Has anyone been on a stand up comedy course or workshop ?
Are there any that people would recommend ?
I went on one years ago at the now defunct Cosmic Comedy club in Fulham.
A guy called Michael Knighton ran it.
It was definitely worth doing, even just for the fact that they forced you to do a 10 minute set in front of a paying audience at the end
(quite an experience)
Comedy School is good if your at the very, very beginning.
You sure it's standup you want to do?
No, I want to write sketches and try sitcom
But I had always wanted to try to stand up so that's why I did the course
(and I'm glad I did )
My Brother in law has just started a stand up course ( I'm not sure what one it is)
I was just interested to hear some opinions, or even if anyone had been on Michael Knightons course, or remembers the Old Cosmic club.
Thought of doing a writing course? I found that helpful.
Awaits brickbats that you can't teach some one to be funny.
I'd definitely be interested in any comedy writing courses
I attended a one day course at a college in London a year or two ago
(it was a Christmas present)
I can't remember his name but he had written for many shows including not the nine o'clock news.
While I'm here, so I don't have to start any new threads, I did want to ask if anyone had any good comedy writing books they would recommend.
And I also wanted to ask if you can still get tickets for RFTP as I'd quite like to go to see one of the shows being recorded.
To get back toward the point of the original thread.
I do remember that I had some esteemed company in the standup workshop I attended
there were 6 of us in all.
Jeff Stevenson was on the same course, he was an established comedian at the time and I remember seeing him in an episode of Only fools & horses.
Also Mark Dolan was one of the group, he went on to host balls of steel, and I think he plays a few parts in Star stories these days.
The Marc Blake comedy writing course is a pretty good generalist course.
And the Tony Allan course is fantastic.
Thanks Sooty, Griff
Yes it was Nick Revell
Sally Holloway does regular stand-up courses in Hastings. My partner did the last one, with DannyJB and about eight others. I went to the end of term performance, and was surprised that the standard was so high.
I went to Sally's gag-writing course afterwards. I'd never done a comedy course before as I feared they would be hugely competitive and abrasive in tone, but went to this one because my partner reassured me that Sally was nothing like that, and was very encouraging and easy-going.
Someone on the course was simultaneously going to one of the well-known London courses already mentioned and said that course was indeed very competitive with everyone guarding their own material and highly suspicious of each other, and the tutor complaining depressively about how previous supposedly less talented students had become much more successful than him. This guy said the more relaxed and co-operative nature of Sally's course restored his faith in human nature.
Yep, can recommend the above course, I also did a weekend Laughing Horse comedy course in Richmond, both equally good and faily complimentary.
I'd be happy to recommend both, but I would say I got more from Sally's.
Quote: Fred Sunshine @ December 24 2008, 2:03 AM GMTTo get back toward the point of the original thread.
I do remember that I had some esteemed company in the stand-up workshop I attended
there were 6 of us in all.
Jeff Stevenson was on the same course, he was an established comedian at the time and I remember seeing him in an episode of Only fools & horses.
Also Mark Dolan was one of the group, he went on to host balls of steel, and I think he plays a few parts in Star stories these days.
Hi Fred ( Steve??) Jeff Stevenson here...Michaels course was great fun and a great help to me as I wanted to move over from the so called main-stream to the alternative circuit. Within weeks I was writing and developing faster than I had in the twenty odd years previous. I now work on the circuit as Harvey Oliver and still do mainstream gigs as Jeff Stevenson. These courses are great if you go in with an open mind and are prepared to stick with it.
Check this out:
http://www.fit2fill.com/bullcomedy/sitcom.html
Haven't tried it myself but they do standup, sitcom and sketch workshops.
Quote: JEFF STEVENSON @ January 1 2009, 12:07 PM GMTHi Fred ( Steve??) Jeff Stevenson here...Michaels course was great fun and a great help to me as I wanted to move over from the so called main-stream to the alternative circuit. Within weeks I was writing and developing faster than I had in the twenty odd years previous. I now work on the circuit as Harvey Oliver and still do mainstream gigs as Jeff Stevenson. These courses are great if you go in with an open mind and are prepared to stick with it.
Hi Jeff.
Glad to see you're still working on the circuit, I'll keep an eye out for your gigs and pop down to see one soon.
Thanks for that Link JJ, I'll definitely look into that.
I have done a two day course in stand-up with Jack Milner (no relation that we know of). Very good introduction and confidence booster. Jack takes you through the writing of your own material and ends with your own performance.
See www.jackmilner.com for more info.
Also recently done a one day writers course at the Soho Theatre with Natalie Haynes. Also very good. natalie@nataliehaynes.com
Anyone done the stand up course at City Lit?