2,036 stories by "Brian Logan"
'Most people conclude it's Looney Tunes time when Ed's around," says Edward Aczel halfway through his show. Spoken by any other comic, that would sound entirely credible. But spoken by Aczel…
Assembly George SquareFor Dave Gorman to call his new show PowerPoint Presentation is not remotely to distinguish it from the crowd. These days, fringe comedians feel naked without a screen …
National, LondonTwo actors on stage reading from a script usually means a rehearsal, not opening night. But this is Sam Holcroft's Edgar and Annabel: not just a drama of political resistance…
Soho theatre, LondonWhen Lawrence Leung was growing up in 1980s Australia, the futurology TV show Beyond 2000 foretold a world of robot servants, replaceable body parts " and jetpacks. Now y…
Conway Hall, London"Some of us will die." Earthalujah! "But we will have freedom again." Not many comedy shows ask us to sacrifice ourselves to save the planet. Then again, it's not clear wh…
A contest between 10 jobbing standups is more MasterChef than The X Factor bringing as much awkwardness as laughterIt was only a matter of time before standup got its own The X Factor. So we…
Soho Theatre, LondonIn interviews to promote this show, transgender diva Justin Vivian Bond " formerly of cabaret double act Kiki and Herb " has insisted he/she be referred to using the all-…
Palace theatre, Southend Continue reading...
Palace theatre, SouthendThere's not much in my career I'm proud of, says Dom Joly " and this, his first live show, is unlikely to extend that short list. It's not standup, just chat, in whic…
Soho theatre, LondonOne of the stars of the Pajama Men's new show is the South American Give-it-to-me bird, whose call is halfway between a squawk and the erotic moan of a particularly hammy…
Soho theatre, London Gluttony is hilarious, right? If you agree, Jeff Garlin's standup is for you. If not, the Curb Your Enthusiasm star " he plays Larry David's "fat fuck" manager Jeff Gree…
Shakespeare's Globe, LondonIt's not often that, on a balmy summer's evening, one finds oneself willing night to fall. But this Doctor Faustus needs a helping hand with sepulchral atmosphere.…
Gate, LondonFreud isn't so fashionable these days, but you can see what once made his ideas compelling. Arthur Schnitzler's Dream Story (which Kubrick filmed as Eyes Wide Shut) is Freud's th…
The Playboy founder's former fiancee was recorded for Funny or Die sending up her unusual romance. Is this the end of satire?Is this the oddest use to which comedy has been put? When 25-year…
Theatre Royal Stratford East, LondonSet in and around a Chinese takeaway, Robert Lee and Leon Ko's musical - the first, it's claimed, to represent the British East Asian experience - is a ch…
Shepherd's Bush Empire, LondonThere is a moment in Bo Burnham's show when, crossing the stage from guitar stand to keyboard, he breaks into a dementedly silly walk. "Never waste a moment," h…
Alban Arena, St AlbansWe came for jokes; he's giving us a sermon. The opening moments of Dylan Moran's new set are tantalising, as the Irish comic swaps levity for sonorous pronouncements on…
Shaftesbury, London"One of you will find yourself possessed by an entity." It can only be Derren Brown, tickling our taste for the melodramatic and supernatural. It works a treat during…
Critics praised James Corden's performance in One Man, Two Guvnors, but few recognised that its funniest moments were someone else's responsibility entirely ...Reviewing the National Theatre…
O2 Arena, LondonTo start his show, Peter Kay turns a camera on his audience, gifting one or two their moment on the giant upstage screen. At the end, he karaokes Queen and the Proclaimers to…
They're a passionate pair with a fetish for West End playhouses " and they're putting actors off their lines. But who are they?When the Telegraph's Charles Spencer reviewed Nicole Kidman in …
Open Air, LondonThere are few stages more apt to evoke a desert island than the Open Air Theatre's. This Regent Park venue's oasis-like qualities scarcely need embellishment to double a…
Should a local hit be shown more widely? Promoter Tommy Sheppard says yes " and accuses the Beeb of Oxbridge biasIs the best comedy necessarily the most universal? Hackles have been rising i…
Royal Festival Hall, LondonWhen photographs of David Cameron's new kitchen were publicised last week, the eagle-eyed identified a Michael McIntyre DVD on the PM's shelves. But standup comedy…
It's got dodgy accents, dance routines and Fabio Capello: the creators of Total Football, a new show about football tribes, talk to Brian LoganIt's FA Cup final day in Bar Kick in east Londo…
