Andy Zaltzman

Fringe 2017: the comedy shows you should book now

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is the best place to see comedy heavyweights perform alongside up and coming talent.

Comedians for Corbyn?

Stand-up is supposedly a leftie haven. But from what I saw this week, the scene offered little support for the Labour leader - and, despite some droll insights, a lack of real debate.

Andy Zaltzman podcast The Bugle to go live

Hit satirical podcast The Bugle is to be recorded in front of a UK audience for the first time.

Andy Zaltzman - Plan Z review

Alternative political comedian Andy Zaltzman starts with the jokes before the show even officially begins.

Andy Zaltzman interview

The popular satirist, sports fan and former support act for Joan Rivers offers an alternative to this crazy world with his Plan Z.

Brits still waiting for full Brexit comedy dividend

They were the two stories that rocked the Western world last year. But while Donald Trump's election injected new life into U.S. political comedy, the British are still waiting for Brexit to usher in their new golden age of satire.

The UK's answer to John Oliver in format but sadly not execution (although John Oliver is surely also our own answer to John Oliver, being from Birmingham and all), Matt Forde's relatively ersatz Unspun returns for a new series of topical skewering. Guest comedians will include Oliver's former cohort Andy Zaltzman and Phil Wang, while political guests - unknown at the time of writing - will be drafted in to give their twopenn'orth.

Review - Andy Zaltzman: Plan Z

The strength of the show is Zaltzman's ability to effortlessly drift between making serious political points whilst at the same time doing so with a silly, almost childish sense of humour.

Andy Zaltzman: Plan Z review

The laughs tend to thin as Zaltzman serves up more of the same, but he remains fascinating in his silly and sardonic analysis. He certainly earns more than a few applause breaks for making very good points.