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Griff Rhys Jones: Where Was I? review – humiliations of a hapless traveller

February 28, 2018TheGuardian

The Old Market, Brighton
There’s no shortage of self-depreciating chatter as the comic looks back on a life of globetrotting in his touring show

‘I’m going to talk about my holidays, then I’m going to show you some slides.” No one can accuse Griff Rhys Jones of overselling his solo show, Where Was I?, an Audience With-style evening in which he reflects on a life of TV travel. The jokes at his own expense come faster than the rapids on the River Tay, just one of Jones’s adventures in the name of professional globetrotting. It’s as if this most blitheringly English of Welshmen is trying to excuse himself for having been paid to travel the world.

If judged by his account here, Jones brought no particular skill to his telly peregrinations, just a dose of pluck and a readiness to play the fall guy over and over again. Frequently, his efforts to climb a sheer rockface, tightrope-walk on a mountain ridge or dangle from the roof of a 30-storey building (even the clip gives you vertigo) are maligned by his director or outdone by a far braver cameraman. A running joke is made of our hapless, bruised or sodden presenter being asked “Griff, can you give us a look of triumph?” when at a humiliatingly low ebb.

This week on TV: We reach Final Space

February 26, 2018TheLaughButton

This week the new animated series Final Space debuts on TBS. Conan O’Brien serves as the executive producer of the… MORE

This week on TV: We reach Final Space appeared first on The Laugh Button.

Watch the trailer for the new HBO doc, “Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling” directed by Judd Apatow

February 21, 2018TheLaughButton

HBO is set to air a two-part, four-hour documentary about the life Garry Shandling. Judd Apatow is overseeing the project… MORE

Watch the trailer for the new HBO doc, “Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling” directed by Judd Apatow appeared first on The Laugh Button.

Here’s a first look at Tracy Morgan’s TBS series, “The Last O.G.” coming this April

February 20, 2018TheLaughButton

Here’s first look at Tracy Morgan’s return to TV with the new TBS series, The Last O.G.. The show places… MORE

Here’s a first look at Tracy Morgan’s TBS series, “The Last O.G.” coming this April appeared first on The Laugh Button.

Hannah Gadsby on the male gaze in art: ‘Stop watching women having baths. Go away.’

February 18, 2018TheGuardian

In her new ABC show Nakedy Nudes, the Tasmanian-born comedian delights in taking the highbrow mantle off art history

“Art history taught me I have no place in history,” said Hannah Gadsby in her furious, hilarious, devastating stand-up show Nanette. “Women didn’t have time to think thoughts; they were too busy taking naps naked in the forest.”

This is the central idea advanced in Gadsby’s new two-part ABC series Nakedy Nudes. Her thesis is that the current ideals of beautiful bodies and strict gender norms have a long past, inherited from the ancient Greeks and their Renaissance relatives.

‘I’m still in the game’: Sandra Bernhard on stage fright, The King of Comedy and not running for president

February 14, 2018February 19, 2018TheGuardian

The comic, singer and actor, performing in the UK for the first time in seven years, answered your questions

2.16pm GMT

Thanks for all the questions – I’ll be at Ronnie Scott’s at the end of the week!

2.14pm GMT

unprinted asks:

What does the song You Make Me Feel Mighty Real mean to you? Why chose to cover it?

Mighty Real was sort of an anthem for the pre-AIDS gay experience – a time of unbridled celebration and sexual freedom.

2.11pm GMT

toooom asks:

Another admirer of King of Comedy here. What are you most proud of?

What I’m most proud of is that I’m still in the game. I still love performing and being creative. I love what I do!

2.10pm GMT

sachat asks:

Have you ever had stage fright? Which of your projects has been the most nerve-racking?

Of course! Any time you walk on stage you’re nervous, that’s part of what motivates you to do a great show. But any time that I do television or films that’s the most nerve-racking because other people are dependent on your professionalism.

2.09pm GMT

25aubrey asks:

Who in your eyes, are the real king and queen of comedy, past or present?

When I was growing up, I adored Totie Fields and, of course, my dear friend Paul Mooney.

2.07pm GMT

Genevieve Scoville asks:

I’m a keen listener to your radio show on SiriusXM. Is there someone who sticks out as your favourite interviewee?

Most recently, Mena Suvari was a lovely surprise but on a regular basis, comedian Judy Gold is a fabulous interview. She’s on my show frequently. She’s a terrific conversationalist.

2.06pm GMT

Myam0t0 asks:

Beans on a fry-up?

I adore beans. On anything and everything!

2.02pm GMT

SeanWylas asks:

Today’s political and cultural climate in the US and the UK is shifting in a way that was not expected by many. As a result, it seems that a comment that once would have been seen as thought-provoking (even if you disagreed with it) can now send social media lynch mobs at people and potentially ruin careers (if not lives). This is seen on the left and on the right. As someone who speaks her opinion, how do you feel about this culture? How do you respond to such things?

I have definitely started to edit a lot of things that I would not have thought twice about saying 10 or 15 years ago. It simply isn’t worth it to be exposed to the unsophisticated thinking of so many people. I’ve learned how to recalibrate my approach to social commentary.

1.59pm GMT

Murdomania asks:

You recently said: “I try not to get caught up and swallowed up by the changing tides because they’re gonna keep changing” … however, now that Oprah indicated a lack of desire to be nominated to run to be the next President of the United States, would you be enticed to throw your hat in the ring? Sandra Bernhard POTUS46 has a nice ring to it.

I wish I had it in me but I’m afraid I’m not your lady for this one!

1.56pm GMT

Arthur666 asks:

I’ve always enjoyed your multilayered approach to comedy, and it always seems to have a message. Do you think this is lacking in the current comedy world?

I think the issue is there’s too much product out there. And there’s only a certain amount of things people can talk about. So sometimes it becomes redundant. It’s getting harder to hone your craft because of YouTube and the internet. You really need to get out to the clubs to hone your craft. A lot of people these days don’t have the patience.

1.49pm GMT

Buckaroo asks:

There’s an amazing film of yours from the mid 90s – an Australian film called Dallas Doll (featuring the screen debut of Rose McGowan), a sort of reverse Crocodile Dundee. It had a huge cult following, but is unavailable to buy. There’s a host of classic lines in the film, two of which are particular favourites in our family: “I’d like to see THAT angry!” and “Don’t forget the garlic bread, gorgeous.” For old times’ sake, please would you say those lines again now?

Actually it’s Rose Byrne. Working on this film was one of the strangest experiences of my life. It was like being trapped in a ‘no exit’ situation.

1.44pm GMT

DarkAnaemicI asks:

What’s your favourite memory of filming Hudson Hawk?

All my time spent with Richard E Grant! In particular a trip we took together to Vienna. We always had a great time.

1.43pm GMT

Buckaroo asks:

You performed a brilliant version of the Rolling Stone’s Angie on a Channel 4 show years ago called Viva Cabaret. Is it available now?

The answer is no! It’s one of my favourite songs of all time. It reminds me of my first trip to London in 1973 when the song was released. I was 17 and travelling around the world and having an incredible time.

1.42pm GMT

JimdiGriz6 asks:

[I’m] yet another massive fan of your work in King of Comedy. Did your craziness in that film come from real life, or was it a stronger version of [it]? … I’ve known a few women a little like you at times in that film!

At that time i was much closer to the character in the sense that i was just starting out in my career. I was very young, had a lot of extra energy, emotion to spare. Masha was more in tune with who I was then rather than now for sure…

1.36pm GMT

HdAlex asks:

What things are most important to you in your job?

Promptness, professionalism and no obscene language.

1.34pm GMT

OzMogwai asks:

Are you as funny in real life as you are on film, tv and stage? PS, you fucking own Raging Bull.

It depends on the setting! Of course I can be much funnier offstage rather than when I’m performing but those are private moments with friends who get the absurdity I seem to capture as I go through life!

1.25pm GMT

aemenzies17 asks:

Any advice, ideas or recommendations about how to survive Trumpageddon? I live in the US, and each day is more painful than the last. Please help!! PS, thank you for all the years of comedy therapy!

My best advice is to take big breaks from listening to the talking heads and endless updates on his latest faux pas and do something creative and rewarding so you can continue to have some normalcy in your life. As in all stressful times, this will pass!

1.25pm GMT

Arthur666 asks:

I see you musically as a rock’n’roll vixen. What can we expect from your set at the jazz church that is Ronnie Scott’s?

It’ll be a blend of personal stories, fabulous misc of course with my Sandyland Squad band on hand and a journey in and out of day-to-day quotidian life as I see it!

1.24pm GMT

Hello – It’s great to be back in London where, although the language is generally the same, the culture is much different. And that’s always inspiring!

3.00pm GMT

Sandra Bernhard webchat – post your questions now

To call Sandra Bernhard a triple threat would be selling her short. Since she started out in LA’s comedy scene and on The Richard Pryor Show, she’s been a provocative force in standup, and her cabaret-style shows prove she can deliver a song as well as a punchline.