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Arthur Smith's Balham Bash. Image of Musician (Pippa Evans). Image credit: British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).

Arthur Smith's Balham Bash

Radio show in which Arthur Smith invites an audience into his real house for some music and comedy

Genre:
Stand-Up
Broadcast:
2009  (BBC Radio 4)
Episodes:
4 (1 series)
Starring:
Arthur Smith, Pippa Evans
Production:
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Arthur Smith throws open the doors of his palatial Balham pad and invites an audience in for an evening of music and comedy in this four-part series.

Arthur turns his own personal residence into a little club where a specially invited audience come to see some of the finest comedians and musicians perform music in the kitchen, comedy in the bedroom, and meet unexpected guests in the bathroom.

Pippa Evans is a regular, while guests across the series included Alabama 3, Milton Jones, Stephen K Amos, Mickey Flanagan, Paul Sinha, Benjamin Zephaniah, Matt Holness, Stewart Lee and Glenn Tilbrook.

Our Review: Setting the show in Smith's house gave the episodes a very intimate feel, providing the listener with the rather unique feeling they were at the gig too - something missing from most cold and soleless radio stand-up shows.

If there was a weakness it was that, like pretty much all of Radio 4's stand-up output, if you'd come across one of the acts before you would have already heard their routine - there was a lot of recycling of gags taking place.