Rory Bremner

Has political satire gone too far?

Five columnists, including Rory Bremner and Yes Minister co-creator Antony Jay, write about satire.

Sir David Frost, sometimes dubbed "the godfather of satire", talks about the impact of this particular type of humour on politics in the UK and the US. Using clips from That Was the Week that Was and America's Saturday Night Live, Frost shows how the genre has changed and garners the opinions of satire veterans such as Jon Stewart, Ian Hislop and Rory Bremner.

Ian Hislop puts it well when he says satire's job is to ridicule "vice, folly and humbug". He also argues that it works best when politicians are particularly divisive, hence Spitting Image's success at the height of the Thatcher years and Tina Fey's Sarah Palin in the 2008 American election campaign. It's one of the many good points made in a documentary that makes excellent use of David Frost's cachet on both sides of the Atlantic. So sit through the umpteenth showing of Bernard Levin being punched on TW3 in order to also see some insightful interviews with those who have impersonated our leaders, namely Rory Bremner (Tony Blair), Chevy Chase (Gerald Ford) and Will Ferrell (George W Bush), who all consider the extent to which impressions tarnish the reputations of people in high office.

Rory Bremner 'afraid' to joke about Islam

Rory Bremner, the political impressionist, said he fears joking about Islam could lead to his death due to the "chilling" issue of fundamentalism.

Rory Bremner, John Bird and John Fortune take their satirical scalpels to the election. With three shows (tonight, tomorrow and Tuesday) in which to poke political fun, the trio keep things topical by recording each programme on the day of its transmission. Bremner provides impressions and analysis with Bird and Fortune adopting their usual guises as senior political figures.

Video: Rory Bremner on his Election Battlebus

Impressionist Rory Bremner is back on the stand-up circuit for the first time in five years in the run up to the General Election.

His show Rory Bremner's Election Battlebus will feature some of his most famous characters from Government's past, present and perhaps future.

General Election 2010: Politicians are beyond satire

As he begins his Election Battlebus tour, Rory Bremner despairs at the new generation of politicians with no personality.

Bremner: I'm the only man who wants to bring back Blair

When John F. Kennedy was shot in 1963, the comedian Lenny Bruce suggested that the authorities should dig two graves at Arlington Cemetery in Washington - one for Kennedy and one for Vaughn Meader, the President's arch-impersonator. As the General Election in this country rapidly approaches, I must admit to feeling a little uneasy at the prospect of losing quite so many characters who have become part of my professional life.

Radio Review: Rory Bremner's International Satirists

When it comes to cynicism in satire, the Brits win hands down.

He may be an impressionist but there is nothing lightweight about Rory Bremner and this new series of foreign satirists verges on the academic at times. In this first programme he learns about the Dutch cabaret tradition and the absurdist humour of Hans Teeuwen. Together the comics explore how their different cultures intersect.