I was listening to a podcast interview earlier this week where comedian Paul Currie told Stuart Goldsmith that he had heard that Sam Wills, aka The Boy With Tape On His Face had a five-year plan for... more
Reviews
At one point during Ross Noble’s gig he pointed out something important: “I am contractually obliged to follow an idea as far as it will go.” Suddenly everything made sense. Noble’s brain is simply... more
Every now and again I receive Facebook comments from circuit comedians telling me that I spend all my time swanning in and out of the Soho Theatre and the Eventim Apollo and don’t experience what it... more
The US Election was only last week and it already feels as if everything has been said about an event that has turned the world upside down. Or, more importantly in this case, that every joke has... more
I’m so old I saw Terry Johnson’s warped comedy the first time round in 1994 when David Haig and Zoe Wanamaker played the main couple, whose marriage breakdown was played out against a backdrop of... more
You would think that Nigel Farage’s life over the last few months would be ripe for satire. The BBC certainly thinks so, hence this one-off mockumentary about his post-Brexit antics. The trouble is... more
Sometimes there is a thin line between watching a stand-up comedy gig and watching somebody have a mental meltdown onstage. The latest show from Tony Law, A Law Undo His-elf What Welcome, feels like... more
It’s not often I change my mind about seeing a show. Once it drops off the reviews list it has missed its moment. I was too busy to see spoof psychic Shirley Ghostman’s “Spooktacular” opening night,... more
Comedies about stand-up comedy are difficult to pull off. How do you capture the highs and lows of performing live on film? How do you capture the buzz of the good gig, the despair of the bad gig?... more
I wasn’t sure whether Beyond The Joke should be reviewing I, Daniel Blake. I’ve already been ticked off this week by the pedantry police for reviewing Black Mirror because it is not a comedy. And Ken... more
