Press clippings Page 3
The opener of the first series of this show hosted by Barry Cryer is dedicated to Tommy Cooper, who was intrinsically funny enough to extract laughs from the corniest of puns and one-liners. Fellow comedians assess the singular act of this much imitated yet irreplaceable entertainer.
David Stubbs, The Guardian, 10th October 2018How to pay tribute to Tommy Cooper... seemingly 'Jus'-Like-That!'
John Hewer - who will be performing as Tommy Cooper in a tribute show at this year's Edinburgh Fringe - explains how he became interested in the comedian, and why it's sad there's no full record of Cooper's ever-evolving stage act.
British Comedy Guide, 23rd July 2018What happened to the comedy trademark?
Comedians once embraced a signature quip or look, so why have such tropes fallen out of favour?
James Kettle, The Guardian, 7th August 2017Barry Cryer: 'Tommy Cooper had a sadistic streak'
Tommy Cooper had a 'sadistic streak' which made him relish making people uncomfortable, Barry Cryer has revealed.
Chortle, 22nd January 2017Maybe you would expect a programme like this to be on at Christmas, not after it - but the timeless nature of Cooper's act and art makes a fine clip show, whenever it's broadcast. A lugubrious physical comedian, Cooper was never "off" - he died on stage - and resisted efforts made by interviewers to get into his psyche. To that end, this includes his appearance on Parkinson, during which he makes the perspicacious interviewer simply another prop in his act.
John Robinson, The Guardian, 9th January 2017Why Tommy Cooper's fez was much more than a prop
Four months after opening its archive about the comedy great without including his famous bonnet, the V&A has added one to its collection.
Brian Logan, The Guardian, 5th December 2016The V&A Museum's plans for the Tommy Cooper collection
Comprising over 116 boxes of archive material and 24 props and posters, the Tommy Cooper Collection that London's Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) has recently acquired charts the career of the famous magician and comedian known for his trademark fez and endearingly flustered jokes. Museums Journal caught up with Simon Sladen, the senior curator of modern and contemporary performance at the V&A, and asked him about the importance of the collection, and what the museum's plans for it are.
Museums Journal, 6th September 2016How to do the perfect Tommy Cooper impression
Tommy Cooper's handwritten jokes are to go on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, after it bought the late comic's archive. The exhibition doesn't include his trademark red fez, but does feature a metal cabinet, in which his jokes were filed alphabetically. John Hewer is currently preparing to tour the UK with Just like That: The Tommy Cooper Show. He plays the comedian in the tribute, and has spent years perfecting Cooper's act and mannerisms.
BBC News, 27th August 2016V&A Museum acquires Tommy Cooper Collection
The Victoria & Albert Museum has acquired a large collection of artefacts from the career of Tommy Cooper.
British Comedy Guide, 26th August 2016Review: Just Like That! The Tommy Cooper Show
With his deadpan delivery, Cooper was the comedian's ultimate comic and this show clearly demonstrates why, although his gags are as old as the hills, they are still profoundly funny, of the ones included in this show, the jokes that raised the biggest laughs were, "I sold my wife for a car, it was a good swap," and "I asked a librarian if she kept books on pigmies and she said no, we keep them on shelves."
Richard Hall, The Reviews Hub, 9th July 2016