Press clippings Page 21
Comics share their fest highlights
Some final Fringe recommendations from performers including Billy the Mime and Chris Ramsey.
The List, 21st August 201210 questions with Chris Ramsey
Acclaimed stand-up Chris Ramsey was nominated for the Foster's Comedy Award at last year's Edinburgh Fringe. This year, he's back with a brand new show that's all about being lucky. Talking of which, we were lucky enough to get him to answer our 10 Quick Questions (see what we did there?)...
The Huffington Post, 7th August 2012Interview - Chris Ramsey: Feeling Lucky
An interview with Chris Ramsey about their latest Fringe show.
Tommy Holgate, The Sun, 28th July 2012Gina McKee, Jan Ravens and Phil Nice join Hebburn cast
Gina McKee, Jan Ravens and Phil Nice have been lined up to star alongside Jim Moir, Chris Ramsey and Kimberley Nixon in new six-part BBC Two comedy series, Hebburn.
BBC Press Office, 26th April 2012Chris Ramsey: "Offermation is the junk mail of life"
Cheeky Geordie Chris Ramsey is coming to town to tell you things you didn't particularly want to know.
Kate Russell, The Skinny, 22nd February 2012Interview: comedian Chris Ramsey's offermation
The genial Geordie Chris Ramsey discusses offensiveness and award nominations.
Brian Donaldson, The List, 2nd February 2012A new comedy on E4, Show & Tell (fronted by Chris Addison) features three up-and-coming guest comedians talking about various items that they've brought with them.
In this week's opening episode, Welsh stand-up Elis James brought in a practically ancient pair of underpants which seem to have dated before he was even born. Roisin Conaty (winner of last year's Edinburgh Newcomer Award) talked about a video she watched when she was 13 which turned out to be a porn film; and sand-dancer (which, for anyone outside of the North East, means "South Shields resident") Chris Ramsey recalled about an incident with a nutter and an umbrella in a canal.
As well as this Addison asked his panel to bring in something relating to a particular subject, and then got the audience to talk about things they wanted to show.
Never too bogged down in the prepared material from James, Conaty and Ramsey, this is a very enjoyable show. And any programme which gives lesser known stand-ups a platform to perform on is worth promoting (admittedly Conaty is an award winner, but she isn't a household name by any stretch). But even when going off script the comics get decent laughs out of their props, whether it's James asking Conaty to cut out some of his underpant gusset or the unusual uses for a toy gorilla. It isn't the funniest show you'll ever see, but with the competitive element of panel shows removed it's much more relaxing.
Ian Wolf, Giggle Beats, 19th September 2011Here's what the world needs right now: another comedy panel show. Except there's no panel, and there are none of the same old tired faces doing the rounds. Instead, three bright young comics lounge on the sofa, waiting patiently for gangly host Chris Addison to invite them to perform short routines about an object they've brought in.
It's all very good-natured and feels quite loosely structured, like watching a group of friends joking around in their front room. Roisin Conaty (best newcomer at last year's Edinburgh Festival), Al Murray's support act Chris Ramsey, and engaging Welshman Elis James all spin great yarns from inconsequential matters. But they are trumped by an audience member's weird story about his childhood toy gorilla - Chris Addison throws the toy away in disgust.
David Crawford, Radio Times, 15th September 2011An interview with Chris Ramsey
"You're not going to ask me how I got into comedy are you?" asks Chris Ramsey before we begin our interview at the BBC's Edinburgh Fringe base.
Andrew Dipper, Giggle Beats, 24th August 2011While most of the comedy world is currently camping out in Edinburgh (Radio 4 is recording a number of shows up at the festival), Russell Kane's Whistle Stop Tour appeared at first to offer something different from seaside resorts across the UK.
The only problem was that there wasn't enough material about the location chosen (on this occasion Blackpool) to make the listening experience anything more than another night down the local comedy club. It was not that Kane and the other comics - Chris Ramsey, Gary Delaney, Justin Moorhouse and the particularly funny Rob Rouse - did not make an entertaining combination, but this was a dull, run-of-the-mill format. Despite Kane travelling on the Big One rollercoaster at the Pleasure Beach and hearing snippets about Punch and Judy and the resort's early history, the majority of the programme could have been recorded anywhere.
Surely to conjure up something of Blackpool's distinctive atmosphere would not have been difficult. A bit of effort, a stroll down the seafront and a chat with some of the tourists or performers working at the resort would have been preferable to the slightly patronising remarks from Kane such as, "I didn't know stuff like this existed!" What a missed opportunity.