Eugene Mirman

My comedy hero: Josie Long on Eugene Mirman

As Josie Long joins Jonny & The Baptists and Grace Petrie on the Lefty Scum tour, she picks a US indie poster boy as her comic idol.

TV review: Comedy Exchange

The comedians in this first episode were Eugene Mirman and panel show doyen Phill Jupitus, who admittedly had more to prove, given that he hadn't performed stand-up in almost a decade. Judging by his hackneyed material (yes, there were fat jokes), that's a blessing for us all.

As pretty much every comedy show apart from The Office has discovered, British humour, like strong cheese, is something that doesn't travel well. Pity British comedian Phill Jupitus, then - not easy words to write, to start with - but he's agreed to undertake a comedy swap with US comedian/actor Eugene Mirman. For Mirman, a veteran of Flight of the Conchords, there awaits a trip to Britain, and a deluge of appearances on panel shows involving Marcus Brigstocke. For Jupitus, there's a sense of deja vu as he returns to standup, and some testing times, in New York comedy clubs. This show may well be what the phrase "tears of a clown" is all about.

Original programming on Dave! Yes, and it's perfect for the channel: a series of interest to serious comedy fans, but inclusive and fun enough to draw in new viewers. Phill Jupitus is first to take part in an experiment where UK and US stand-ups swap places. Jupitus flies to New York to play to audiences who've never heard of him, while Eugene Mirman tries to impress here. Cultural differences are such a comedy cliche, you'd think the pros would be hyper-sensitive to them, but a visibly nervous Jupitus manages to derail his first gig by attempting a routine about Frosties. The very funny Mirman starts well by playing on his bewilderment, but still anxiously adjusts gags between sets. The two men's skill and likeability create valuable insights into the comedian's craft. And when they finally get it right, the gags are tremendous.

Phill Jupitus has moved away from his stand-up heritage in recent times, so it's nice to see him return here. However, there's a twist involved - he's trying his luck in New York, swapping places with Manhattan-based comic Eugene Mirman. Not only do both comics have to contend with being unknowns once more, there are cultural differences to trip them up as well. It's a great programme that really exposes how hard the art of stand-up is.

We gave them The Beatles, they gave us Billy Ray Cyrus. We gave them Monty Python, they gave us Golden Girls. We gave them language, they gave us mispronunciation of herbs. Well, now it's time for revenge. They're giving us mediocre comedian Eugene Mirman and we're giving them Phill Jupitus. Dave's new format sees two comedians try out gigging in each other's land. But they've subverted that in the pilot, by sending Jupitus. To be fair, it actually holds up pretty well under Jupitus's weight as a study of the effort that goes into stand-up.

Dave has hit on a good idea for this bit of original programming: get a British and US stand-up to swap audiences, and see how the cultural references fly. Phil Jupitus, who hasn't done live stand-up for eight years, and Eugene Mirman from Flight Of The Conchords (but an unknown on the live scene here) are the guinea pigs and provide an interesting insight into the stand-up comedian's craft.