Press clippings Page 5
Little & Large reunite for Slapstick Festival
One of last century's most popular TV double acts - Little and Large - will be back on stage together for the first time in decades in Bristol in January as part of the extended 15th annual edition of the UK's biggest celebration of silent and classic screen comedy: SLAPSTICK.
Bruce Dessau, Beyond The Joke, 2nd November 2018The 30 best living comedians
In the run-up to the Edinburgh Festival our comedy critic Dominic Maxwell ranks the funniest comics working now.
Dominic Maxwell, The Times, 21st July 2018Tim Vine to host ITV comedy quiz series Football Genius
Tim Vine is to host Football Genius, a comedy quiz series for ITV in which two teams of football loving fans compete against each other across a virtual pitch. Sam Quek and Paul Sinha are the team captains.
British Comedy Guide, 6th July 201850 Fringe one-liners that deserved to win Funniest Joke
It's been ten years since Dave launched the Funniest Joke of the Fringe award, and there have been some worthy winners over the years. There have, however, been some unlucky losers.
Finlay Greig, i Newspaper, 28th June 2018Tim Vine unveils Ken Dodd Bar at York Grand Opera House
Doddy and his joke telling style was a big influence on Tim - and he even remembered one of his jokes for us: "Harold's at the Battle of Hastings with an arrow sticking out of his eye and all his mates are going, 'maybe try blowing your nose...'" So there couldn't have been a better person to officially open the Ken Dodd Bar at the Grand Opera House.
York Mix, 1st June 2018Comedy review: Tim Vine: Sunset Milk Idiot
We were indeed in for a relatively old school show, yet there's also something almost radical about Tim Vine's madcap comedy.
Brian Donaldson, The Scotsman, 26th May 2018Taskmaster, which started as a comedy routine at the Edinburgh Fringe, has become the most popular show in Dave's admittedly short and unspectacular history -- such a success that another three series have been commissioned. That's good news for anyone who can't get enough of stand-ups and comic actors creating art with whipped cream or hurling dolls into trees.
It works because the five contestants, who this time include one-liner king Tim Vine and sitcom stalwart Liza Tarbuck, happily submit to the show's sadistic style. Watching them make fools of themselves is quite entertaining: seeing presenter Greg Davies mock and sneer at their efforts can be shamefully funny.
Creator of the concept, and butt of Greg's harshest jibes, is Alex Horne, who also oversees all the tasks. He understands the importance of a rigid format, and each episode follows a precise rhythm. It's possible to gauge almost to the second when he will make a self-conscious quip, or a jangling piano will introduce a clip to introduce the next task.
Eventually the format will become stale, changes will be introduced, and the whole thing will fall apart. For now, we can wallow in telly that manages to be inane, spiteful and hilarious at the same time.
Christopher Stevens, Daily Mail, 24th May 2018Taskmaster: TV's best comedy is back, bigger and better
The best comedy of 2017 is back - bigger and better than ever.
James Croot, Stuff.co.nz, 15th May 2018The daft panel show returns for a sixth series, with Greg Davies and Alex Horne doling out challenges both inane and insane. Alice Levine, Liza Tarbuck, Russell Howard, Tim Vine and Asim "Chabuddy G" Chaudhry are their victims, taking on lemons, wheelbarrows and orienteering in this opening episode.
Hannah J Davies, The Guardian, 2nd May 2018TV review: Taskmaster, Series 6, Dave
This programme is getting so popular it can only be a matter of time before Taskmaster becomes an Olympic sport.
Bruce Dessau, Beyond The Joke, 30th April 2018