Press clippings Page 5
Steve Richards review
Likening politics to rock n' roll might be a stretch - you could just about apply that to comedy - but, as a one-time political anorak, I too can understand the bizarre thrill of meeting one's first senior politician.
Julian Hall, The Independent, 4th July 2013Sketchfest wins a battle for comic hearts and minds
As I reported earlier this year, there is a new comedy competition in town - Sketchfest. Following a trail blazed in America, Adam Dahrouge and Ofer Yatziv, members of Israeli-Palestinian sketch comedy group Conflict Relief, set up the competition in London to boost the profile of the discipline.
Julian Hall, The Stage, 28th May 2013Is Eddie Izzard still a Force Majeure?
Of the post-alternative comics Izzard more than anyone used the comedy revolution that had happened a decade earlier to spread the word of wit.
Julian Hall, The Stage, 21st May 2013Comedy review: Jack Dee Live, The Anvil, Basingstoke
Jack Dee ambled almost reluctantly on to the Anvil stage tonight to open his gig, signifying that he was in a characteristically grumpy mood. However, the 51-year-old quickly dispelled the idea that he was reticent to entertain, confiding in us that going out on the road is good for the soul - it keeps family life tolerable.
Julian Hall, The Independent, 13th May 2013Eddie Izzard's gig is more Partly Political Broadcast
The 51-year-old appears to be canvassing support to be Labour's mayoral candidate rather than performing a stand-up routine.
Julian Hall, The Independent, 8th May 2013Comedy review: Doc Brown
Doc Brown's show is also a tale of two distinct parts. For the first 35 minutes we're taken on a kind of A to Z of rap's foibles and, bizarrely, without the benefit of Brown's back story in the business really coming through. This context is left to diffuse through a second half where the material becomes more personal.
Julian Hall, The Independent, 1st May 2013Margaret Thatcher: Loadsacomedy
The comedic response to the Thatcher era is arguably one of its best ways of documenting it, and though her matronly style and her bit-biting policy content was relentlessly satirised, the Iron Lady could often still came up smelling of roses.
Julian Hall, The Stage, 12th April 2013Review: Josh Widdicombe: The Further Adventures of...
Rosy-cheeked Devonian Josh Widdicombe is a young man in the pink. The 29-year-old is currently enjoying exposure on Channel 4 in The Last Leg with Adam Hills and his stand up continues to go from strength to strength.
Julian Hall, The Independent, 14th February 2013Harry Hill - Sausage Time
Because it is eight years since his last tour, many of Harry Hill's younger fans in the audience tonight are probably seeing him live for the first time. What they witness is more than merely his telly act minus the TV Burp desk.
Julian Hall, The Stage, 11th February 2013Harry Hill: Sausage Time, Oxford New Theatre
"By the way, this isn't a dream" comments Hill towards the end. Neither a nightmare or a dream, in fact, but an admirable show where the palls seem somehow inexplicable among some material to revere.
Julian Hall, The Independent, 11th February 2013