Despite #MeToo and greater awareness, women are still having to protect each other from threatening men and still paying the price for speaking outAs the investigation into Russell Brand’s treatment of women was published last weekend – allegations tha…
Continue ReadingMany women working in industry say allegations only scratch the surface of its culture of misogyny“When I was 18 I had an incident with a powerful male comedian in his 30s,” says Lucy (name changed), a female comic in her early 30s. “It was really harr…
Continue ReadingThe standup on her comedy heroes, preshow jitters and the parenting double standards for male and female comediansHow did you get into comedy?I was on maternity leave from teaching, at home with a newborn and a two-year-old, and felt like I was going a…
Continue ReadingWyndham’s theatre, LondonWhere other midlife male standups splash in the shallows of domesticity, dinner parties and feeling tired, Birbiglia dives right into family, death and the meaning of lifeThere’s no shortage of standup on the depredations of mi…
Continue ReadingHackney Empire, LondonAs the dust settles on his recent tabloid notoriety, Walsh contrasts the domestic landscape of maturity with his wild youthWe had a fun night, says Seann Walsh – “but not as fun as if I hadn’t turned up”. The joke is that Walsh – …
Continue ReadingThe comedian and author on his new musical about Twiggy, remembering Rik Mayall, and why he’d like to have a word with Julian FellowesWhile studying drama at the University Of Manchester, Ben Elton met Rik Mayall and Adrian Edmondson. They became part …
Continue ReadingSoho Theatre, LondonAs they craft their extended sketches off the cuff, TJ Jagodowski and Dave Pasquesi deliver laughs with a surprisingly moving emotional twistNothing in comedy defines expertise quite like Chicago improvisers TJ & Dave at work. T…
Continue ReadingSoho theatre, LondonThe electrifying Berlant recounts her fictional life in this sharp and silly show directed by Bo BurnhamComedies don’t come hipper than this New York transfer from Kate Berlant. Its director is the prodigious talent behind lockdown …
Continue ReadingAs her play about toxic secrets and old friends hits the stage, the host of The Guilty Feminist podcast explains how studying Wilde and Shaw showed her the subversive power of laughterI’m a feminist, but … I went to university in 1997 and in those days…
Continue ReadingFor the first time ever, both the ‘Oscars of comedy’ have gone to standups with South Asian heritage. So what do the two performers who set the fringe alight have planned? Lots of boasting, finds our writerTo be crowned the best of the best at the Edin…
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