Garrick theatre, LondonHis scattergun style leaves little room for depth, but the veteran gagsmith is still wonderful company as he tackles middle ageThere’s a pleasure to watching Frank Skinner that you don’t get with many other comics: you can approa…
Continue ReadingWilton’s Music Hall, LondonA transatlantic voyage in 1910, with the silent stars onboard, is the basis of Told By An Idiot’s beguiling comedyCharlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel shared a boat from the UK to New York in 1910, as part of Fred Karno’s music ha…
Continue ReadingSoho theatre, LondonThe charming musical misfits are funniest at their most absurd, serving up numbers that range from klezmer to folderol folkMost of us watched the Bros documentary and laughed; Nicola and Rosie Dempsey (AKA Flo & Joan) saw in it …
Continue ReadingWhen her trainer called muscly women ‘unfeminine’, the standup turned her outrage into a hilarious show full of sweat, barbells, chalk and childbirthJessica Fostekew felt nervous yesterday, very nervous. So she went to lift some weights. “I was at peak…
Continue ReadingCambridge JunctionThe Yorkshire comic’s endearing set about mistakes made in public roars into life with a final, extraordinary revealWho among us, deciding instantly on a course of action, has never made the wrong call? Maisie Adam’s stage is decorate…
Continue ReadingThe writer and standup comedian on the things that make her laugh the mostEugene Mirman. He has the most incredibly creative and silly mind. He manages to be warm and joyful but also make astute political points, and even does pranks without being mean…
Continue ReadingSoho theatre, LondonThe New Zealander’s minimalist Only Bones v1.4 combines the spellbinding and ridiculous but ultimately seems unsure what it wants to beNo props. No set. No text. No narrative. Just one light. Those are the rules guiding Trygve Waken…
Continue ReadingHis influence is everywhere – but is the great, groundbreaking comedian being forgotten? Twenty-five years after his death, we reassess his impact The reports of Peter Cook’s death on 9 January 1995 had no difficulty arriving at a consensus about him, …
Continue ReadingHannah Gadsby’s Nanette pushed her peers to interrogate their approach. ‘As times change, it’s right that comedy can become outdated,’ Anderson saysWil Anderson and I are sitting outside a South Melbourne café, our ears burning in the sun. We’re here t…
Continue ReadingHannah Gadsby made butchness cool again. Now a crop of queer comics are channelling their inner bloke – and getting back to boots, quiffs and tachesSarah Keyworth has, she says, a “weird kind of relationship with masculinity”. She appears confident in …
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