For me, the reason I mainly like Ross Noble was because he was the very first stand-up comedian I ever saw live. I saw his Noodlemeister show in Billingham, Teesside in 2004, and ever since then, I've been hooked.
Ross Noble Page 3
Quote: Raymond Terrific @ May 20 2012, 4:35 PM BSTYeah, there's no such thing as being objectively funny. People who find him funny find him funny because they find him funny. As for me, he's the person who got me liking standup at all*.
* As in, watching him made me like standup, he didn't personally get me into standup by lending me DVDs or anything.
Not sure if I didn't make myself clear the first time or if I'm reading your response 'wrong' but what I meant was that some comedians like maybe Adam Hills or Dylan Moran you can perhaps see why other people find them funny even if you don't but I don't think that happens as much with people like Ross Noble or Bill Bailey.
That could just be the people I know though.
Quote: reds @ May 21 2012, 6:30 AM BSTNot sure if I didn't make myself clear the first time or if I'm reading your response 'wrong' but what I meant was that some comedians like maybe Adam Hills or Dylan Moran you can perhaps see why other people find them funny even if you don't but I don't think that happens as much with people like Ross Noble or Bill Bailey.
That could just be the people I know though.
Actually I didn't properly read your comment, sorry!
Yeh, I just got tickets for his Dublin gig but I'm heart broken I thought they were for the front row seats 1a only to find out that there for the very back :'(
Quote: Oldrocker @ May 19 2012, 1:32 AM BSTWho the f^ck ever told Ross Noble that he was funny ?
I can't believe I am actually agreeing with OR here 
I saw his MindBlender show last week in Hammersmith and have to say I didn't rate it at all.
I felt a little bit cheated at paying £25 a head to see a show that relied so heavily on audience participation. I left wondering how much of an influence the jumpy guy near the front had on the whole show, and how if he hadn't jumped up loads there might not have been a show at all.
I'd like to hear some material that he wrote, sure it was threaded through the audience interactions, but at 25 quid a ticket I don't want hours of Ross riffing off us, we paid you!
I also bugged me when he kept on going on about how some audience members were perplexed by his absurdity. We get it, you're just not that funny.
Quote: AngieBaby @ December 6 2012, 10:16 PM GMTI felt a little bit cheated at paying £25 a head to see a show that relied so heavily on audience participation. I left wondering how much of an influence the jumpy guy near the front had on the whole show, and how if he hadn't jumped up loads there might not have been a show at all.
...but at 25 quid a ticket I don't want hours of Ross riffing off us, we paid you!
I also bugged me when he kept on going on about how some audience members were perplexed by his absurdity.
I haven't seen that much of Noble's work yet but what I've seen (some stand up and his panel show appearances) I did like.
But in general I totally agree with you concerning audience participation. It's so frustrating: The lazy act doesn't have to write that much material and the dumber part of the audience likes it because it thinks: "Wow, I'm contributing to the show, and everyone can see it...I'm a bit of a star, at least for 15 seconds". And most of the time these comedian-audience interactions aren't funny at all...it's all about adrenaline for the participating audience. but if you're expecting first rate comedy then you're in the wrong place. As I said, it's frustrating.
I actually like the parts where he's interacting with the audience the most. It's the spontaneity of it I guess. I saw his show last week too (on Thursday). I don't know what the defining quality of "first rate comedy" is, but he's still one of my favourite stand up comedians.
Quote: Raymond Terrific @ December 7 2012, 9:46 AM GMTI don't know what the defining quality of "first rate comedy" is,
In this context I meant: well written stories or jokes in comparison to "oh, let's get some audience members on stage and let them do funny dances or something".
But I like Ross Noble too, even if he interacts with the audience.
Well doesn't really do that, he just comes up with surreal imagery and running jokes on the spot off of something audience members do, or are wearing or something.
I saw a clip on YouTube where he had problems with his mic and spontaneously improvised something on McGyver ability to repair things. I liked it...I'm old enough to know who McGyver was. 