Comedy

Adam & Joe - Song Wars Volume 2

Buxton and Cornish's second take on musical satire

24 Nov 2010

Named in an entirely unscientific recent Guardian poll as one of the top six double acts ever (alongside the likes of Vic ‘n’ Bob and Jen & Dawn), messrs Buxton and Cornish have gleefully held onto the juvenile exuberance that initially made them so…

Mark Watson on proposing on stage, mastermind and a fear of lightning

Comedian embarks on UK tour

19 Nov 2010

1: Former Cambridge Footlights chap Mark Watson first cropped up in the comedy firmament in 2002. Then, at the tender age of 22, he won the last-ever Daily Telegraph Open Mic award, beating off competition from the likes of Hils Barker, Gary Delaney and…

Jo Caulfield on why Joan Rivers is her comedy hero

27 Oct 2010

Joan Rivers is like The Rolling Stones: you may not like what she’s turned into but her early work will blow your mind. She was the first female comic I really connected with. She made me laugh LOUD and HARD: ‘A man can sleep around, no questions asked…

Ed Byrne plays warm-up gigs throughout Scotland prior to spring tour

Observational Irish wit takes his spark and vitriol around Scotland

27 Oct 2010

Ahead of a bumper spring tour, Mr Ed jaunts our way for some warm-up gigs down the old Stand. For those of a younger disposition, the boy Byrne used to have really long hair and was (probably still is) a huge Queen fan who got nominated by the Perrier…

Kristen Schaal & Rich Blomquist - The Sexy Book of Sexy Sex

6 Oct 2010

(Hodder & Stoughton) Having previously joked about doling out sexual favours in return for positive reviews at the Fringe and playing a rubbish stalker in Flight of the Conchords, Kristen Schaal’s foray into literature with a book about doing the do…

Looking back on 25 years of commentary on Scottish culture

25 years of The List

23 Sep 2010

A lot has happened in 25 years of Scottish culture. Niki Boyle gives a blow-by-blow account of the major events

The Chooky Brae

10 Sep 2010

It’s a little disconcerting to step out of a balmy late summer’s evening into an auditorium filled with festive songs and walk past a stage set whose centrepiece is a Christmas tree. But then playwright DC Jackson was always going to want to round off…

Claire Sawers wins 2010 Allen Wright Award

List assistant editor wins Festival arts journalism award

10 Sep 2010

It’s celebration time at List Towers this fortnight following news that assistant editor Claire Sawers has won this year’s coveted Allen Wright Award for festival writing. The Awards were set up in 1998 to honour the contribution of the former Scotsman…

Hardeep Singh Kohli

10 Sep 2010

Tales and tastes from the bubbly broadcaster, writer and dab hand in the kitchen, as the special K treats us once more to his comedy-cookery show, The Nearly Naked Chef. Brunton Theatre, Edinburgh, Fri 17 Sep; Eastwood Park Theatre, Glasgow, Sat 18…

5 Comedy Shows Worth Watching On Telly

7 Sep 2010

Him and Her Ex-Cowards chap Stefan Golaszewski brings us his own ‘anti-romantic comedy’ about a young couple who are madly in love but with little appetite for the outside world. So the outside world decides to come to them. Russell Tovey, Sarah…

The Sing-along Glee Club

Hilariously silly, ridiculously twee and delightfully camp

7 Sep 2010

Given the title of this show, one could be forgiven for assuming that its content would be that of the popular television show Glee which recently reached our screens from across the pond. On the contrary, ‘Sing-along Glee club’ provides an insight into…

Isy Suttie: My Comedy Hero

7 Sep 2010

I think Tim Minchin and Tom Basden are brilliant, but I find it more difficult to watch musical comedy because I’m more critical of it, or I think, ‘Oh god, why didn’t I think of that?’ But the way that Tim Minchin can flip from one thing to another is…

Barbershopera: Apocalypse No!

A superb show full of dazzling vocals

7 Sep 2010

In a hilariously funny show - where Satan’s horsemen adopt a jaded primary school teacher as their leader to incite the end of the world - the ‘three guys and a girl’ of Barbershopera tell the tale of Beth, a teacher, who is looking for the venue of one…

Take the Mic competition final 2010

'Homeless Bee Gee' John Scott win £12,000 cash prize

27 Aug 2010

Described by one comedian as a cross between a POW camp and Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, Edinburgh’s Caledonian Brewery played host on Sunday to the grand final of this year’s Take the Mic competition (also sponsored by The Scottish Sun). Hosted by…

Edinburgh Comedy Awards shortlist a strong gathering led by Bo Burnham and Josie Long

2010 awards puts two women on shortlist for first time

26 Aug 2010

According to Nica Burns, producer of the Foster’s Edinburgh Comedy Awards, 2010 is ‘a vintage year for comedy,’ and the shortlist for the main award ‘reflects the enormous changes in the comedy landscape’. Of course, this might just be the kind of…

Edinburgh Comedy Awards shortlist announced

Bo Burnham, Greg Davies and Sarah Millican head up 2010 shortlist

25 Aug 2010

The shortlist for the 2010 Foster's Edinburgh Comedy Awards has been announced. The acts nominated are: Bo Burnham, Greg Davies, Josie Long, Russell Kane and Sarah Millican

Tim Vine: Joke-a-motive

Quickfire pun-slinging and silly songs

25 Aug 2010

You know what to you expect going into a Tim Vine show: the man has built a reputation on the rapid-fire delivery of one-liners, even going so far as to secure a Guinness World Record for the most jokes told in an hour (although we should mention that…

Interrobang?

Student-y question and answer improv

25 Aug 2010

The strangely-accented lady in the ringmaster’s costume gathers material from the audience: an unanswered question (‘Why did the chicken cross the road?’), some names (‘Jemima! Theodore!’), and a location (‘the zoo!’). These answers are all duly noted…

Frisky and Mannish - The College Years

Not only hilariously funny, they’re also both brilliant musicians

25 Aug 2010

Jumping straight into Frisky and Mannish’s College Years, having missing out on their 2009 School of Pop, I was a little uncertain as to whether I would be able to keep up with the pace. Fortunately the talented duo are prepared for this, introducing…

Legend of the Card Ninja

Flinging playing cards like throwing stars

25 Aug 2010

Jav Jarquin flips the whole concept of the card trick on its head, flinging playing cards like throwing stars to knock over small objects or embed themselves in pieces of fruit. Not all the tricks work first time, but warmly self-deprecating stand-up…

Seymour Mace

Odd, witty and unexpected gags galore

25 Aug 2010

Since Mace has been accused of not putting enough of himself into his performance, he has thrown his whole lazy self into this year’s show. You’ll get a whole different kettle of joke to that of the mainstream Festival here with odd, witty and…

The Gentleman of Leisure

Engaging and sharp

25 Aug 2010

Tom Neenan and Nish Kumar are The Gentlemen of Leisure, bringing you an energetic and enlightening hour of satire and silliness. Although a little more on-stage chemistry between the pair wouldn’t go amiss, the duo are engaging and sharp, and pull off…

Sammy J

Transgressive flights of fancy

25 Aug 2010

Exceedingly likeable and not above telling traditional jokes and singing conventional songs, this gangly Melbourne comic’s true talent lies in his transgressive flights of fancy. J’s opening routine concerning a ‘double cock con’ he was part of at a…

The Unexpected Items

A spirited rabble of punning linguists

25 Aug 2010

The Unexpected Items is a spirited rabble of punning linguists who embellish their clever, feel-good sketches with satirical pop songs and spontaneous dance moves. The Oxford troupe’s tributes to Alan Rickman and Carol Ann Duffy are ebullient, while…

Late Night Gimp Fight!

Padded out with mediocre offerings

25 Aug 2010

Despite the pretensions to political incorrectness from this five-man troupe, there are only a handful of jokes that are especially dubious, and these are by far the funniest. The rest of the hour is padded out with mediocre offerings that have the…

Magicians

Thwarted ambition and misplaced idolatry

25 Aug 2010

A daft and slightly irritating tale of two rubbish magicians (or are they?) canters along amid a backdrop of thwarted ambition and misplaced idolatry. Remove the mild innuendo, tone down the psychological torment and this could easily be a more…

Tommy Tiernan

A passionate man taking glorious risks

24 Aug 2010

For a few minutes there it looked like Tommy Tiernan had lost the plot. Starting off Crooked Man slower than Wayne Rooney at a Mensa convention, he tosses out a few semi-derogatory quips about the state of comedy at the Fringe and wondering why he’s…

Kevin Eldon

Where hard graft meets titting about

24 Aug 2010

Lugging around a CV of television credits longer than the queue snaking outside The Stand, Kevin Eldon comes to Edinburgh for his debut Fringe solo show with both word of mouth and heavy press coverage on his side. And unlike those Hollywood stars…

Rich Fulcher

Smutty drag act comes on a little strong

24 Aug 2010

‘A woman with tits’ is how Rich Fulcher introduces his current favourite character creation, Eleanor (The Tour Whore). Spotted first in season three of The Mighty Boosh, this dusky, seductive lady has been recast as a sordid super-groupie, happy to take…

The 2010 Festival in Numbers

Here are some statistics about this year's Festivals

24 Aug 2010

We've very carefully and scientifically gathered some stunning numbers and statistics about this year's festivals.

Tim Clare's Death Drive

A road trip with a difference

24 Aug 2010

Talented performance poets/live literati talking about going back to live with their parents is all the rage this year. That is, if a ‘rage’ can be constituted by two shows, the excellent piece by Ross Sutherland at the Underbelly, and here in the shape…

Josh Howie

A gag-happy clown tests his crowd

24 Aug 2010

Two years ago, Josh Howie made a name for himself at the Fringe with a show about the mad old upbringing he had at the hands of his mum, the PR guru, Lynne Franks. The show, Chosen, featured some highly personal detail that must have made subsequent…

Helen Arney

Sweet songs with a tender heart

24 Aug 2010

For Helen Arney, love is a many tentacled thing. Two centuries ago, there was ‘less choice, more farming accidents’ while now we’re never too sure whether the grass will turn out to be greener on the other side. For her own part, she seems to have a…

Kerry Gilbert

Talent is wasted on charmless creations

24 Aug 2010

It all starts with the arresting scene of Kerry Gilbert dragging onto the stage a heavy suitcase before she then unpacks it, revealing the outfits and props with which she will conduct her solo hour of character comedy. There’s barely anything which…

Addicted to Danger

Surreal and innovative sketch affair

24 Aug 2010

Just when it looked like the sketch show might be eating itself to a slow, agonising death on this Fringe, along comes Steve McNeil, Sam Pamphilon and Rachel Stubbings to stick a hot poker into its dying carcass and kickstart the whole shebang. In…

Nick Helm - Keep Hold of the Gold

You’ll get on stage – whether you want to or not

24 Aug 2010

'Nice to meet you, nice to greet you!' Audience members are well into a thigh slapping get-to-know-you session at the beginning of Nick Helm’s Fringe 2010 outing. Everyone’s been forced under the spotlight to sing along and everyone’s grinning, some no…

Nat Luurtsema

An agreeable debut with a twist

24 Aug 2010

There was nothing in the pre-publicity material to suggest that In My Head I’m a Hero would take the turn that it does, and this is to Nat Luurtsema’s credit. A fairly humdrum but perfectly agreeable show about being a tea-loving daydreamer who wanted…

Toulson and Harvey

A not-so slight return for Perrier-nominated duo

24 Aug 2010

In their first Fringe venture together for three years, Luke Toulson and Stephen Harvey prove that the old chemistry is still intact, as they reach deep into their theatrical and comedic reserves to produce a show about partnerships and friendships…

John Robins

A master of humour over jokes

24 Aug 2010

John Robins is a floppy-haired chap with an earnest demeanor and an appreciation of life’s pleasurable minutiae - he spends his introduction talking about the wonders of his new digital camera, which also functions as a digital recorder so he can listen…

Keith Farnan hits Glasgow after storming Fringe

24 Aug 2010

With a stormingly successful Fringe in his backsack, the Irish fella is trying his hand at the Glasgow game with a weekend at the freshly revamped Jongleurs. Expect intelligent comedy with an eye always on the killer punchline. Jongleurs, Glasgow…

The Lunchtime Club: Class of 2010

Largely uninspiring line-up on lunchtime lads

23 Aug 2010

Both Rob Beckett and Liam Williams are competing in the Amused Moose comedy awards the day of this show. You could use the excuse that both comedians are suffering nerves as a result of the impending evening, and as a result, their material is a bit…

Your Days Are Numbered

Somehow making maths funny

23 Aug 2010

It’s hard to believe that travel and science journalist Timandra Harkness once had a Princess Diana joke banned by Carlton TV. Alongside stand-up mathematician Matt Parker, the mood of this show is light and fluffy, even if it is chiefly covering the…

Andrew O'Neill

Comedic view of metal music and culture

23 Aug 2010

If Andrew O'Neill's poster description "occult comedian" suggests an evening of witty witchcraft, that's not what he's serving at this year's Fringe. He's a metalhead, and wears all black clothing (and owns a black beach towel), but he's a long way from…

Joe Lycett and Andrew Ryan

Good-humoured but weak double-header

23 Aug 2010

Andrew Ryan is a happy chap: the biggest laughs in his show come from his tale of the time he met his hero, Ardal O’Hanlon (whom he happens to resemble a bit). Joe Lycett is similarly sunny in his outlook: his entire set revolves around his love of…

Everything Else You Always Wanted to Know About Life (But Didn’t Care to Ask)

Largely-poor material takes us back to the mid-70s

23 Aug 2010

It could have been a trick of the light, but did foursome Bad Bread just follow up the word ‘queries’ with a limp wrist gesture? Twice? At least not all of their largely-poor material takes us back to the mid-70s as they perform sketches introduced by a…

Sex, Lies and the KKK

One to keep an eye out for

23 Aug 2010

A few Fringes back, bearded Irish comic Abie Philbin Bowman threw on an orange boiler suit and a crown of thorns for Jesus: The Guantanamo Years. In this show, he personally thanks George Bush for kickstarting his comedy career while building on that…

David O’Doherty

Mild-mannered Dublin comic returns with less song and more chat

23 Aug 2010

The Casio keyboard remains but this year the mild-mannered Dublin comic returns with less song and more chat. And also more book reading, mainly from his recent publication 100 Facts About Pandas. Bung in a kaleidoscopic range of observational indie…

Ava Vidal

Short-lived comedy lessons

23 Aug 2010

When is a Fringe hour not a Fringe hour? When it’s Ava Vidal clocking off at just under 40 minutes. Which was a shame (for paying punters and the comic herself) as she was busy delivering a captivating story about her recent break-up from a ‘bad man…

Justin Moorhouse

A likeable show that marries invention with nostalgia

23 Aug 2010

If you want to know exactly where you are positioned on the class ladder, Moorhouse has a game to test your status. A likeable show that marries invention with nostalgia, the northern comic takes us back to an age where his family’s summer holidays were…

Idiots of Ants

A patchy affair that works beautifully in places

23 Aug 2010

At least the second show this Fringe to feature a drummer being fired via the medium of his band’s songwriting, this latest über-hi-tech offering from the IoA is a patchy affair that works beautifully in places (the sound effects sketch; the…

Carole Jahme

Barren, baffling and humiliating for all involved

23 Aug 2010

Dressed as a ‘humanzee’ in a cocktail dress and accompanied by a toy monkey in a baby chair, Jahme presents a bizarre affectation of a lecture featuring a series of home videos with children dressed as apes. Later we’re treated to slide shows where she…

Nick Sun

The most gloriously disconcerting experience you’re likely to see

23 Aug 2010

Sun defies categorisation: firstly he’s Australian of Nepalese extraction but speaks with a north American twang. Then there’s the material; his is easily the most gloriously disconcerting experience you’re likely to see at the Fringe. During the course…

Hannah Gadsby

Genuine warmth and heartbreak

23 Aug 2010

Inspired by Cliff Young, a legendary Australian who won an ultramarathon at the age of 61, Hannah Gadbsy sets off to walk across England, proving it’s never too late to achieve something. Her story is one of genuine warmth and heartbreak as she battles…

Daddy Ate All My Easter Eggs and Never Replaced Them

One decent pun about Lidl

23 Aug 2010

Now, I realise they’re young and that, but someone really should have taken this lot aside and advised them that their horrible skit about the Professors of Scottishness isn’t really the kind of thing to help to ingratiate yourselves upon a welcoming…

Foil, Arms and Hog

Sketches that start nowhere and then stay there for a very long time

23 Aug 2010

Do you think shouting is funny? Do you like sketches that start nowhere and then stay there for a very long time, far longer than the weak premise would ever normally allow? Would you end yourself at the sight of three guys pretending that vegetables…

Russell Kane

Acutely observed and deeply personal insight

23 Aug 2010

An acutely observed and deeply personal insight into the relationship issues when middle-class aspirations and sensibilities spring from working-class backgrounds, especially within the father/son dynamic. The continued use of a castle as metaphor for…

Dead Cat Bounce

Poised to go from cult hit to Minchin-like stardom

23 Aug 2010

Last year they certainly had the rock stylings off pat but this time around they’ve nailed the comedy too. This four-piece from Dublin is the finished article, with songs about running with midgets, one that pokes fun at the cute frontman and a lovely…

The Ginge, The Geordie & The Geek

Well complemented titular trio

23 Aug 2010

This titular trio complement each other well with varying shapes and sizes and some sketches play to their strengths, such as the scarecrow who falls in love with the very bird he’s supposed to shoo. There’s patchy work here and a poorly-conceived early…

Pete Jonas

Just about straddles the right side of offensiveness

23 Aug 2010

He may have been awarded a no-star review by an eminent online comedy site, but this has perhaps even added extra edge to Aussie Jonas’ already bitter set about the women who have dumped him down the years. The material just about straddles the right…

Felicity Ward

Has to inflate embarrassing mishaps into excruciating humiliations

23 Aug 2010

Being less a ‘moron’ (her word) than a victim of circumstance, Felicity Ward has to inflate mere embarrassing mishaps into excruciating humiliations to get her desired reaction which, with some neat turns of phrase, she does. Aware that her brave but…

James Dowdeswell

Mediocre material and rather uneasy delivery

23 Aug 2010

You want to like him, you really do. And in another context maybe this gentle show about Dowdeswell’s discovery that his great-grandfather worked with Charlie Chaplin would pass muster. Alas, his mediocre material and rather uneasy delivery are roundly…

Pension Plan

A pleasure to see a middle-aged lady dicking about

23 Aug 2010

Leisa Rea has been feeling a bit glum so she’s gathered together all her life failures in one big show and celebrated them through the medium of dance, song and a series of absurd short films. There are plenty of lovely touches from random victory jigs…

Chef!

Crazy dance, sight-gag comedy and lots of laughs

23 Aug 2010

Billed as a beat-box action comedy, Chef! is all it claims to be and more. A mystical chef, outrunning two bumbling, black-clad fighters, finds his way to a modern kitchen, where crazy dance, sight-gag comedy and lots of laughs ensue. Choreographed to…

Clarkson and Crouch

More clever than funny

23 Aug 2010

Two jolly men perform a piece about Albion Avenue, the ‘most broken street in broken Britain’. With ‘Ghost Town’ playing during each post-scene blackout, serious points might be being made here but they’re lost in sketches in which Byron and Shelley…

Mary Barrel is Really Good at Things

Over-excited, part-improvised but tediously goofy life skills ‘seminar’

23 Aug 2010

LA comic and playwright Carrie Barrett is disconcertingly convincing in her role as hyper-dork Mary Barrel, an annoying, awkward 13-year-old who’s obsessed with best friends, sleepovers and party invites (or her lack thereof). Her over-excited…

Tara Flynn

Varying styles from 80s electro to French folk

23 Aug 2010

Formerly one of the Irish comedic musical trio The Nualas, Flynn is clearly trying to relive those past glories. The songs are of varying styles from 80s electro to French folk with subjects as disparate as dating a ghost to the perils of being a…

Ginger and Black

Wit and verve

23 Aug 2010

The knockabout tale of life inside a woman’s prison and the incidents that led some inmates to get there is produced with wit and verve by Eri Jackson (she’s ginger) and Daniel Taylor (he’s black). Happily, the celeb reference count is limited to an…

Addy van der Borgh

Thoroughly engaging show themed around language

23 Aug 2010

Given his frequent recourse to mirthful actorly pronouncements – ‘forsooth!’ and the like – Van der Borgh must have been a thespian in a previous life. That, along with his merrily clownish countenance, serves him well in a thoroughly engaging show…

Michael Fabbri

An amiable and engaging storyteller

23 Aug 2010

His show may be called Fabrications but the only apparent untruth in the show is the big lie told by his former best friend that led to Fabbri being chased by investigative journalists. He is an amiable and engaging storyteller and his tales from…

Strong and Wrong

Lame sketches fall an awful long way short of the music

23 Aug 2010

This lively duo come across like a pair of children’s TV entertainers who can certainly hold a tune. The handful of comic songs employing guitar, ukulele and banjo that punctuate their quick-fire sketch show are punchy and well-performed. It’s a shame…

Mike Newall

Effortlessly likeable

23 Aug 2010

Being effortlessly likeable is fine if you want to stay at the lower end of the comedy division, but given that this show is entitled Mr Famous (the nickname given to northerner Newall by his mates), an edge needs to be brought to this Stockport wag’s…

Broad Comedy

Horribly laboured songs about abstinence, tampons and penis size

23 Aug 2010

'We got a crazy show for you,’ hails the leader of this all-female American sketch group. If your idea of ‘crazy’ features horribly laboured songs about abstinence, tampons and penis size, then this will have your head spinning. One routine saves the…

Andi Osho

Serious stuff, but Osho’s funny with it

23 Aug 2010

The recollection of being subjected to racist abuse as a kid inspired this East End of London stand-up to explore her Nigerian roots and appraise the state of Britain’s dysfunctional multi-culture society. Serious stuff, but Osho’s funny with it…

A Perhaps-Too-Intimate Evening of Music and Hilarity

Music (certainly) and hilarity (hardly)

23 Aug 2010

The Young Dads gurn and mumble their way through an evening of music (certainly) and hilarity (hardly) in a venue where all but the strategically-seated few will be able to see the on-screen jokes and wordy accompaniments to their silly songs and…

Nathan Cassidy

An over-egged, utterly boring hour

23 Aug 2010

A disaster from Friztl-based start to ‘Royal Variety’ finish, The Frog that Says Sausages is a miserable affair by a man who should probably stick to the work he’s been getting as a Marc Almond impersonator. He might promise the ‘most offensive joke…

Paul Sweeney and Tom Webb

An hour of average comedy with a respectable laugh ratio

23 Aug 2010

Tom Webb is 5’5’’ of nervous energy, has four insightful handy hints, two self-effacing stories and one audience survey. Paul Sweeney has one full moustache, four slight comedy songs, lots of good ad-libbing and some lovely tattoos. It adds up to an…

Shappi Khorsandi

Falls disappointingly short of expectations

23 Aug 2010

As Khorsandi’s reputation sky-rockets, her material about divorce and single motherhood falls disappointingly short of expectations. The show loses momentum for perceptible periods of time and if the jokes are a tad lacklustre, Khorsandi herself is…

Susan Murray

Interesting and intelligent

23 Aug 2010

Murray’s bold and playful set is nothing less than you’d expect from a Weegie with a Brummie accent. Although the show isn’t necessarily joke-heavy, this lady has done her research and the material is interesting and intelligent, particularly as Murray…

A Surprisingly Tasteful Show About Nudity

Well-intentioned schoolboy charm

23 Aug 2010

With that same well-intentioned schoolboy charm shared by Russell Howard, it’s easy to be drawn in by Alexis Dubus, even if you are of the more prudish nature. Expect nudity, but in a context that goes some way to educate and entertain, taking in Greek…

Time Travelling Magicians conjure up a sketch with marker pens

Board Meeting: Morgan & West

23 Aug 2010

The Board Meetings Prize for dapper dressers go to these lovely Time Travelling Magicians, who won our hearts by doing a little fancy trick with their tiny flyer. It was like the future and the past all in one hand movement. Magical fun. Morgan…

Matt Green

Preoccupations with paedophilia and scatology

23 Aug 2010

Presented as a catharsis of his most embarrassing moments, it’s remarkable just how much risqué material Green gets past his audience. After warming them up nicely, his self-deprecating, loose demeanour lets him visit some pretty dubious places…

Susan Calman

A vitriolic manual in self-loathing

23 Aug 2010

Glasgow’s pint-sized, squeaky-voiced professional lesbian talks us through her obituary. Written when she was drunk, it’s a vitriolic manual in self-loathing. Calman deftly manages the tricky task of stuffing truth into a comedy-shaped bag tied up with…

Mark Allen

Confident delivery often resulting in pleasing set-ups

23 Aug 2010

In our time-starved, online lives, Mark Allen investigates savouring rather than saving time over 90 languorous minutes. The concept, although not earth-shattering, is admirably adhered to with Allen’s confident delivery often resulting in pleasing…

Robert White's Outrageously Peculiar sketch of his Fringe show

Board Meeting: Robert White

23 Aug 2010

You are looking at a man in blue, with blue pants over tights, holding a trumpet in one hand and a whiteboard with a phallic keyboard on the other. You, ladies and gentlemen, are looking at Robert White. Robert White's Outrageously Peculiar Organ…

Paul Sweeney describes his show using the medium of marker pens

Board Meeting: Paul Sweeney & Tom Webb

23 Aug 2010

Look at the cheeky wee grin on it. There's a panda AND a bear on this board, topped off with a Paul Sweeney sporting a lovely moustache. What more could a discerning audience member require? Oh, comedy. That too. Paul Sweeney and Tom Webb,The GRV.

The Ballad of Backbone Joe

A noirish tale of murder and meat fruit

22 Aug 2010

Combining versatile talents with the easy-going charm that comes so naturally from an antipodean accent, Suitcase Royale’s self-penned, music-driven comedy noir provides effusive, varied entertainment. It’s pre-war Australia and Backbone Joe is a…

Charlie Talbot

Gag-free life of a decent man

22 Aug 2010

Charlie Talbot insists that when he’s out doing his comedy on the circuit, his act is nothing but knob gag after toilet joke after rude quip. He promises something much different here, essentially the lie-free story of his life, a tale of semi-failure…

John-Luke Roberts

A decadent and deathly hour of brilliance

22 Aug 2010

It’s common and understandable knowledge that many a comedian harbours homicidal feelings towards their critics whether they happen to be plying their negative trade quietly in print or loudly from the back row. But should a comic really be attempting…

Twonkey’s Cottage

Just plain silly

22 Aug 2010

There’s a lot to love about Paul Vickers and his not-for-kids, kids show. Ambling onstage at midday he launches into the story of Twonkey, a small, limp character perched onstage in front of a model cottage, whose love for acid house he indicates with…

John Moloney

Stand-up crooner is a little out of tune

22 Aug 2010

There’s a down-to-earth honesty and genuine sincerity about John Moloney that is warmly appealing. It’s not the first night of his long-awaited Edinburgh return, but he looks properly touched and consequently has nothing amusing to say about the fact…

Taking Liberties

A witty and warped look at freedom

22 Aug 2010

Leaping on stage in surely the reddest trousers at the Fringe, semi-Scot Sanderson Jones has the demeanour of a kids entertainer running down the last few months of his contract, or the science teacher you love to bits in the classroom but know you…

Alun Cochrane

Making the world a cheerier place

22 Aug 2010

Alun Cochrane has come to the Fringe this year with a different goal. He’s here to simply deliver a bucketful of jokes. And he does in fact walk on stage armed with a bucket full of jokes from which he’ll pluck out some one or two-liners for the…

Sean Lock's Lockipedia taps into his own archive of knowledge

22 Aug 2010

What five words best describe your show this year? Refreshing, vital, challenging, vertical, windy. Which comic should be more famous by the end of August? I’m always surprised that no comics have gone postal. Can’t hack the bad reviews, the…

Hans Teeuwen

Gloriously divisive absurdist fare

22 Aug 2010

Since 2007, Dutch cabaretier Hans Teeuwen has been performing his unique style of absurdist comedy in English. After last year’s cameo appearance he’s back with a full run in a show that is guaranteed to divide audiences right down the middle. Bouncing…

Carey Marx

Debunking some myths with craft and guile

22 Aug 2010

A veteran Pontin’s bluecoat recounting tales of his 19-year-old magician-self, Carey Marx’ fresh and well-judged set focuses on debunking the myths of phony spoon-bending, séance-leading practitioners. Hitting a surprising tone from the off-set, his…

Pajama Men

22 Aug 2010

Given such a late start, it might not be just Mark Chavez and Shenoah Allen who turn up in their jimmy-jams. The Last Stand to Reason is a reprise of their full-run hit of 2009, and is a must-see for those not acquainted with the New Mexico duo’s…

Festival Insider

Bo Burnham uses this week’s Festival Insider space to consider the trees' perspective

20 Aug 2010

A letter to the Fringe, from the Trees of Edinburgh. Dear Murderers, For the past month, we have stood idly by while you distribute and discard the mangled bodies of our fallen brethren. The Fringe Festival, thought by many to be a celebration of…

Ardal O'Hanlon

Come in, come in!

20 Aug 2010

There's a distinctly homely feel about Ardal O'Hanlon's Fringe 2010 outing. Following priestly celibacy and superhero capers, his current material addresses losing to the kids at Connect Four, the challenges of sex with a pregnant wife and the weather…

The List Festival Awards 2010

From 'Wettest Venue' to 'Most Transparently Cynical Marketing Ploy'

20 Aug 2010

Hunkiest Ever Bunch of Crusties on a Junkyard The cast of Be-Dom, Udderbelly. Best Use of Glittering Matador Trousers in a STI-themed Performance Art Event: Bryony Kimmings in Sex Idiot, Zoo Roxy. Best Impression of a Garden Gnome: The identical…

Carl Barron

Restrained idiocy from Aussie manchild

20 Aug 2010

Carl Barron is not big (rude people point it out to him all the time, apparently). He’s not clever (or so he’d have us believe with his slow-schoolboy schtick). Luckily for him, then, that’s he’s very funny. The jolly, just-a-touch dopey Australian…