The Alternative Comedy Experience starts on Comedy Central at 11pm tomorrow night (Tuesday 5th February).
Curated by Stewart Lee, it 'showcases' (though they'd hate the word) acts that are not considered mainstream. Sounds good fun, if only from a listing of the acts to be shown.
Stew goes on about it here, with his usual inability to stay concise. He is funny though, so he does have that going for him.
http://www.chortle.co.uk/features/2013/02/04/17115/our_manifesto
Dan
Ah! Cool! Looking forward to this series. Especially Tony Law, who I feel I should have watched a lot more of.
I found this very strange to watch. It was all so brief and fleeting.
It was strange that it had Stewart Lee's name on it when it was all so cut up into pieces. He's written constantly about being taken out of context, and how Apollo/Roadshow force comedians to form soundbite routines. But on those shows at least they have an uninterrupted 5/15 minute set. The short, 3 minute clips of comedy here are an even more exaggerated form of that, and there is even less context.
I'm sure that being in the audience would have been great (and that, I suppose, is the real message of this show). I wonder if any DVD release of this will include the acts' unedited, uninterrupted routines as an extra or something?
Besides that, the names involved in this are some of the most exciting stand-ups in the country, and I cannot wait to see whether people like Josie Long and Simon Munnery tailor their sets for TV or if they dive in with their usual, unconventional style.
In the "manifesto" article, Stewart Lee said that two of his first choices turned him down, as expected. Does anybody have any clue who these names were, or want to hazard a guess? I assumed Jerry Sadowitz was one, and maybe Norman Lovett the other?
Quote: Snafu @ February 6 2013, 11:10 AM GMTI assumed Jerry Sadowitz was one, and maybe Norman Lovett the other?
My guesses are Sadowitz and Kitson.
Quote: Snafu @ February 6 2013, 11:10 AM GMTI found this very strange to watch. It was all so brief and fleeting.
It was strange that it had Stewart Lee's name on it when it was all so cut up into pieces. He's written constantly about being taken out of context, and how Apollo/Roadshow force comedians to form soundbite routines. But on those shows at least they have an uninterrupted 5/15 minute set. The short, 3 minute clips of comedy here are an even more exaggerated form of that, and there is even less context.
That's exactly what I thought. Incredibly strange decision.
I agree.
Quote: Jinky @ February 6 2013, 12:28 PM GMTMy guesses are Sadowitz and Kitson.
Correct.
"BD: I guess Daniel Kitson would have been the perfect person to get on the show?
SL: I told Colin it wasn't worth asking him. He did and it wasn't. Jerry Sadowitz wouldn't do it. But on the whole we got everyone."
http://www.beyondthejoke.co.uk/content/new-interview-stewart-lee
Quote: Snafu @ February 6 2013, 11:10 AM GMTI'm sure that being in the audience would have been great (and that, I suppose, is the real message of this show). I wonder if any DVD release of this will include the acts' unedited, uninterrupted routines as an extra or something?
I went to the Tony Law, Paul Sinha, Bridget Christie, Josie Long recording of the show in Edinburgh, and it WAS brilliant. It's a real shame not to just broadcast it unedited.
Ah it's on TV now?
Got a free ticket for I-can't-remember-which-ones' show when I was in Edinburgh but the queue was long and apparently they overissued tickets so they didn't let me through 
Oh of course, Daniel Kitson would be the other one, thanks for the link. That makes a lot more sense.
Has he only done television standup in Australia? Those are the only clips on YouTube from what I can tell.
Quote: Cheryl @ February 7 2013, 4:12 AM GMTAh it's on TV now?
Got a free ticket for I-can't-remember-which-ones' show when I was in Edinburgh but the queue was long and apparently they overissued tickets so they didn't let me through
Yeah it's on Tuesdays at 11pm on Comedy Central. There are another nine to go, I think.
I agree. It didn't really feel any different to that Comedy Store show they have on, but acts seem to get a bit longer on that. All the people that are on this that I've seen live, work in the longer format for me. So I can't see the show working without a minimum 10-15 minutes uninterrupted of each one, which I thought this might be.
Dan
What exactly distinguishes these "alternative" comedy acts from regular comedy acts? Besides looking a bit geekier and being less funny, I mean.
Quote: flidder @ February 12 2013, 11:13 PM GMTbeing less funny, I mean.
I still don't know what this show is supposed to be. It is almost as if they made 10 really excellent and potentially award-winning programmes of stand-up and interview, then in a fit of self-doubt or professional jealousy they chopped them into pieces and re-arranged them as a series of William Burroughs-like cut-ups.
The acts are tremendous, the setting is spot on, and the idea of having interviews to allow the acts' real personalities come through, and to offer context to material, is something sorely lacking in all TV comedy.
But it doesn't work if you serve everything up in 3 minute slivers!
I really hope there is a DVD of this, and I really hope it contains an Easter egg where you can watch each act in its entirety, THEN watch their complete interview, THEN go on to the next one. That would make it an almost compulsory purchase for anyone into comedy.
Quote: Snafu @ February 13 2013, 2:11 PM GMTI really hope it contains an Easter egg where you can watch each act in its entirety, THEN watch their complete interview, THEN go on to the next one. That would make it an almost compulsory purchase for anyone into comedy.
That would be easy enough to do by yourself.
It's made more difficult by the fact I wouldn't likely buy a complete DVD if it doesn't have that option included.
