Lewis Schaffer
- Stand-up comedian
Press clippings Page 2
Edinburgh Fringe day 12
How to destroy a comedy career & other news.
John Fleming, John Fleming's Blog, 13th August 2017Edinburgh Fringe day 11
The gamut of comedy and The Grouchy Club's origins.
John Fleming, John Fleming's Blog, 12th August 2017Edinburgh Fringe day 7
Today, I watched three performers talking out of their arses. Hardly a new thing at the Edinburgh Fringe, you might think.
John Fleming, John Fleming's Blog, 8th August 2017Edinburgh Fringe day 5
How to win a Fringe comedy award - make 'em cry.
John Fleming, John Fleming's Blog, 6th August 2017Edinburgh 10x10: 2. Sounds intriguing...
Ten shows with unusual premises.
Chortle, 18th July 2017Lewis Schaffer and the unopened letters from his mother
The penultimate time I saw London-based American comedian Lewis Schaffer, he was touting a show in a venue "near Leicester Square" in which the audience had to turn up at a corner of the square and be led to a highly secret venue.
John Fleming, John Fleming's Blog, 8th July 2017How I helped create fake US comic Lewis Schaffer
Brian Simpson, the English character comedian who performs as American comic Lewis Schaffer, was a massive fan of Tiswas, the slapstick children's TV show I used to work on. He was born and bred in Brownhills.
John Fleming, John Fleming's Blog, 26th December 2016Defining the Norm winners announced
Will Franken reveals the winners of the first-ever Defining the Norm Awards.
Will Franken, Spiked, 31st August 2016Yesterday at the Fringe I saw the strangest things
At last year's Edinburgh Fringe, performer Cassie Atkinson and I seemed to be stalking each other. Almost every day, we seemed to bump into each other at least once. This year, she seems to have been replaced by Joz Norris and Scott Agnew. I keep meeting Joz in other people's shows and Scott on street corners.
John Fleming, John Fleming's Blog, 13th August 2016Ten most controversial acts at Edinburgh Fringe 2016
Comedy on TV and in the clubs is safe and inoffensive. Comedy at the Edinburgh Fringe is no different, because most of the shows don't exist for your benefit. They're being staged in the hopes of grabbing the attention of industry bigwigs and broadcasters. So, it makes sense to be as bland and agreeable as possible, because that's what the real target audience - i.e. people who can help your showbiz career - seem to be looking for. However, not everyone at the Fringe is pandering. Not everyone is desperate to be liked and accepted. And provocative performers haven't gone extinct just yet. If you want politically incorrect jokes, to be taken out of your comfort zone, or to hear someone challenge social orthodoxies, then here's ten acts I'd recommend you go and see at Edinburgh Fringe 2016. If you're a bit of a pussy, though, then best avoid all of these.
Jay Islaam, The Huffington Post, 9th August 2016