Wednesday, October 25, 2017
Soho theatre, London The charmingly self-mocking standup is not short of decent gags but appears almost devoid of strong opinions. He may not offend but he certainly exasperatesWhat do you w…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:24AMTuesday, October 24, 2017
Gilded Balloon, EdinburghLast year's from-nowhere smash, this Kiwi duo has accrued a cult following that seems to include every other comedian on the fringe. You can see why: their show, Hig…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:54AMShepherd's Bush Empire, LondonDarby's loser act keeps him and us smiling, but some trimming of his silly storytelling would make this show a winnerOnly a comedian would wear jeans like these…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:33AMMonday, October 23, 2017
Brighton CentreEddie Izzard is on the UK leg of what's been billed as the biggest ever world standup tour, and the man himself is telling interviewers: "The key thing is making your stu…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:12PMWednesday, October 18, 2017
Hunter's followers retaliate with death threats. Plus: Russell Brand is 'double double against genocide', Jon Stewart lashes out at media and John Cleese hates today's comedyA masterclass in…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:42PMSoho theatre, LondonThere’s plenty to admire in Graham’s new show, including a teenage appearance on The Weakest Link and a fresh-minted routine about the £1 coin‘Push the envelope, b…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:06AMMonday, October 16, 2017
From the bumbling misadventures of Sean’s Show to the jaunty misanthropy of his later standup material, Hughes – who has died aged 51 – was a master of telling messy truths There were …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:12AMThe Capitol, Horsham"I'm not saying I'm perfect," says Sean Hughes, as he mocks all the things the rest of us do wrong. But part of Hughes's charm is that he does claim to be, if not perfect…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:33AMSoho theatre, LondonHis first standup set in three years works a treat as Key paints a slyly humorous and heavily ironic portrait of midlife disappointmentIt feels both apt and unlikely that…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:18AMSunday, October 15, 2017
Royal Albert Hall, LondonTheir current BBC3 sketch show has been drubbed by the critics - and there's no improvement on that programme's lobotomised humour at this live outing, a headline pe…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:42PMMonday, September 25, 2017
Standup Nick Coyle’s new show Queen of Wolves takes a Victorian governess on a terrifying journey – and proves how humour and horror work in similar waysThe buzz around Australian standu…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:33AMSunday, September 24, 2017
Leicester Square theatre, LondonFrom his long process, after coming out, of self-acceptance to his newfound romantic happiness, this is classic, neurotic, angst-ridden Amstell If there were …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:24AMThursday, September 21, 2017
Soho theatre, LondonI Could Have Been an Astronaut is an amusing ramble through Brand’s childhood obsessions, fate and the factors that make us who we areSome comics have extraordinary sto…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:18AMWednesday, September 20, 2017
The wig-wearing comic’s new show about humdrum heroism is his best yet. But as his act strives for knockout poignancy, does the goofy get-up help or hinder?When John Kearns corpses, is he …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:54AMMonday, September 18, 2017
O2 Arena, LondonIf you've got a taste for straight-up 1970s nostalgia comedy, you'll take a lot away from comedy stalwart Micky Flanagan's latest setYou may have seen Micky Flanagan on …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:24PMThe UK’s most popular comic is taking his cockney shtick on tour but he’s more than a cheeky caricature – his democratic brand of humour is smart and generousI’m not sure whether to …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:24PMSunday, September 17, 2017
The stars of the Greenwich comedy festival had to concertina their standup routines. But can the likes of Dylan Moran and Bridget Christie ruminate and rage against the clock?What is the bas…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:06AMSaturday, September 16, 2017
Leicester Square theatre, LondonCasting himself as a social misfit in his new show To Be Free, Amstell turns his fire, sometimes embarrassingly, on all of usWhat becomes of the neurotic come…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:36AMTuesday, September 12, 2017
Hamilton hits London, Bryan Cranston’s news anchor goes berserk, Wayne McGregor turns his DNA into dance, Mae Martin revisits her teen addictions and Toyah Willcox is a time-travelling que…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:12AMTuesday, September 5, 2017
The Daily Express blasts Lee Mack for his views on female comedians, a bunch of comedians take part in skirmishes, and Hello Ladies gets lacklustre reviewsYou know you're in trouble when the…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:04PMMonday, August 28, 2017
Now the fringe is over, comics from Desiree Burch to John Bishop are hitting the road with jokes about fertility anxiety, political correctness and life as a ‘virgin dominatrix’Maybe you…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:42PMSaturday, August 26, 2017
Relationship breakdown and homophobia in Australia pick up a prize – or two – for John Robins and Hannah GadsbyThe longest ever shortlist. The first ever joint winners. And clearly, the …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:18PMFriday, August 25, 2017
Heroes @ Monkey Barrel, EdinburghThe laughs keep coming in The Audition, a ramshackle tale of Steven Spielberg, talking robots and a bank-robbing fishThere aren’t many ways that a Spencer …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:48AMA new wave of comedians probing faults in leftwing politics provoke a crucial debate, but does their exaggerated antagonism hamper the cause?Identity politics has gone too far. PC has gone m…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:48AMUnderbelly Med Quad, EdinburghWith a parrot costume, Jacques Brel songs and silly set pieces, Lyons dreams up an almost aggressively winsome hour of complete nonsenseIs it comedy, or a spiri…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:33AMThursday, August 24, 2017
Some people are angry that Channel 4 is developing Hungry, a comedy set in one of Ireland’s darkest times. But don’t judge a script before it’s writtenThe idea dies hard that comedy au…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:18PMPleasance Courtyard, EdinburghYou seldom know exactly what’s happening in this set as our host prowls the room, eyeballs the audience and wreaks confusionIs the comedy world big enough for…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:54PMLaughing Horse @ City Cafe, EdinburghIn a likable and thoughtful set, the Canadian standup revisits her adolescence and explores the affinities between relationships and recreational drugsYo…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:42AMWednesday, August 23, 2017
Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghIn a cracking show, Branded, Willan has an easy rapport with the audience as she interrogates her identity as a northern, female, working-class comedian Norther…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:48AMTuesday, August 22, 2017
Laughing Horse @ Cabaret Voltaire, EdinburghThe astute standup drills into the divided, dysfunctional state of our world in a combative hour of coruscating comedy “I’m left, I’m libera…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:18AMMonday, August 21, 2017
Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghFans have flocked to hear him spill the beans on the islanders, but instead we get some sharply expressed though extremely familiar standup materialEdinburgh na…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:06AM 
