Press clippings Page 32
It's comedy and charity combined, not to be confused with a comedy about charity, which would be plain wrong. Twenty-three of our funniest people (and Michael McIntyre) are at the 02 Arena in London competing to win your laughs at Britain's largest-ever live stand-up show, all in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Charity. Take your pick from Alan Carr, Noel Fielding, Catherine Tate and plenty more. If you still haven't had enough laughs for the evening, stay tuned for Frank Skinner recorded live at Birmingham's NIA. He's on the same channel at 11.05pm, so no action is required.
The Guardian, 5th April 2010For this two-hour bonanza in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity, Channel 4 recently assembled 24 of Britain's best comedians to perform in front of a live audience at the O2 arena in London. So - deep breath - Jack Dee, Andy Parsons, David Mitchell, Fonejacker, Jack Whitehall, Jo Brand, James Corden, Jason Manford, John Bishop, Kevin Bridges, Kevin Eldon, Lee Evans, Mark Watson, Michael McIntyre, Noel Fielding, Patrick Kielty, Rich Hall, Rob Brydon, Ruth Jones, Sean Lock, Catherine Tate and Shappi Khorsandi take turns on stage to make it the biggest live stand-up show in British history. If that's not enough for you, Alan Carr and Bill Bailey perform with Stomp and Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant and Johnny Depp provide additional sketches.
David Chater, The Times, 5th April 2010Great Ormond Street Hospital is the recipient of this fundraising gala - the biggest live stand-up concert in UK history. And they couldn't have asked for more from the roster of stars who each donated five minutes last week at London's O2 Arena. Some hefty editing will be needed to get this show down to the two-hour running time it's been allotted and if the rude bits from Jonathan Ross and Mark Watson end up on the cutting room floor, then they may survive in the DVD which goes on sale on April 26.
Among those who'll definitely make the cut are, in no particular order, Michael McIntyre, Jack Dee, Bill Bailey, Kevin Eldon, Jason Manford, Jo Brand, Sean Lock and Noel Fielding.
The evening opens with a raucous dance number from Stomp and closes with a legendary performance from Lee Evans, looking the grand old man of stand-up in every sense.
Jane Simon, The Mirror, 5th April 2010This stand-up comedy show at the O2 Arena in London features a barnstorming roll-call of British comedians all stepping up to the mic in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity. The bill includes Alan Carr, Bill Bailey, Catherine Tate, David Mitchell, The Fonejacker, Jack Dee, Jo Brand, Lee Evans, Michael McIntyre, Noel Fielding, Patrick Kielty, Rich Hall, Rob Brydon and Shappi Khorsandi. If you can't find somebody in that list who makes you laugh, it's possible that you have, indeed, had all your funny bones surgically removed.
Robert Collins, The Telegraph, 2nd April 2010Channel 4 Comedy Gala at the O2 Arena, London SE10
It was billed as "the biggest live stand-up show in UK history". But although this show in aid of the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children featured 30-odd comics performing to 15,000 people, with more on video clips, in many ways it conformed to the usual rules of the charity gala. Some acts reminded you why they are stars (Lee Evans, Michael McIntyre, Jack Dee). Some were good enough to win a lot of new fans (Mark Watson, Kevin Bridges, Patrick Kielty, John Bishop, Rich Hall, Sean Lock). Some did their thing and did it well (Noel Fielding, Jo Brand). Barely anyone died a death. And, though the O2's 11pm curfew forestalled the usual overrun, cor, did Evans, the headliner, strike a chord when he imagined what we were thinking: "Pleeeeease, finish!"
Dominic Maxwell, The Times, 1st April 2010Noel Fielding working on Mighty Boosh film trilogy
Comedian Noel Fielding says he's working on an outline for a movie version of The Mighty Boosh and that he'd love to make a set of three.
Oli Wilson, BBC News, 1st April 2010The 'Lizzie & Sarah' iPlayer Challenge
We at The Velvet Onion love an underdog, and Lizzie & Sarah is no exception. The new pilot from Julia Davis & Jessica Hynes has been buried in a graveyard slot this evening, and its been up to friends of the pair (including Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and our own Noel Fielding and Dave Brown) to plug the show for them!
didymusbrush, The Velvet Onion, 20th March 2010Noel Fielding reveals blonde look during live performan
Noel Fielding headed back to the live comedy circuit last night sporting a new style hair cut - the blonde bombshell.
Such Small Portions, 13th March 2010True fans will have bought the boxed-set, nabbed front-row seats at the tour and driven their nearest and dearest mad quoting Bob Fossil. But you'll probably want to tune in for this repeat anyway. It wasn't until series two that most of us cottoned onto The Boosh, and this opening episode exhibits the anarchic genius of creators Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding (aka Howard Moon and Vince Noir). Having escaped the zoo, Howard decides that the only way to secure fame and fortune is to track down a Yeti. It really does get better every time.
Claire Webb, Radio Times, 31st January 2010Try to catch the last in the series of The Boosh. Fans of Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt's absurdist comedy will be aware that The Mighty Boosh (absurdly enough) started life in 2001 as a radio series on GLR, sandwiched in the middle of the football coverage. If you enjoyed the first TV series - set in a zoo - and you subscribe to the view that pictures are better on the radio, you'll like this episode. Howard and Vince have their first encounter with the cockney hitcher as they take Tony the Prawn (a psychological killer) to the animal offenders' zoo run by Bob Fossil's twin brother Wilbur. Some of the themes and songs will be familiar, some will be new. But the tunes are all earworms that will burrow their way in for a good 24 hours. "I'm Bob Fossil / And my anger is colossal ... "
Celine Bijleveld, The Guardian, 21st January 2010