Jackie 'Moms' Mabley was gay, black, and political – and her stage act, the focus of a new Whoopi Goldberg documentary, was a cornerstone of all standup comedyReading on mobile? Click to l…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:36PMThe Big Yin's timeless gig at London's Royal Albert Hall sees him in typically energetic and incorrigibly childish moodTitle: Billy and AlbertDate: 1987 Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:36AMHe came from a family of Pentecostal preachers and performed comedy with righteous, thrilling fervourTitle: Breaking the RulesDate: 1987 Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:06AMA cockney lad who now drinks Zinfandel and admires the Montessori way, Flanagan satirises both sides of the class divideTitle: The Out Out Tour LiveDate: 2011 Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:48PMBehind the gurning game-show host and mother-in-law jokes was a complex comic with an unexpected past, who captured the hearts of the British TV-watching publicTitle: The Best of Les Dawson.…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:32AMOne of the funniest and most original comedians of the past 20 years is an incorrigible dabbler with little interest in fameTitle: HelloYear: 2007 Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:57AMA man who takes silliness to a new level, Teeuwen makes us look at normality anew. While doing improvised autoerotic yogaTitle: Live in LondonYear: 2008 Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:10AMSnide, sarcastic, seemingly eager to offend, Carr's on-stage persona is thoroughly unlikable. But that seems to be the point – and you can't fault his skillTitle: Stand UpDate: 2005 Contin…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:37AMThe granddaddy of modern standup comedy is on erratic but brilliant form in his penultimate showTitle: The Lenny Bruce Performance FilmYear: 1967 Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:09AMEarly death does wonders for an artist's reputation, it is true, but Hicks was a major talent – raw, angry, sincere, unhappy, weeping and yelling at a complacent worldTitle: RelentlessDate…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:50PMIn this remarkable comeback gig, one of comedy's great survivors demonstrates her superbly polished style – and her fearless honestyTitle: Margaret Cho: I'm the One That I Want Continue re…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:23PMStephen King's novella became a much-loved movie and is now a play. Did the critics give it a hard time?Buy the rights to a popular feelgood movie, put it on in the West End and charge peopl…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:51AMAs an exemplar of how to rule an audience with laughter, Howerd remains as good as comedians have ever gotTitle: Frankie Howerd on CampusDate: 1990 Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:55AMThere are some things at the festival you can always rely on. So, markers at the ready Download and print your bingo card here Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:13PMThe innovator behind The Larry Sanders Show is, like Woody Allen, another heir to the great Jewish comedic tradition – but he seems somehow at ease with his uneaseTitle: Garry Shandling: S…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:35AMIn The Pride is Back, the hectoring American standup proves that snideness and sarcasm are often the highest forms of witReading on mobile? Click here to view videoTitle: The Pride is BackYe…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:28AMMisogynist or feminist, liberal or lewd? That's a matter of opinion when it comes to Katt Williams's full-blooded commentary on black American cultureTitle: The Pimp Chronicles Pt 1Year: 200…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:38AMJackie 'Moms' Mabley was gay, black, and political – and her stage act, the focus of a new Whoopi Goldberg documentary, was a cornerstone of all standup comedyReading on mobile? Click to l…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:22AMWith punchlines so predictable you can't predict them, the Clown Prince of Denmark belonged more to the tradition of vaudeville and music hall than comedyTitle: The Best of Victor Borge: Act…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:57AMDaniel Kitson's comedy may come from fear of failure, but his career path offers a success story for nerds everywhereTitle: WeltanschauungYear: 2006The set-up: There are some people – you …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:45AMFilmed in the UK in 1965, this rare footage captures Allen in his pomp – and telling jokes that feel absolutely freshTitle: The Woody Allen ShowYear: 1965The set-up: If you've seen the or…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:33AMWilfully low-key, his comedy may not make much noise itself, but deserves a higher volume of praiseTitle: The Half Hour, Comedy CentralYear: 2012The set-up: "I'm going to rock your worlds, i…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:00AMHe may be a nerd, but the King of Queens actor ranks among the most polished, literate and erudite standups in the businessReading on a mobile? Click here to viewTitle: Finest HourYear: 2011…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:07AMThe secret to Dame Edna's five decades of enduring popularity? Making hard work appear effortlessReading on mobile? Click here to watch videoTitle: One More Audience with Dame EdnaYear: 1988…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:11AMSchumer's ditsy comic persona allows her to satirise a world in which women think they can control men easily if they wear little and think lessTitle: Mostly Sex StuffYear: 2012The setup: Th…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:18AMA little-known Canadian whose instructions on how to stalk, capture and murder a woman do little to dent his charmReading on mobile? Click here to view videoTitle: Me Doing StandupYear: 2011…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:31AMComedy about comedy is risky, but Gottfried's barked renditions of playground favourites are a treat for humour nerdsTitle: Dirty JokesYear: 2008The setup: After more than three decades in s…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:55AMThis Edinburgh festival and TV favourite takes postmodern standup to a dangerously funny new levelYear: 2012The set-up: It's almost its own genre now, self-referential comedy. In the early 1…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:23AMHe may be reviled, but the highest-earning comedian around is this era's Tommy Cooper or Eric Morecambe … and a class actTitle: Live and LaughingYear: 2008The set-up: Is it provocative to …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:28AMBehind the man-baiting facade, you get the feeling that all this brilliantly funny comic wants is for everyone to get alongTitle: Barely LiveYear: 2003The set-up: She called herself "the Sea…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:09AMOne of the funniest and most original comedians of the past 20 years is an incorrigible dabbler with little interest in fameTitle: HelloYear: 2007The set-up: For a long time now – in Brita…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:05AM