standup comedy
The New Normal, Royal Victoria Patriotic Building review - strong mixed billFriday, 07 August 2020
We live in strange times, so it's appropriate that a socially distanced pop-up arts festival – of theatre, comedy, improv, music and magic – calls itself The New Normal. I went to the first comedy night of its August run, curated by Good Ship Comedy... Read more... |
Comedy in the Courtyard, BAC review - al fresco gagsTuesday, 28 July 2020
After drive-ins, now come Covid-secure outdoor shows as the comedy industry tries to find its way back to normality. Battersea Arts Centre is utilising its hitherto unused courtyard for a season of outdoor comedy, during which Al Murray and Russell... Read more... |
Mark Watson's Carpool Comedy Club, Hever Castle review - mixed bill with gags and gourmet foodWednesday, 22 July 2020
Drive-in comedy shows are now well into their groove (although sadly a couple of promoters have had to cut their losses because of poor sales at some venues), and distinct differences in approach to what's on offer have emerged. Clearly going for... Read more... |
Lockdown Comedy 2: where to get your laughs this weekMonday, 18 May 2020
Daniel KitsonDaniel Kitson, in a rare and welcome move, has released his 2009 Edinburgh Fringe show, The Interminable Suicide of Gregory Church, in a version he has edited.Various times, 18-22 Maydanielkitson.comCambridge Footlights Stand-up... Read more... |
Jerry Seinfeld, Netflix review - not bad for a swansongTuesday, 12 May 2020
Jerry Seinfeld said in a recent interview that this Netflix special – 23 Hours to Kill – may be his last stand-up show. That's a shame, as there's much to enjoy here, even if he is retreading some old ground.Much of this material he performed during... Read more... |
Simon Amstell, Netflix review - wisdom and wisecracksTuesday, 14 April 2020
Who knew in the early days of his career, when Simon Amstell was taking the mick out of celebrities on Popworld and then Never Mind the Buzzcocks, that he would turn into one of the cleverest comics of his generation, with a special talent for... Read more... |
Rachel Fairburn, Go Faster Stripe review - smart and subtle gagsMonday, 06 April 2020
Rachel Fairburn says she didn't know what to wear for the gig. She's dressed in an all-black ensemble; hotpants, animal-print boots and a feather bolero jacket. “I've come as a mistress at a funeral.” It's a doozy of an opener to Her Majesty... Read more... |
Michelle Wolf: Joke Show, Netflix review - edgy and original materialMonday, 30 March 2020
Michelle Wolf, best known to UK audiences as the comic who upset Donald Trump with some smart barbs aimed at his staff at the 2018 White House Correspondents' Dinner, has done some occasional dates this side of the pond (plus a run at the 2016... Read more... |
Mister Winner, BBC2 review - gentle comedy about one of life's losersThursday, 26 March 2020
Spencer Jones, a clownish stand-up, has been responsible for some the cheeriest, daftest and most heart-warming shows at the Edinburgh Fringe, where he has twice been nominated in Dave's Edinburgh Comedy Awards (ECA). Others may know him from his... Read more... |
Shappi Khorsandi, Soho Theatre On Demand - enjoyable run-through of her careerMonday, 23 March 2020
Shappi Khorsandi's latest show, Skittish Warrior – Confessions of Club Comic, is an enjoyable look back at the stand-up's 20 years in the comedy business. She starts by taking us back to when she was child refugee; her father, a poet and satirist,... Read more... |
Feel Good, Channel 4 and Netflix review - a fresh, bingeable comedy that digs deep but feels mildThursday, 19 March 2020
“I am not intense.” That declaration arrives early in Feel Good, the new Channel 4 and Netflix romantic comedy fronted by comedian Mae Martin, who plays a fictionalised version of herself. Over Mae’s shoulder, we see a literal trash fire. She’s lit... Read more... |
Steve Martin and Martin Short, SSE Hydro Glasgow review - old friends bring a touch of vaudevilleTuesday, 10 March 2020
Steve Martin and Martin Short first met in 1986 on the set of The Three Amigos (in which they co-starred with Chevy Chase), became fast friends and have since worked on a few projects together. In what was quite a coup for the Glasgow Comedy... Read more... |
