The Secret Reviewer #15: The Best-Laid Cunning Plans

Every month our clandestine critic reveals the murky truths behind that infamous trade, and live comedy generally. This month: why it's still worth launching a happening.

As we career surreally into June, it's interesting - if potentially heartbreaking - to ponder what might currently be happening with live comedy in any normal year. Actually 2020 was set to be a European Championship football and Olympic other-sports summer, so what would probably happen this June, July and early-August is a lot of well-meaning Edinburgh preview festivals struggling for an audience.

Planning these things is fraught with possible pitfalls, from relatively foreseeable...