spend less time with his family" – along with accountants who wear Akubras and where the Greens can stick their crystals.
I'm A Celebrity winner Fiona O'Loughlin expertly mined her relationship with her ex, creating an instant intimacy with the audience.
And all the while MC Des Bishop kept the momentum going with his own high-energy performance. With 16 short but sweet acts, the time flew. And the full house fully enjoyed itself.
Some of the best observations came at the expense of the home audience.
Kiwi Guy Montgomery skilfully skewered the land of the smashed avo with his tales of the pitfalls of Australian cafes, including spending $24 on a single egg and being offered a $7.50 orange peel brownie ("but the peel of the orange is the worst part!").
Ireland's Andrew Maxwell held up a hilarious mirror to our national psyche with a story about how, in a world ravaged by war and terrorism, the biggest story in Australia was our ball-tampering shame.
Heath Franklin's Chopper deserves his own TV show (Bogan's Heroes?) and Dane Baptiste's Imaginary Dad was an adults-only delight.
Rhys Nicholson proved once again why he is one of Australia's best stand-ups with an assured set that touched on the horror of being at a party with a anti-vaxxer and the reputation of methamphetamines – "they're like a Jennifer Aniston movie: they're always around but I've never heard anything good about them".
Rising star Becky Lucas had the audience in stitches with her tale of "backpack sex" (you had to be there).
However, the biggest surprise of the night was Canadian Ian Bagg. His dispatches from the frontline of the battle of the sexes were truly hilarious.
He won the biggest laugh of the evening with an adults-only joke with the punchline: "That's how a nozzle goes into a tank."
Quite delicious. My compliments to all the chefs.
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