The standup, actor and writer on the things that make him laugh the mostBack in 1993 I went to see Michael Redmond and Phil Kay at a comedy club on a boat on the Clyde in Glasgow. I’m not sure which one of them did it to me but I laughed so much I burs…
Continue ReadingSoho theatre, LondonFrom being spat at by male audience members to mum riding ‘groin first’ to the rescue, Mittal delivers an irreverent setWhen Aditi Mittal made her UK debut two years ago, it was with a lightweight guide to India for outsiders. You g…
Continue ReadingComedian, TV presenter, pop star … the ‘British Will Smith’ was geared for Hollywood stardom until his life came crashing down. Now, in a powerful play about death in custody, he’s making a fresh bid for stardom ‘People are going to come to the show th…
Continue ReadingThe soul-baring comedian has turned his experience of being stalked into a gripping piece of theatre, Baby ReindeerIt had all ended so well. When Richard Gadd won the Edinburgh Comedy award three years ago with Monkey See Monkey Do, it wasn’t just a pr…
Continue ReadingThe industry remains dominated by privately educated standups who have the right connections and can afford all the risks of a career in comedyAs a comedian, one of the first jokes I make when I pick up the mic is about my sexuality. Coming out on stag…
Continue ReadingThe Australian standup and actor on the things that make her laugh the mostNeil Hamburger has this bit about Steven Tyler in a dunce’s cap that kills me even when I think about it. Continue reading…
Continue ReadingImpressionist Jon Culshaw, playwright James Graham, comedian Bridget Christie and critic Mark Lawson on the prime minister’s opening week in WestminsterI’ve been doing Boris impressions ever since he emerged as Boris the Menace in Private Eye. He stuck…
Continue ReadingSitting near a performer puts you in the firing line – but it also makes you an invaluable part of any comedy showJohn Oliver looked into my eyes and cocked his head. We held each other’s gaze. On the “stage” of an upstairs room in a grimy little pub, …
Continue ReadingIn his controversial Michael Jackson-defending, trans-attacking Netflix special, the once-groundbreaking comedian shows his power has been diminishedIt all goes back to Lenny Bruce and Richard Pryor, or at least the reputation they left behind as a leg…
Continue ReadingAfter years working in bars and call centres, Brookes’ absurdist show netted him the Edinburgh comedy award. So why does he want to want to blow the whole thing up? It’s an hour after Jordan Brookes’s life changed, and we’re sitting in a cafe yards fro…
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