Arcola theatre, LondonThis recreation of Steven Spielberg’s 1993 classic is frenetic fun, with the dinosaurs brought to life using physical comedy – and traffic conesHold on to your … what? Your enjoyment of this show may well depend on whether you rec…
Continue ReadingThe comedian and novelist on the stress of sudden success, her disordered relationship with food, and how hobbies have replaced her libidoBorn in Kuala Lumpur in 1960, Jenny Eclair is a comedian, actor and author. The daughter of a major in the British…
Continue ReadingThe standup on his new book about stuck-up children, earnest hecklers and why he gets annoyed about being called a ‘TikTok comedian’How did you get into comedy?I’d always secretly wanted to be a comedian. When my university held a talent show and neede…
Continue ReadingAfter losing her father and brother, the Aunty Donna comedian was told she had a 97% chance of cancer herself. With a new album, musical and memoir to promote, she’s not slowing downGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailAt the end of her first yea…
Continue ReadingPleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh Dressed as the publisher’s emblem, in orange flippers and not much else, the ingenious comic delivers a dizzy series of droll visual routinesSome shows have “Edinburgh fringe” scored through them as if through a stick of …
Continue ReadingPleasance @ EICC, Edinburgh There’s more Margolyes than Dickens here, but her gift for florid characters is on fine display and suits the Victorian master perfectly“Guaranteed to offend and delight,” says the publicity. Really? It’s rare now to hear th…
Continue ReadingStudents on a comedy course devote their every moment to mining material for their on-stage routine in a novel that relies on how much it can make the reader laughFor any standup comedian, “material” is everything. Yes, it will require editing, fleshin…
Continue ReadingThe American humorist delighted the Royal Festival Hall with characteristically disgruntled slices of life – including a brush with cancel cultureIn years to come, I can tell the grandkids I was at the Royal Festival Hall the night Keir Starmer celebra…
Continue ReadingThe comedian on his strangest fan encounter, preshow rituals and his new film with Tom Basden and Carey MulliganHow did you get into comedy?I joined a sketch group, went to the Edinburgh fringe, and then kept doing that for years. It’s a good place to …
Continue ReadingThe late comedian’s son, Bob Cryer, offers an intimate and astute portrait of his father’s skill and wit, and the vulnerability beneathI never met Barry Cryer, but I do have a memory of him, which seems characteristic of those generated by this great l…
Continue Reading