Kerry Godliman review – relatable laughs that get the job done

Blackheath Halls, LondonThe After Life star invites us to join her as the butt of the joke in her clever, gag-filled observations on life in the internet ageKerry Godliman’s show title, Bosh, is taken from a Greg Davies phrase on Channel 4’s Taskmaster…

Continue Reading

Barry Cryer was cheeky, kind and a canny engineer of comedy | Mark Lawson

A generous-hearted jokesmith, Cryer created laughs for generations of comics, was a consummate performer and had a lifelong commitment to wit‘An honorary uncle to countless comics’: Jack Dee on CryerThe best work of Barry Cryer, who has died aged 86, w…

Continue Reading

‘You have to double-cross the audience’: the director turning Cluedo into a theatre murder mystery

Will it be Miss Scarlett with the lead pipe? Or that horrid Colonel Mustard? Mark Bell explains why the board game’s enduring appeal makes it ideal for the stage”There are always moments in a comedy which you’re convinced are going to bring the house d…

Continue Reading

‘An honorary uncle to countless comics’: Jack Dee on Barry Cryer

The comedian pays tribute to his sometime co-conspirator on BBC Radio 4’s I’m Sorry I Haven’t a ClueBarry Cryer dies aged 86There cannot have been anyone from the world of British comedy in the last 60 years that Barry Cryer didn’t know, work with or h…

Continue Reading

Barry Cryer: a life in pictures

After a career spanning six decades, the veteran comedy writer and performer has died, aged 86. We highlight his finest hours, from The Frost Report to I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue Continue reading…

Continue Reading

‘The godfather of alternative comedy’: Eddie Izzard, Paul Merton and more on Spike Milligan

He was the shellshocked genius who channelled his anarchic brilliance into The Goon Show. Ian Hislop and Nick Newman explain why they’ve written a play about Spike Milligan – while comedians remember a legendThe tortured lives of comedians form a biogr…

Continue Reading

Aziz Ansari: Nightclub Comedian review – standup looks back in cynical Netflix special

NetflixIntercut with footage from 20 years ago, the US comic’s new show considers the pandemic, politics and allegations made against himAziz Ansari’s career has been dramatically carved in two since the sexual misconduct allegations made against him f…

Continue Reading

Nish Kumar: Your Power, Your Control review – this time it’s personal

Soho theatre, LondonAn account of a terrible gig opens ‘a silly window’ on the Mash Report comic’s mental health and the rise of nativismWhy is Nish Kumar such a bete noir for angry rightwingers everywhere? Everybody hates him, he cries from the stage …

Continue Reading

‘Everything ends up about death and shagging’: Fern Brady on comedy, autism and intrusive thoughts

Her scathing, surreal standup wowed audiences – and when she was diagnosed as neurodivergent, it started to make more sense to her, tooIn 2018, Fern Brady’s comedy career was taking off. Fresh from supporting Frankie Boyle on tour, she filmed Live at t…

Continue Reading

Anthony Noack: The Preacher review – standup sermon falls flat

Living Record festival Noack’s attempts to compare comedy routines to evangelising would have been more persuasive with discernible jokesStandup resembles biblical preaching, according to Australian writer Anthony Noack, a case he tries to make by perf…

Continue Reading