Are you a comedy snob? by Brian Logan

Do you like belly laughs, or does giggling 'contaminate the aesthetic experience'? Academic research finds audiences torn betweeen low and high culture Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 1:17pm on August 15, 2014☆⚑

Sara Pascoe takes lively tour of her magpie mind Edinburgh 2014 review by Brian Logan

Assembly George Square, EdinburghFrom sperm selection to sexual anthropology to dating woes, a super-entertaining Pascoe gets personal Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:40am on August 15, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh 2014: Miranda Sings review broad humour, thin show by Brian Logan

Venue 150 @ EICCUnderstandably adored by her teenage following, the YouTube phenomenon has work to do to win a wider audience Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 7:41am on August 14, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh 2014 review: Luke McQueen takes standup to desperate new levels by Brian Logan

Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghMcQueen recasts his show as an aggressive confessional, railing against his disapproving dad and even smoking out the Guardian critic, to leave the room crackli…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 6:36am on August 14, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh 2014 review: Alex Edelman accomplished and poised by Brian Logan

Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghBoasting technical flair and a precocious authority, Edelman's comedy manages to capture the voice of Generation Y Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 1:07pm on August 13, 2014☆⚑

Lion taming and laughter: why fringe audiences love multitasking comedy by Brian Logan

From throwing fruit in sports challenges to circus escapology, comedy lovers are keen to watch standups do just about anything Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 9:48am on August 13, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival review 2014: Josh Howie his best lines are thrown away by Brian Logan

Canons' Gait, EdinburghAids: A Survivor's Story evokes its era, the 80s, but Howie's frustrating diffidence means he fails to sell his material Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:44am on August 13, 2014☆⚑

Free Fringe: broaching the tricky topic of donations by Brian Logan

Comics generally dread the 'bucket speech' the coda to their act reminding the audience that payment would be welcome but does it introduce a welcome note of humility to proceedings? Conti…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:58am on August 12, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival review 2014: John Kearns intriguing but abruptly curtailed by Brian Logan

Voodoo RoomsLast year's best newcomer gives his signature sadsack a promising meta-comedy workout, but his set ends all too soon Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 6:10am on August 12, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival 2014 review: Andrew Maxwell pricking the bubble of Scottish independence by Brian Logan

Assembly Rooms, EdinburghThe spiky Irish comic adds much-needed political bite to this year's fringe with a tenacious show that pulls apart the arguments over Scotland's imminent referendum …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 5:01am on August 12, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival 2014 review: Show Pony old-fashioned horsing around by Brian Logan

Just the Tonic at the Mash HouseMighty Boosh comparisons in tow, LetLuce's surreal storytelling complete with pink pantomime horse conjures some vividly ridiculous moments Continue reading…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:43pm on August 11, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh 2014: funny women and Generation Y angst by Brian Logan

Comedy critic Brian Logan can chart his life in Edinburgh fringe visits. So what stands out for him at this years festival? Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:13pm on August 11, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival 2014 review: Joseph Morpurgo: Odessa freewheeling imagination by Brian Logan

Pleasance Dome, EdinburghMorpurgo delivers a highly energetic performance, but his true brilliance is cowed under the weight of outlandish tangents Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:09am on August 11, 2014☆⚑

Liam Williams five-star review a shatteringly funny set: Edinburgh festival 2014 by Brian Logan

Laughing Horse @ the Cellar Monkey, EdinburghThe Yorkshire standup's free show Capitalism is an extraordinary cri de coeur about the shallowness of modern life Liam Williams: 'I've had nervo…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 6:22am on August 10, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival 2014 review: Gein's Family Giftshop a dark, fluid sketch show by Brian Logan

Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghBestiality, masturbation and dead grans make for merciless subject matter but this Manchester trio's terrific timing ensures this is a strong fringe debut Conti…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 7:08am on August 9, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh 2014 review: What Does the Title Matter Anyway? Clive Anderson comperes an improv masterclass by Brian Logan

Underbelly Bristo Square, EdinburghThere's a lot of love in the room as the Whose Line Is It ? old-timers breeze through an extended version of the TV format Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 6:17am on August 9, 2014☆⚑

Joke Thieves: cover-version comedy by Brian Logan

Edinburgh festival comedians perform their own material, then swap with a counterpart in this appallingly funny innovation Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 4:35am on August 9, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival 2014 review: Americanish Camilla Cleese goes off-colour for fringe debut by Brian Logan

Gilded Balloon, EdinburghWith digs at her famous dad, Cleese's LA gold-digger persona stays provocatively on the right side of caricature Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:54am on August 8, 2014☆⚑

Nish Kumar: a smart display of self-obsession Edinburgh 2014 review by Brian Logan

Confronting race and his own pessimism and neuroses, the standup's rapid-fire set explores how we live now Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:15am on August 8, 2014☆⚑

Act like a standup: Cariad Lloyd's shapeshifting comedy in Edinburgh by Brian Logan

From solo shows to improv and double acts why Lloyd is the face and the future of the fringe Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:26am on August 7, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival 2014 review: Toby: FuzzBuzz sibling rivalry gone wrong by Brian Logan

Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghThe Daykin's tour Stephen King territory with this somewhat OTT sketch comedy about psychosis and sisterly resentment Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:22am on August 7, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival review: Mr Swallow The Musical delivers Morecambe and Wise-style entertainment by Brian Logan

Pleasance Dome, EdinburghNick Mohammed's excitable alter ego stages a musical version of Dracula that is pure knockabout fun Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 7:23am on August 7, 2014☆⚑

Bridget Christie's fantastically funny feminism Edinburgh 2014 review by Brian Logan

Stand Comedy Club, EdinburghChristie shines with a new standup show that marries clownish self-satire with a passionate feminist call to arms Mark Lawson: Bridget Christie's Edinburgh fringe…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:33am on August 6, 2014☆⚑

Eddie Izzard's comedy showcase: global gags are a funny business by Brian Logan

International standups performed at an Edinburgh fringe gig compered by Izzard but the language barrier and cultural differences compromised their sets Où est le punchline? Standup in a s…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:07am on August 6, 2014☆⚑

Edinburgh festival 2014 review: The Pin high-concept skits with meta tricksiness by Brian Logan

Pleasance Courtyard, EdinburghThis sprightly hour from the ex-Footlights twosome threatens, before falling a little short, to be very good indeed Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 7:24am on August 6, 2014☆⚑