Bleak Expectations review – agreeably funny Dickensian spoof as cosy as a woollen teapot

Criterion theatre, LondonCaroline Leslie’s production sends up the less problematic Victorian foibles with a terrifically spirited barrage of juicy one-liners, blunt anachronisms and pleasing melodramaAs a commercial prospect, you can’t fault this stag…

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Standup Ola Labib: ‘They want you to be the haram Muslim on TV – I wasn’t risque enough’

From drunk punters to myopic commissioners, the comic has faced many hurdles. She talks about her NHS career, the conflict in Sudan and finding the funny through her family‘I feel kind of selfish because I’m talking with you here in this fancy place an…

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Melanie Bracewell: the 10 funniest things I have ever seen (on the internet)

The New Zealand comedian shares what makes her laugh online, including her friend’s audition tape, Sean Lock and a singing catGet our weekend culture and lifestyle emailI’ve been on the internet for as long as I can remember. I spent hours as a child m…

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Judi Love review – solo tour crowns funny girl done good

Hackney Empire, London You’d expect bawdy lines delivered with deadpan frankness from the rising TV comedian, but injections of knockabout physicality raise her stage showpiece to higher joySometimes at a standup gig, the environment elevates the mater…

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Judi Love review – solo tour crowns funny girl done good

Hackney Empire, London You’d expect bawdy lines delivered with deadpan frankness from the rising TV comedian, but injections of knockabout physicality raise her stage showpiece to higher joySometimes at a standup gig, the environment elevates the mater…

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Candy Gigi: Friday Night Sinner! review – all-out bid for showbiz glory

Soho theatre, London Torn between wifely duty and her dream to become the Jewish Barbra Streisand, this would-be star finds an in-between world of outrageous comedyA teenage winner of Borehamwood’s Got Talent, Candy Gigi’s dreams of entertainment stard…

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August in England review – Lenny Henry’s remarkable one-man show about the Windrush scandal

Bush theatre, LondonThe actor makes his debut as a playwright with a richly detailed character study, performing with warm humour and outrage at injustice‘Have you seen Theresa May dance? Now that’s a hostile environment.” When the former UK prime mini…

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Adam Brace had a magic touch for comedy and theatre – both worlds will mourn his death | Brian Logan

Brace, who has died aged 43, was a hugely talented playwright, dramaturg and director who worked on a string of hits including One-Woman Show and Age Is a Feeling“The most high-profile director you’ve never heard of.” That’s what the Stage newspaper ca…

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‘I’m going for it like crazy’: Eddie Izzard on her one-woman, 19-role Great Expectations

After 30 years, the standup star is now finally winning acting plaudits, for a ‘tour de force’ take on Dickens with sharper punchlines – and Hamlet is nextFirst names first. What does the artist formerly known as Eddie Izzard, who recently announced sh…

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Kevin Hart returns to UK to amplify the outrageous in Reality Check tour

The controversial standup brings big cartoonish energy to his first tour since 2018, delivering a set of self-mockery and dismay at bizarre behaviourKevin Hart is back in the UK on his first tour since Irresponsible (2018) which, with zillions of ticke…

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