BCG Daily Tuesday 13th February 2018
Press clippings
How Derry Girls became an instant sitcom classic
Lisa McGee's nostalgic sitcom finished its run on Channel 4 last week. Why did this tale of four schoolgirls, set against the tumult of 90s Northern Ireland, strike such a chord?
Shilpa Ganatra, The Guardian, 13th February 2018Leicester Comedy Festival review: UK Pun Championships
Eight comedians battled to be named UK Pun Champion.
Becky Jones, Leicester Mercury, 13th February 2018David Walliams: Comedy star who became UK's top author
Throughout his career David Walliams has been capable of springing a surprise. Just when we had pigeonholed him as a fine comedian, after bursting on to the scene with the irreverent sketch show Little Britain, he showed us he was a very talented writer.
Adrian Lee, The Daily Express, 13th February 2018Love Actually stars' huge secret exposed
Love Actually may have been released almost 15 years ago, but this lesser-known fact about Keira Knightley and her co-star Thomas Brodie-Sangster has stunned fans.
Jess Sheldon, The Daily Express, 13th February 2018Stars reveal 10 years of behind-the-scenes secrets
A documentary will air before the new series to unite fan favourites and share funny tales from fight scenes gone wrong to nearly driving a mobility scooter into the pool.
Emma Pietras, The Sun, 13th February 2018Bobby Mair on the day he found his real mother online
Bobby Mair speaks to The Telegraph about his career, his personal life, and when he found his biological mother on Facebook.
Richard Jones, The Telegraph, 13th February 2018Review: UK Pun Championships Final
#UKPunday, founded by the Leicester Comedy Festival, has become a fixture in the social media calender. This year wordplay-based tweets notched up over 100 million impressions during the day. That's a lorra lorra lols. And sometimes during the final of the UK Pun Championships one did feel the best gags had already been hashtag cracked.
Bruce Dessau, Beyond The Joke, 13th February 2018The MMORPG Show review
This genre-specific comedy show probably has a self-selecting audience, as those who don't know what MMORPG stands for will probably stay away.
Steve Bennett, Chortle, 13th February 2018The best - and the worst - from the UK Pun Championship
Welcome to the punderdome! In what's taken off as a great marketing gimmick - with #ukpunday trending across Twitter yesterday - eight pun-dits gather at the Leicester Comedy Festival for the closest that word nerds get to sports. One-on-one in a boxing ring they exchange pun-ches in a bid to take the UK Pun Championship.
Chortle, 13th February 2018The return of John Cleese
"If I ever tried to do a Fawlty Towers-type sitcom again, everyone would say, 'It's not as good as Fawlty Towers'."
The Fawlty Towers actor, who is fondly remembered for his role as hotel owner Basil Fawlty, is starring with Alison Steadman in a new BBC sitcom, Hold Tthe Sunset, after a gap of 43 years.
James Rampton, The Independent, 13th February 2018Comedy Shorts Award: Finalists announced
The ten finalists in Funny Women's 2018 Comedy Shorts Award have been announced.
Funny Women, 13th February 2018My Comedy Hero: Brennan Reece on Billy Connolly
Former English Comedian of the Year and Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer nominee picks the Big Yin as his comic idol.
Brian Donaldson / Brennan Reece, The List, 13th February 2018Bear With interview
We spoke to Funny Women 2017 Awards Commended sketch group Bear With to find out their comedy secrets.
Why Did The Chicken?, 13th February 2018Interview: Joseph Morpurgo on Hammerhead
Joseph Morpurgo presents his masterpiece: a boundary-smashing, 9-hour adaption of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Or is it?
Theatre Weekly, 13th February 2018Jess Robinson's Unforgettable Five gigs
As musical impressionist Jess Robinson prepares to embark on her UK tour, she recalls some of her more memorable gigs...
Chortle, 13th February 2018Videos
Podcasts
TV & radio
Dennis & Gnasher Unleashed!
Series 1, Episode 21 - The Wrong Man-AceDennis is mistaken for a Beanotown baddie while in disguise to sneak into 12A film. At first Dennis loves being treated like a celebrity, but as things begin to go awry his friends have to save him by revealing his real identity and capturing the real diamond-stealing baddie!
Henry Normal
Episode 1 - A Normal LoveHenry Normal returns for the third programme in an occasional series of poetry, storytelling and comedy. In a show for Valentine's Day, he explores love, romance and other unreasonable expectations.
Trollied
Series 7, Episode 7Gavin's got some serious amends to make after Lou uncovers his devious plan. Brian gets more than he bargained for when he opens a pharmacy consultation room.
Bliss
Episode 1Andrew endures a painfully difficult night out with Denise and two new friends when he discovers that Kim is headed to the same restaurant. His efforts to relocate both parties become increasingly desperate.
Ed And Lauren Get On
Episode 1Stand-ups Ed and Lauren want to know if class still exists, and what class they are from. Ed's hoping they're oligarchs. (Spoiler alert - they're not oligarchs).