TV channel Gold announces the winners in a national competition for topical festive gags – can you do any better?What do Donald Trump, Santa and Olivia Colman have in common? No, it’s not a joke – but all three feature in the winning gags of a national…
Continue ReadingWarwick Arts Centre A cool crowd warms to the standup’s animated stories, daft moves and disarming candour in Dance Like Everyone’s WatchingA standup needs several qualities in their locker, among which tenacity may be the least heralded. It’s a specta…
Continue ReadingBloomsbury theatre, LondonDoc-turned-comic Kay recalls Christmases spent in hospitals – with anecdotes about peanut butter, ill-used confectionery and a blast of Spandau Ballet‘Christmas comes but once a year – and if you work in the NHS, you’ll say: t…
Continue ReadingBeing approached by people who like my work is a privilege, but not every interaction is positiveBeing on tour is my favourite thing to do. It is amazing to be able to play to people who have come on a night out to see you – immediately followed by the…
Continue ReadingWorld poetry slam champion Harry Baker and jazz musician Chris Read on the things that make them laugh the mostHarry: This National Poetry Day I performed alongside [poet] Paul Cookson, who at one point had a roomful of primary school children joining …
Continue ReadingO2 Arena, LondonGlimpses of wit float to the surface in this sex-and-excrement bonanza … but are quickly flushed away by tedious misogynyTwo trips to the O2 in 10 days: two shows wallowing in faeces. Reader, the life of the comedy reviewer is not all g…
Continue ReadingDuring the festive season, comedy clubs can be hijacked by drunk, obnoxious audiences. Dave Johns, Maff Brown and Jessica Fostekew recount their worst experiences‘We would sometimes bet to see how long a comic would last on stage. We amused ourselves b…
Continue ReadingTell us about your standout stage show of the year – we’ll feature a selection of your favourites later this monthWhat was your favourite theatre, comedy or dance show of the year? Please briefly explain why (250 words max) by filling in the form below…
Continue ReadingVaults, LondonZoe Lyons is a pyjama-clad deity with wrath-management issues and a retinue of doubtful angels in David Javerbaum’s enjoyable comedyIt began as a Twitter account, which begat a book, which begat a Broadway show, in which God descended amo…
Continue ReadingChequer Mead, East GrinsteadAttacks on Extinction Rebellion and smashed avacado keep Dee in default pissed-off mode, but there are a few inspired momentsJack Dee speaks out of a diagonal mouth: one corner where you’d expect it to be, the other tugged d…
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