It has been interesting to see that Kevin Bridges had trouble with hecklers at a recent Edinburgh Playhouse gig. Reports have suggested that noisy audience members spoilt an otherwise excellent show... more
Blog
So you want to be a comedian? Should you do a comedy course? It’s a question I’m often asked at comedy conferences.The recent blog post by Jay Islaam questioning the wisdom of doing comedy courses... more
Three months ago I attended a paid “workshop” in Bristol, which promised to help new comedians improve their chances of winning comedy competitions. One by one, more than a dozen of us got up... more
Billy Connolly is back on the road, doing what he loves best - stand-up. His Parkinson’s Disease means he can no longer play the banjo, but despite ill health he has clung on to that most precious of... more
It is still too early to say whether Jeremy Corbyn’s landslide victory will be good for the country but one thing is certain. It will be good for comedy. If there were not enough jokes already... more
Frankie Boyle made news this weekend when it was reported that fans were not let back into his gig after they left to go to the toilet. Boyle says that this is not supposed to be the case and that... more
OK, serves me right for googling my name on Twitter. As the end of the Fringe approached I wrote a piece speculating on who might make the Foster’s Edinburgh Comedy Award shortlist. For my sins I did... more
I’m not sure why I’m writing this as I know I’m going to get some stick for it from people who will say I did not delve deeply enough into the real alt-com Fringe, but I’ve just totted up my Fringe... more
When Sam Simmons won this year’s Foster’s Edinburgh Comedy Award I was delighted for him. Simmons had been nominated twice before, which meant that to persuade the judges to vote for him he had to... more
This year’s eight-strong Foster’s Award nominations list was the longest-ever list, but that didn’t stop plenty of grumbling in Edinburgh's bars last night. Unless every Fringe show is nominated –... more
