BCG Daily Wednesday 12th February 2014

What happened when a journalist & a stand-up swapped

Heard the one about the Guardian journalist and the standup comedian who swapped places? When feature writer Stephen Moss and comic Miles Jupp briefly stepped into each other's shoes, did anything funny emerge?

Jimmy Carr lined up for Derby's first comedy festival

Jimmy Carr will be among the famous faces flocking to Derby for the city's first ever comedy festival this summer.

Miles Jupp Is The Chap You're Thinking Of, review

Some of the subject matter might be familiar, but Miles Jupp's deadpan delivery turns this stand-up show into a very British tour-de-force.

Radio Times review

Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton are superb comic actors and ace gag-writers, but what makes them precious is their willingness to attempt difficult concepts, because they know that if it works they'll have something really special.

Last week we spent half the episode inside a wardrobe; this one-off story roams around the house of the week, a glass-walled millionaire mansion. Denis Lawson is at home, arguing with his wife (Oona Chaplin) and oblivious to the presence of two inept cat-burglars (Shearsmith and Pemberton). As they try to steal from him, there are near misses, pratfalls, murder and farce, all beautifully choreographed. But no dialogue.

Radio Times review

Teenage hormones are surging through the Brockman household while parents Pete and Sue desperately try, Canute-like, to stem the tide.

"Ben is only 13 and that's another one that I've lost to the testosterone express," wails Sue, as her younger son is rendered speechless and physically incapacitated by the sight of Pete's 21-year-old goddaughter wandering around in her underwear.

Meanwhile, a spot of babysitting leads Karen to ask awkward questions about the pain of childbirth and Jake argues the case for being allowed to have a girl stay overnight in his room. "He's good," Sue and Pete agree about his persuasive technique. Turns out his parents are better.

Radio Times review

If you've seen Richard E. Grant being interviewed before, you'll know it's only a matter of time before the subject of breaking wind crops up. The man is obsessed. True to form, he cheerfully expounds on matters flatulent in the latest edition of this affable comedy chat show.

Joining him on the couch in the Kumars' flat of chat are actresses Emilia Fox and Caroline Quentin. The apparently rib-tickling double-meaning of Fox's surname is ground into the ground, although host Sanjeev Bhaskar does crack a decent gag at the expense of her illustrious acting dynasty: "As kids, were you, like an Indian family, forced into the family business?"

Radio Times review

The last stop on Mark Steel's tour of towns in need of an affectionate ribbing is Huddersfield, and he concludes that it's just what you'd expect a town in the middle of Yorkshire to be.

But before he reaches that conclusion there's the locals' dour pessimism to explore, the extraordinary crimes that take place there, the legacy of Luddism, which was born in the town, the unique construction of the indoor market, the cultural significance of brass bands, rugby league - and, of course, the exploits of three elderly men in Last of the Summer Wine.

Throughout the series, Steel has displayed an aptitude for accents and he ends on a high, delivering a speech in French - with a Yorkshire accent. His feeble knowledge of Last of the Summer Wine is brutally exposed when talking to the owner of Sid's Cafe in Holmfirth, but he's stronger on the Luddism, explaining why still buying CDs instead of downloading music does not make you a Luddite - though if I were CEO of iTunes I'd steer clear of anyone calling themselves one. Steel describes precisely why in one of his trademark wry twists on historical fact.

Preview: Inside No. 9: A Quiet Night In

This week's episode, A Quiet Night In, is a sudden comedic gear change after last week's Sardines. Where that had a malevolent sting constantly throbbing away in the background like a bassline, this is played more for laughs while never ever forgetting to be nasty too.

Miles Jupp - review

His suitcase gags are cute, but this show goes from strength to strength as Jupp finds subjects worthy of his moral outrage.

Jim Davidson celebrates £1,000,000 payday after CBB win

Jim, 61, is set to rake in more than £1million by the end of this year.

The Beeb votes for funny females

Having had some experience working in comedy I know there are many capable female comics out there.

Freddie Starr held over new sex abuse claims

Freddie Starr has been arrested for a fourth time by detectives investigating allegations of sexual abuse as part of Operation Yewtree.

Oona Chaplin interview

Tonight's dialogue-free episode of the BBC Two drama is particularly poignant because its star is the grand-daughter of the biggest silent movie actor of all time.

Can you learn stand-up in six weeks?

Late last year, SSP editor Tim Clark was challenged to write, learn and perform a five-minute stand-up in six weeks. Here's the first of a three part series in what it is like to face the audience for the first time.

The inaugural UK Pun Championships kick off tonight

Glenn Moore is among those comedians who will take to a stage at Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival, in a pun-off hosted by Simon Brodkin (in character as Lee Nelson).

Ross Noble and Phill Jupitus to record panel show pilot

Giggle Beats can reveal that the Noble and Jupitus will appear at The Stand Comedy Club, Newcastle, on Sunday 2 March as a guest at The Dinner Party, a one-off panel show that will see them and guests chew the fat over their all-time heroes. And at the same time, fans can join them for a unique food menu devised especially for the 'comedy Come Dine With Me' style show.

Miles Jupp, Ambassadors Theatre - comedy review

Miles Jupp's latest show is not totally revolutionary but is exquisitely delivered.

Video: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels interview

We sat down with Robert Lindsay and Rufus Hound, Samantha Bond and John Marquez to talk to them about their new musical.

Geoff Norcott review

Geoff Norcott goes where most modern comedians fear to tread. He is Conservative and he's not afraid to say it.

Inside No. 9 - Episode 2: 'A Quiet Night In' review

From the clever-clever casting of one of the guest stars to the even cleverer plotting that allows for huge punchlines to sail into view with nary a syllable of set-up, this is the sort of thing that gives one a pleasingly mixed feeling of delight and bitter jealousy.

James Mullinger review

It isn't every day a comedian bursts into a cockney accent, gets an audience to whip out their tattoos whilst screaming "LEGEND!" at every person he deems 'hard'.