Alexei Sayle
- 72 years old
- English
- Actor, writer, stand-up comedian and producer
Press clippings Page 12
The Stand announce Fringe programme
The Stand has unveiled its 2013 Edinburgh Fringe programme, with Stewart Lee, Richard Herring and Alexei Sayle among the big names playing the club.
Andrew Dipper, Giggle Beats, 1st April 2013Is it the recession? The Tories? The procession of fresh-faced ob-coms filling the O2 with their jaunty musings on social-media etiquette and supermarket self-service checkouts? Who knows. But there's little doubt that what older readers will recognise as alternative comedy is undergoing a mini-renaissance. Alexei Sayle has returned to stand-up and this new series sees Stewart Lee, who has flown the flag through alt.com's fallow years, introducing comedy from The Stand in Edinburgh. It's simultaneously refreshing and frustrating.
Tonight's opener features Isy Suttie, David Kay, Boothby Graffoe, Henning Wehn, Glenn Wool and David O'Doherty. But not for very long: at half an hour, and with ads and six comedians per show, it means approximately one and a half gags each - although the same half-dozen will be returning for more across the 12-part series, which showcases a total of 20 stand-ups. It's great to see more marginal comic turns getting exposure, but frustrating that we aren't allowed to see them in full flow, at least tonight.
Phil Harrison, Time Out, 5th February 2013Alexei Sayle - review
Are we about to witness the dilution of a great legacy? Mercifully, no.
Brian Logan, The Guardian, 24th January 2013Alexei Sayle, Soho Theatre, review
Grizzled Scouser Alexei Sayle sometimes struggles to fill the allotted hour of his show at Soho Theatre, writes Dominic Cavendish.
Dominic Cavendish, The Telegraph, 24th January 2013Alexei Sayle, Soho Theatre, London
When the early wobbles subsided, Sayle remarked that "a lot has changed since I invented alternative comedy" and set about making sense of it - to himself, as much as to us.
Julian Hall, The Independent, 24th January 2013Alexei Sayle: 'I'm still full of hate'
In seedy 1980s Soho, a foul-mouthed Scouser with a convict haircut became the face of alternative comedy. As Alexei Sayle returns to standup, he explains why arenas are bad for comedy.
Alexei Sayle, The Guardian, 22nd January 20132013 comedy preview: Alexei Sayle and Harry Hill return
Plus Bill Bailey presents his dub version of Downton Abbey and catch US comic Sarah Silverman for one night only.
Brian Logan, The Guardian, 30th December 2012The best comedy performances of 2012
Featuring Doctor Brown, Pappy's, Alexei Sayle, Alfie Brown and Mark Thomas.
Brian Donaldson, The List, 13th December 2012Radio 4 Extra - Comedy controller: Alexei Sayle
One of the great moments when Alexei Sayle interviews Lenny Henry on Radio 4's Chain Reaction is when Lenny tells him how nervous he was about first meeting him in 1981.
Peter McHugh, BBC Blogs, 16th October 2012Alexei Sayle: "What I did before - he wasn't me"
Having reinvented comedy in the 80s, Alexei Sayle is making a return to standup. And not a moment too soon...
Bernard O'Leary, The Skinny, 3rd October 2012