British Comedy Guide
British Comedy Guide

Features Page 21

Fist Of Firsts with Tim Reid

Top 5 lessons from Fist Of Firsts

  • Tuesday 23rd April 2024

Comedy writer Tim Reid (Car Share, Meet The Richardsons) talks to the biggest names in comedy via his podcast to uncover their backstories and their creative process. We asked him to share the top five things he's learned from the first series of his show.

No Heroics. Image shows from L to R: Devlin, aka Excelsor (Patrick Baladi), Jenny, aka She-Force (Rebekah Staton), Don, aka Timebomb (James Lance), Sarah, aka Electroclash (Claire Keelan), Alex, aka The Hotness (Nicholas Burns). Copyright: Tiger Aspect Productions Writing

The three Cs for characters

  • Monday 22nd April 2024

Here are important elements to consider when working on characters.

BBC New Comedy Awards. Image shows left to right: Chantel Nash, Paddy Young, Dan Tiernan, Josh Pugh, Joe Kent-Walters, Rosie Jones, Zoe Lyons, Jin Hao Li, Darren Harriott, Dean T Beirne, Hester Ectomy Performance

The three Es for stand-ups

  • Friday 19th April 2024

Some useful advice for new - and not so new - comedians.

Mrs. Brown's Boys. Image shows from L to R: Agnes Brown (Brendan O'Carroll), Buster Brady (Danny O'Carroll), Dermot Brown (Paddy Houlihan) Writing

Silly costumes and comedy vegetables: writing broad comedy

  • Thursday 18th April 2024

Audiences do love broad comedy: daft contraptions, contrived misunderstandings and all.

Bottom. Image shows left to right: Dave Hedgehog (Christopher Ryan), Spudgun (Steven O'Donnell), Eddie Hitler (Adrian Edmondson), Richie Richard (Rik Mayall). Credit: BBC Writing

Good writing

  • Wednesday 17th April 2024

What constitutes "good" writing? We explore.

Pure. Image shows from L to R: Amber (Niamh Algar), Joe (Anthony Welsh), Marnie (Charly Clive), Charlie (Joe Cole), Shereen (Kiran Sonia Sawar)

Motivation

  • Tuesday 16th April 2024

Character motivation is key. But, as a writer, your motivation is also important.

Day and night Writing

Morning, noon and night: days and times in script scene headings

  • Monday 15th April 2024

We talk about noting days and times in scripts.

Lego characters lining up by a desk

On the job

  • Friday 12th April 2024

Do you need a "proper" job? Probably. (Sorry.)

Graduation

Do I need a degree?

  • Thursday 11th April 2024

Newer creatives often wonder if they need a degree to "break into" the comedy industry. We address that concern.

Miranda. Image shows left to right: Miranda (Miranda Hart), Dick Twist (Jason Watkins) Writing

Carry on writing

  • Wednesday 10th April 2024

If you feel a script isn't working, when should you abandon it and when should you grind to the end?