Will Gompertz

Celebrating 50 years of Joe Orton & Mr Sloane

"I hope I've never written anything as bad as some of the early Shakespeare's," Joe Orton said shortly before he was murdered by his lover, Kenneth Halliwell, in 1967. It's a clip from an archive interview with the BBC, which I included in a piece for The Today Programme, marking the 50th anniversary of Orton's first stage play, Entertaining Mr Sloane.

Sacha Baron Cohen interview

Sacha Baron Cohen avoids the limelight - he prefers to let his comic creations do the talking. So I'm surprised to be offered an interview with the man himself. What's the catch?

Video: Sacha Baron Cohen on mocking 'hilarious' Gaddafi

Sacha Baron Cohen has given a rare interview as himself, rather than in the guise of one of the famous characters he has created such as Ali G or Borat.

He told the BBC he had previously protected his work by not giving interviews for fear of being recognised.

Speaking to the BBC's Will Gompertz in Cannes, he said the idea of his new film The Dictator - about a fictional Middle Eastern despot - was developed on the basis that he always found Gaddafi "hilarious".

Video: Private Eye celebrates 50 years of satire

The satirical magazine Private Eye has made its reputation by combining hard-hitting journalism with poking fun at public figures.

It is now the subject of an exhibition marking its 50th birthday at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

The BBC's Will Gompertz reports.

Video: Fawlty Towers producer John Howard Davies dies

John Howard Davies, who produced a string of comedy classics including Fawlty Towers and The Good Life, has died aged 72, his agent has confirmed.

Davies was head of comedy at the BBC from 1977 to 1982, launching classic shows such as Only Fools and Horses, Yes Minister and Allo, Allo!

The son of a comedy writer, he found fame as a child actor, making his debut as David Lean's Oliver Twist in 1948.

Will Gompertz meets Terry Gilliam - eventually

The chorus master was easy to spot - he was attired in orange and pink ("why don't more people dress like this?" he asked me).

Video: Film-maker Terry Gilliam directs his first opera

Terry Gilliam, who directed Hollywood films such as Brazil and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, is directing his first opera.

The opera, Berlioz's The Damnation of Faust, performed by the English National Opera, opens at the Coliseum in London on Friday.

Why is Hugh Laurie so popular?

Hugh Laurie's been getting a lot of attention. He's turned from a man with a limp who can put on a decent American accent, to a man with a guitar who can put on a decent American accent. The difference is that Hugh Laurie is pretending to be a doctor in House, whereas on his album Let Them Talk he is playing himself.

Twenty Twelve: Missing the heart of a good sitcom

Humour is a matter of taste. A joke that has one audience howling with laughter can leave another simply howling. The same applies to television comedy. Which is why it's not surprising that the reviews for BBC Four's new spoof doc, Twenty Twelve, were mixed. I was in the equivocal camp.

Stand-Up: Serious funny business

Stand-up has grown up to become big business.