BCG Daily Friday 22nd May 2015

Red Nose Day USA raises over $10 million

The inaugural Red Nose Day USA telethon has raised over $10 million in donations so far.

Review: The Ghost Train at Royal Exchange, Manchester

I just wish this show kept on the same track it started on, because I think it could have gone somewhere brilliant with the whole glitching up the process of readaptation and reproduction (this is all wishful thinking), as it was, the interest faded far too rapidly and the energy and deliberateness of the piece became overwhelming, which resulted in a show that felt less than the sum of its parts, down to the sheer number of parts.

Radio Times review

He's got a pretty good track record for attracting big Hollywood A-listers onto the show, but there's one person Graham Norton has always wanted to have as a guest. Tonight, his wish is granted - the gorgeous George Clooney is sitting on the sofa opposite him.

One of Hollywood's most prolific actors, Clooney, 54, is here to talk about his latest film, Tomorrowland (a futuristic story about a place caught between time and space where nothing is impossible), but the conversation is bound to turn to his political activism and humanitarian work. And Graham will probably throw in the odd question about his recent marriage to Amal Alamuddin, too.

Joining him on the show are Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne, Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson and Snoop Dogg.

Review: Ellie Taylor, Soho Theatre

It is easy to see why this show did not trouble Edinburgh Comedy Award judges last summer. I suspect that they thought it was pretty lightweight. After all, all it does is make the audience laugh for an hour. That is just snobbery though. Entertaining strangers is not something to be knocked. Jake may have been the works outing boss, but Taylor was clearly the undisputed boss of this show.

Is British TV finally giving sitcoms a chance to grow?

Great news today that the BBC has recommissioned Count Arthur Strong. I was concerned that the move from BBC Two to BBC One for the second series had been the last throw of the dice and that if it didn't ascend to Miranda-like status it would not be back.

This week's new live comedy

Previews of Matt Forde, Wil Hodgson and Bill Maher.

Russell Brand supports Comedy Cafe owners charity

"Yes," he told me. "He's going to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Comedy Cafe by doing a gig on Wednesday 3rd June for the orphanage in Nepal."

Review: Paul Merton's Impro Chums

A good night with some impressive improvisation and more than a few nights.

Car Share is highest-rated sitcom to premiere anywhere

The BBC appears to have struck comedy gold with Peter Kay's Car Share, with the series becoming the highest-rated new sitcom to premiere on any channel since 2011.

Gregor Fisher: Rab C. Nesbitt is a Greek tragedy!

Whether it's Rab C Nesbitt or a 100-year-old granny, Gregor Fisher still gets to eat a fish supper...

Red Nose Day USA's total reaches more than $21 million

Red Nose Day USA raised more than $21 million dollars for children around the world on Thursday (May 22).

Behind the scenes: Car Share, BBC1

A complicated five-camera rig was required to shoot Peter Kay's latest comedy series.

Rob Brydon's best roles

As he gets set to return to his debut stage role as a "one man disaster zone" with a death wish - we look at some other roles we'd love to see Rob Brydon in.

Rob Delaney in numbers

It takes more than 140 characters to sum up Twitter supremo Rob Delaney. We speak to the Bostonian stand-up, social networker and Catastrophe star to see how he adds up.

Phil Wang on Patrice O'Neal

Whether or not you agreed with his routines on race and gender politics, Patrice O'Neal was an incredibly funny and fearless standup.

A wee preview of Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2015

The launch of the joint programme by Assembly, Gilded Balloon, Pleasance and Underbelly has revealed that, once again, the Edinburgh Fringe is going to be utterly fabulous!