standup comedy
Mat Ewins, Soho Theatre review - multimedia show with twists in the taleMonday, 16 October 2017
Mat Ewins comes on stage with a bullet belt slung across his chest. Indiana Jones he ain't, but what follows is a spoof on that film genre, a convoluted narrative that makes little sense but has a large degree of bombast as the show's title, Mat... Read more... |
Ahir Shah, Soho Theatre - a bravura response to Brexit voteWednesday, 27 September 2017
There were a lot of shocked and disappointed people after the EU referendum last year and several comics have used the result to fashion some good comedy, delivering state-of-the-nation material in their shows. For Ahir Shah, though, the more he... Read more... |
Mae Martin, Soho Theatre review - life is a drugTuesday, 19 September 2017
She’s only 30, but Mae Martin has been at this comedy lark for a long time. By her own admission she was a rather strange child; she became obsessed with stand-up after her parents took her to a comedy club when she was 11, and she started... Read more... |
Edinburgh Festival and Fringe 2017 reviews round-upMonday, 21 August 2017
Wondering what on earth to choose between as you tramp the streets of the festival? These are our highlights so far.STANDUPAthenu Kugblenu, Underbelly Med Quad ★★★ Strong debut hour of political and identity comedyCally Beaton, The Caves ★★★★ Single... Read more... |
Edinburgh Fringe 2017 reviews: Ingrid Oliver / Darren Harriott / Jayde AdamsMonday, 21 August 2017
Ingrid Oliver ★★★★ Ingrid Oliver is an old Edinburgh hand as one half of the sketch duo Watson and Oliver, but this is her debut solo show, and a very fine one it is. The set-up in Speech! is that she plays various characters giving speeches –... Read more... |
Edinburgh Fringe 2017 reviews: Hannah Gadsby / Suzi Ruffell / Ivo Graham / Athena KugblenuThursday, 17 August 2017
Hannah Gadsby ★★★★This is Hannah Gadsby's last show, she tells us. Not because she has stopped being funny (she most definitely hasn't, as the laugh count in this show attests), but because making comedy out of her life experience has become toxic... Read more... |
Edinburgh Fringe 2017 reviews: Tom Allen / Cally Beaton / Lauren Pattison / TrumpageddonTuesday, 15 August 2017
Tom Allen ★★★★ Tom Allen is celebrating his 10th year at the Fringe, and he appears to be having a ball – and so do we. He bounds on stage full of energy and does a fantastically strong 10 minutes' interaction with the audience, and... Read more... |
Edinburgh Fringe 2017 reviews: Kiri Pritchard-McLean / Dad's Army Radio Hour / Elliot SteelMonday, 14 August 2017
Kiri Pritchard-McLean ★★★★Appropriate Adult has an unlikely subject for comedy – Kiri Pritchard-McLean's work with vulnerable teenagers. But it proves rich territory as she recounts her relationship with one in particular, 15-year-old “Harriet... Read more... |
Edinburgh Fringe 2017 reviews: Tiff Stevenson / Jarlath Regan / Urzila CarlsonThursday, 10 August 2017
Tiff Stevenson ★★★★“I identify as a 10!” Tiff Stevenson tells us in Bombshell. It’s a strong opener, particularly as she follows with: “And if you don’t agree you’re beauty-phobic.” It’s not to boast, though, more marking her territory in a show... Read more... |
The Big Sick review - enchanting romcom about mixed marriagesWednesday, 26 July 2017
The Big Sick is an enchanting film from the Judd Apatow comedy production line. Don’t be put off by the terrible title. There are two forms of sickness on display in the story of Kumail Nanjiani, a Pakistani American who plays himself in his own... Read more... |
Russell Brand, Touring review - grandiloquent performer in reflective moodFriday, 30 June 2017
Were ordinary folk to plunder their lives for comedy, most of us would be sadly lacking in any topics worthy of analysis, let alone laughs. But Russell Brand, who every few years appears to reinvent himself – from drug addict to stand-up comic, from... Read more... |
Ricky Gervais, Touring review - chatty and relaxed riffingFriday, 12 May 2017
Ricky Gervais enters the stage after recordings of some the great (and not so great) men of history – including Winston Churchill, Martin Luther King and Adolf Hitler. And then there's a portentous introduction – are we then going to hear some deep... Read more... |
