BCG Daily Friday 21st February 2014

Alexei Sayle on 35 Years in Comedy

Anybody interested in recent comedy history should have been at I Say, Alexei Sayle's inaugural "Comedy Conversation" at Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival earlier this week.

Opinion: Comedy, mental health, and Mackenzie Taylor

As I was researching a feature about Women & Theatre's Laughing for a Change project, which aims to increase awareness of mental health issues, I was reminded of what is probably my most memorable experience at the Fringe.

Radio Times review

Here's a sample gag from Edge of Heaven: "I'm like those birds that go around in pairs." "Lesbians?" "No, swans." If you're laughing so hard you've bent double and displaced a vertebra in your back, then this broad, camp comedy drama is for you.

Just think of it as a low-rent Modern Family set in Edge of Heaven, "Margate's finest 80s-themed B&B", run by raucous landlady Judy (Camille Coduri) and her young husband Tandeep (Nitin Kundra), where she plays host to a ragtag band of eclectic relatives. Her gormless son Alfie (The Inbetweeners' Blake Harrison) is about to marry the girl of his dreams.

Edge of Heaven could have been made at any time during the 1970s. There's even a joke about Blue Nun.

Radio Times review

Who would have thought that Aled Jones could ever have experienced anything more alarming than the moment his voice broke. But apparently he did and the story he tells tonight elicits gasps from the studio audience and makes his fellow guests (stand-up comedian Josh Widdicombe and DJ Sara Cox) squirm uncomfortably.

Among this week's pet hates nominated for Room 101 are slogan T-shirts, car lashes (yes, false eyelashes for your headlights), fish bones, dill and The Lord of the Rings. Despite Josh Widdicombe's efforts, the best jokes still come from Frank Skinner, who does a fabulous impression of a Tyrannosaurus Rex trying to eat its dinner from a plate, and a laughable attempt at crowd surfing.

Radio Times review

Ultimately there's a good reason this show is called Stella and not, I don't know, Greetings from Pontyberry or some such. The ensemble are like a family we love seeing once a week, but the heart of the show is always Ruth Jones's creation. Her hopes and feelings are ours.

So this series is easy and uplifting because this year's upward-looking, bright blonde Stella is on form. This week, she and next-door neighbour Michael (Patrick Baladi) move closer, a slow courtship we'll be content to watch unfurl. It starts when she slams his fingers in his car bonnet.

Tonight's comic set piece is a Brenda's Buses trip to a nightclub, featuring two celebrity cameos: X Factor/Big Brother star Rylan Clark, and his teeth.

Radio Times review

The incomparable Miriam Margolyes has become a semi-regular on Graham's couch in recent years. It's easy to see why: charmingly eccentric and outrageous (the last time she was on she told a show-stealing story about "assisting" a sex-starved soldier up a tree in Edinburgh), she's one of those daffy English wits we thought we just didn't make any more.

Remember when the likes of Peter Ustinov and Kenneth Williams would frequently turn up on Parkinson and Wogan, not to plug anything in particular but just because they were always good value? Margolyes is one of the few remaining figures we have in that vein.

So, should fellow guests Lily Allen and Dominic Cooper fail to cut the mustard, Graham can always rely on his real star turn to pick up the slack.

Jack Whitehall banned from talking about girlfriend

Jack Whitehall has revealed that he is banned from talking about his girlfriend Gemma Chan in his stand-up shows.

Audio: Interview with Caroline Quentin

Caroline Quentin is an award-winning actress, who has performed in some of the most successful British comedies in recent years.

Andrew Sachs: 'John Cleese once hit me so hard'

The actor on Sachsgate, fleeing the Nazis and being thumped by Basil Fawlty.

Chris Ramsey - review

Chris Ramsey's boisterous storytelling establishes a strong rapport with his audience - but his material too often lacks insight.

Jack Whitehall: Bad Education USA wont butcher original

Jack Whitehall, who will star in An American Education for ABC, and told Digital Spy that the script by Peter Huyck and Alex Gregory had not "butchered" the BBC show.

Isy Suttie on the best hang-outs for writers

Actress and comedian Isy Suttie recommends the best writing spots for those in need of inspiration.

Comedy review: Joke Thieves, Edinburgh, The Stand

The beauty of this show is that it allows you to see comics deconstructing each other's acts while at the same time taking each other's material in new directions. Throw in some seriously caustic barbs and you have a truly electric night.

House of Fools could return

Bob Mortimer says rumours that House of Fools has been axed are premature.

Bristol group set up to represent women in comedy

What the Frock was set up by Jane Dufus when she realised the number of female stand up acts were limited.

Rev series 3 to tackle gay marriage

New run of comedy will tackle serious issues and see the introduction of Dexter Fletcher and Kayvan Novak when it returns to BBC Two next month.

Comedy Festival Review: Bob Slayer and Tim Fitzhingham

Mr Methane, the renowned performing flautist, who was meant to be, ahem, playing tonight, had, for whatever reason decided to blow the gig out. In his place and at the 11th hour, up stepped Bob Slayer, the event organiser who had decided the show must go on.

Review: Incredibly forgettable comedy drama

Ultimately, it feels to me that ITV wanted Edge of Heaven to be a comedy in the fashion of something like Modern Family but what we got instead was a programme that would feel more at home in the 1970s.

Inside No. 9 review

The writing in all these diverse episodes showcases two creative talents at the top of their game. The excellent calibre of guest stars, the production showing a fine attention to detail, and a level of perfectionism that is way ahead of anyone else writing dark comedy at the moment.