BCG Daily Tuesday 12th August 2014
Features
Press clippings
Edinburgh fringe 2014: the 10 best jokes so far
Our roundup of the best standup gags at this year's festival.
James Kettle, The Guardian, 12th August 2014Edinburgh Fringe 2014 interview: Alistair Green
The blurb promises "rants and moans about everything Alistair thinks is wrong with the world". We promise a barbed hour of hilarity smothered with pessimism. Every comic we know says this is the show to watch this year. We're happy to listen to them.
Laugh Out London, 12th August 2014"It's not all about you. Apart from the reviews"
Eat properly. Enjoy the scenery. Bring a small child. After 10 years of playing Edinburgh festival, the standup comedian has some tried-and-tested advice for performers and visitors.
Bridget Christie, The Guardian, 12th August 2014'The crowd is a bit like, "so, impress us"'
From dire student productions to Macbeth with machine guns, the standup comedian and activist has seen it all. Now he has brought a very personal piece to the festival - and you shouldn't expect punchlines.
Mark Thomas, The Guardian, 12th August 2014The Pin introduce their Edinburgh fringe show
Comedy sketch group The Pin explain how their festival performance finds them creating a screenplay with the audience.
The Pin, The Guardian, 12th August 2014Letter to Edinburgh: Nat Luurtsema
Nat Luurtsema is taking a year off the Edinburgh Fringe. So she sent everyone else this letter.
Nat Luurtsema, ThreeWeeks, 12th August 2014Fifty Shades of Grey Fringe parody in legal row
A Fifty Shades of Grey parody musical at the Fringe is in legal hot water after failing to clear copyright with the book's writer EL James.
Edinburgh Evening News, 12th August 2014Explain yourself: Susan Calman
A decade ago, Susan Calman, 39, gave up a career in corporate law to try her hand at stand-up comedy. She's since become a regular voice on Radio 4, appearing frequently on The News Quiz as well as presenting her own four-part series, Susan Calman is Convicted. She has also popped up on Have I Got News for You, and is currently in her eighth year at the Fringe, with a show titled Lady Like.
James Jackson, The Times, 12th August 2014Comics must stop bullying transsexual people
Ben Alborough is angered by a Fringe comedian.
Ben Alborough, Chortle, 12th August 2014Bob Slayer being ripped-off & pulling-off another comic
The previous day, Bob had sent a text message to me, Kate Copstick and others saying: "I've had a creative breakthrough - I'm not a comedian. I'm a performance artist."
John Fleming, John Fleming's Blog, 12th August 2014Alfie Moore cops another Radio 4 series
Radio 4 has commissioned a second series from policeman-turned-comedian Alfie Moore.
Chortle, 12th August 2014Monks axed
The BBC have decided not to make a series of the monastery-set sitcom Monks, which aired earlier this year.
Chortle, 12th August 2014Free Fringe: broaching the tricky topic of donations
Comics generally dread the 'bucket speech' - the coda to their act reminding the audience that payment would be welcome - but does it introduce a welcome note of humility to proceedings?
Brian Logan, The Guardian, 12th August 2014Tim Key Q&A - follow along live!
Enigmatically droll comedian Tim Key is in Edinburgh with his show Single White Slut, and he's answering your questions now. He's collaborated with everyone from Steve Coogan to Charlie Brooker, and is perhaps the UK's worst - and funniest - poet. So what do you want to ask him?
The Guardian, 12th August 2014Opinion: Should critics quote jokes?
To quote jokes or not to quote jokes, that is the perennial question for comedy critics. This has particularly been bothering me in the last couple of days after I ran a rave review of Bec Hill and she complained that I had printed one of her jokes, thus ruining the surprise for fans.
Bruce Dessau, Beyond The Joke, 12th August 2014Reaching out: Kim Noble connects comedy & isolation
2014 sees the return of Kim Noble, 2009's most talked about performer. We find out what's in store.
Cayley James, The Skinny, 12th August 2014Travesti: gender studies
An all-male cast tells women's stories in Travesti's exploration of gender equality.
Christine Lawler, The Skinny, 12th August 2014Edinburgh Fringe 2014 interview: Eleanor Morton
Eleanor is young and Scottish and very funny with a guitar in her hand. She's been touted by Josie Long and you can expect similar sweet musings on anxiety, awkwardness and frustrations with modern pop culture.
Laugh Out London, 12th August 2014Joz Norris' Edinburgh Fringe 2014 blog: 03
It's halfway through the Fringe and I've won. I got a call from Fringe CEO John Fringe the other day (it was an 0843 number) and he proudly told me, in his inimitable Scottish brogue, that my show had impressed him so much that I had won the Fringe.
Joz Norris, Laugh Out London, 12th August 2014Fringe Q&As: Spencer Brown
Spencer Brown speaks to HeraldScotland about owing money, egotistical performers and jodhpurs.
The Herald, 12th August 2014Fringe Q&As: Andrew Ryan
Andrew Ryan talks to HeraldScotland about past failures, borrowing his dad's car, and having a cup of tea after his shows.
The Herald, 12th August 2014Nancy Dell'Olio comes to Edinburgh Fringe
Nancy Dell'Olio is a lawyer, an author, an entrepreneur and a TV personality, but the chances are, all you remember her for is a romantic liaison with former England football manager Sven-Goren Eriksson.
Liam Rudden, Edinburgh Evening News, 12th August 2014The performers bringing US-style improv to the Fringe (Link expired)
Comedy performers are turning to America for inspiration in honing their sketch and character shows, finds Jay Richardson.
Jay Richardson, WOW247, 12th August 2014An Edinburgh Fringe 2014 interview with Nish Kumar
The festival is still going strong, and I've had the delightful opportunity to speak to some of my favourite comedians for Punchline. Today I'm with Nish Kumar, the "veteran underdog" of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Susan Ford, Punchline UK, 12th August 2014Pippa Evans: how I invented Loretta Maine
Bits of Courtney Love, Alanis Morissette and the deepest, darkest thoughts of yours truly are all sloshing about inside my needy alter ego.
Pippa Evans, The Guardian, 12th August 2014Tim Key reads a poem about siblings at the Fringe
Tim Key is back at the Edinburgh festival, slipping on his denim onesie to perform Single White Slut at the Pleasance Grand. Tim popped by the Guardian's house to answer readers' questions about Gogol, Alan Partridge, his poetry, his beard and his dream dinner guests (that's Kriss Akabusi, Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Andy Murray, Hugh Laurie and Emma Bunton). While he was here, we asked him to read one of his poems...
Tim Key, The Guardian, 12th August 2014Fringe Q&As: Tom Allen
Tom Allen speaks to HeraldScotland about Edinburgh restaurant The Outsider, Burntisland, and dressing in Victorian clothing as a teenager to disguise being gay.
The Herald, 12th August 2014Preview: Axis of Awesome
Australian musical comedy trio Axis of Awesome are currently playing the Gilded Balloon.
Edinburgh Evening News, 12th August 2014Whose Line reunion: Fringe history in the making
While its American iteration continues to thrive in a primetime slot, the British original of improv TV show Whose Line is it Anyway? has maintained a rabid cult following in the UK. After 10 years on Channel 4 it went off-air in 1998, but endless Freeview repeats in recent years have kept its memory alive. At this year's Edinburgh Fringe, a string of reunion shows has created a whirlwind of hype and frenzied ticket hunting - this is the event of Edinburgh 2014.
Christian Butler, Spiked, 12th August 2014Whitfield attacks BBC sneering at 'middle class comedy'
In the classic sitcom Terry and June she portrayed one half of television's quintessential middle class couple. Now June Whitfield has hit out at the BBC managers who declared that too much of the corporation's comedy is "middle class".
Adam Sherwin, The Independent, 12th August 2014Tim Key: Single White Slut
The slut in the hut, Tim Key, chats to The Skinny about fitting in, magnum opuses and returning to Edinburgh.
Vonny Moyes, The Skinny, 12th August 2014James Buckley interview
The Inbetweeners' James Buckley talks nicknames, 'broken Britain', and the pressures to do a follow-up film.
Steven Mackenzie, The Big Issue, 12th August 201410 of the funniest Fringe comedians on Twitter (Link expired)
Given that most tweets are normal people trying to be funny, Twitter would seem like the perfect medium for Fringe comedians too. But how to cram those carefully crafted witticisms and 10-minute routines into 140 characters? We run through ten comedians appearing at the Fringe who manage to do just that...
Louise Traberg-Nielsen, WOW247, 12th August 2014Videos
TV & radio
Hacker Time
Series 4, Episode 2 - Perri And JordanMore chat, music and comedy from Hacker T Dog, plus the historical drama A Knight's Tail. Will our magical mutt also have the right moves to impress Perri Kiely and Jordan Banjo from Diversity?
MacAulay And Co
Edinburgh 2014, Episode 6Nicholas Parsons, Nick Helm, Christian O'Connell and Felicity Ward join the show.
The Alternative Comedy Experience
Series 2, Episode 5 - NerdsKevin Eldon shares tonight's bill with performance poet Paul Hamilton, Trevor Lock, Paul Foot, and superbly funny science nerd Helen Arney. Backstage interviews by Stewart Lee.