comedy
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The New Muppet Show is Just Okay
The thing with puppets is you can’t kill them. When their human operators shuffle off this mortal coil, the puppet remains – gathering dust for a few years, perhaps, but waiting patiently for another unholy union with a fresh human soul. [1] Kermit the Frog is on his third human handler, and he doesn’t sound… Read more
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Relationships Relationships Relationships (or: people fear he’s writing about improv again)
Saturday was the last of my performances as part of Hoopla’s rolling House Team programme, in which they stick together a bunch of promising improvisers (and, on this occasion, me), try out some new formats, and see what comes of it all. I wasn’t able to make all the sessions, which consisted a couple of… Read more
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Comedy Competitions Were A Mistake
Comedy competitions are silly things to take seriously, but sometimes you see an injustice so egregious it makes you wonder if David Cameron’s meritocracy was a scam after all. Someone more cynical than me would decry the Brighton New Comedy Award as a thinly-veiled marketing campaign for the Jill Edwards stand-up comedy course. At the… Read more
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Thomas Crapper and a toilet seat made from the Elgin Marbles
I’ve been up and down to London like a cockney yo-yo the past few days. Thursday: a sketch rehearsal at Theatre Deli in the city, followed by a show at Hoopla Impro in London Bridge with some visiting pals (one a big improv enthusiast) from Istanbul. Friday: an improv session with an experienced improviser, Melissa… Read more
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An evening with John Lloyd and Steve Pemberton
Tonight was an End of the Pier show – not in the traditional sense, but these talks with comedy greats did take place at Horatio’s, the old karaoke bar at the end of Brighton pier. It was an interesting place to be on a dark and stormy night, and the waves looked garish in the… Read more