Hot Laughs

 

  • Dinnerladies Stage Show

    Victoria Wood's beloved sitcom Dinnerladies is being revived as a new stage show. Les Dennis will star as canteen maintenance man Stan in the touring production, the first new work based on Wood's back catalogue to be commissioned by her estate. Written by twin sisters Beth and Emma Kilcoyne, the play opens at the Manchester Opera House in January before touring the UK until August.

  • Smack The Pony team re-uniting for TV special

    Sally Phillips has confirmed that Smack The Pony is reuniting for a TV special. She'll be joined by fellow cast members Fiona Allen and Doon Mackichan, following a successful run of live shows at last year's Edinburgh Fringe. The sketch show originally ran on Channel 4 from nineteen ninety nine to two thousand and three…

  • Joe Lycett applies for pub licence

    Joe Lycett has applied for a licence to run his own pub for one hour a week, as part of a new Channel 4 series called The Lycett Arms. The comedian's east London boozer will open for the duration of each live episode across the six-part run, with Lycett joking about his newfound passion for government paperwork.

  • Geoff Norcott's weekly YouTube show

    Jonathan Pie creator Tom Walker and stand-up Geoff Norcott have teamed up for a brand new topical comedy show on YouTube. Called Well That Went Well, the five-week series sees the pair tackle the week's political and showbiz stories every Friday at ten pm until the thirty first of July.

  • Dan Tiernan announces new tour

    Rising star Dan Tiernan has announced his largest UK tour to date. Following a month-long run at the Edinburgh Fringe this August with his new show Quartz and All, Tiernan will take the hour around the country across twenty four dates from October through to March next year, culminating in his biggest headline show yet at the Clapham Grand in London.

  • Mo Gilligan's fried chicken documentary

    Mo Gilligan has revealed details of his first Netflix documentary, in which he ate fried chicken three times a day for twenty eight days straight. The Super Size Me-style experiment forms part of Big Chicken: A Fast Food Conspiracy, a ninety six minute film in which he traces the history of the dish from South London to the United States, examining fast food chains, large-scale farming, health, the environment and the cultural stereotypes surrounding fried chicken. The documentary lands on Netflix from the fifth of August.

  • Calendar Girls: The Musical wowing audiences

    Calendar Girls: The Musical is currently wowing audiences at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough. Tim Firth and Gary Barlow's show takes the much-loved story back to its Yorkshire roots, with critics praising its heartfelt humour, nimbly handled nudity and its warm understanding of community spirit. The production runs at the Scarborough theatre before heading on tour.

  • Ania Magliano on tour with her new show Peach Fuzz

    And finally, SNL UK and Taskmaster star Ania Magliano is currently on tour with her new show Peach Fuzz, picking up strong reviews along the way. The hour sees her explore her relationship with her own body with a characteristically light touch, drawing on her late Gen Z sensibility and a childhood preference for Sylvanian Families over Barbie. The show runs at the Soho Theatre until this Saturday before heading out on tour, including a run at the Edinburgh Fringe.

  • Such Brave Girls wins Broadcast Digital Award

    Kat Sadler's BBC Three sitcom Such Brave Girls has been named best comedy at the Broadcast Digital Awards. Judges described it as grotesque, despicable and unlike anything else on television — and said that was precisely what made it shine, praising Sadler's writing as incredibly fresh, bold and raw. Also celebrated on the night was BBC Three pilot Donkey!, written by and starring Fatiha El-Ghorri, which took the prize for best short-form scripted programme.

  • Smack The Pony back for a tv special

    Sally Phillips has confirmed that Smack The Pony is reuniting for a TV special. She'll be joined by fellow cast members Fiona Allen and Doon Mackichan, following a successful run of live shows at last year's Edinburgh Fringe. The sketch show originally ran on Channel 4 from nineteen ninety nine to two thousand and three…

  • Joe Lycett to run his own pub

    Joe Lycett has applied for a licence to run his own pub for one hour a week, as part of a new Channel 4 series called The Lycett Arms. The comedian's east London boozer will open for the duration of each live episode across the six-part run, with Lycett joking about his newfound passion for government paperwork…

  • Stage show for Dinnerladies

    Victoria Wood's beloved sitcom Dinnerladies is being revived as a new stage show. Les Dennis will star as canteen maintenance man Stan in the touring production, the first new work based on Wood's back catalogue to be commissioned by her estate. Written by twin sisters Beth and Emma Kilcoyne, the play opens at the Manchester Opera House in January before touring the UK until August…

  • More Unacceptable for Ed Gamble

    Ed Gamble's new panel show Unacceptable has been commissioned for a second series. The TLC channel has ordered eight more episodes including a Christmas special, with Richard Ayoade and Joanne McNally captaining the two teams.

  • 100th birthday present for Mel Brooks

    Mel Brooks has been given a very special hundredth birthday present by the American Film Institute. His western comedy Blazing Saddles has been declared the funniest film of all time, bumping Billy Wilder's Some-Like-It-Hot from the top spot it had long held. Brooks is now the only filmmaker with three entries in the A.F.I top fifteen, with The Producers and Young Frankenstein also making the list.

  • Brassed Off at Leeds Playhouse

    A stage adaptation of the classic British film Brassed Off has opened at Leeds Playhouse to warm reviews.

    Director Amy Leach brings Paul Allen's adaptation of the nineteen ninety six film to the Quarry Theatre, a vast venue whose name feels fitting for a story rooted in the colliery communities of Yorkshire. The production runs at Leeds Playhouse until the eleventh of July.

  • Comedy getting All-Party Parliamentary Group

    Comedy is getting its own All-Party-Parliamentary-Group. Labour MP Richard-Quigley, who also moonlights as a stand-up, has put his name forward to chair the group, which was initiated by comedy trade body "Craft". The aim is to give the industry a permanent presence in Parliament, with officers to be elected before summer recess begins on the sixteenth of July ..

  • Phoenix Nights cast re-union

    five cast members from Phoenix Nights are reuniting at this year's Edinburgh Fringe. Neil Fitzmaurice, Toby Foster, Steve Edge, Janice Connolly and Archie Kelly will share stories and behind-the-scenes memories from the Peter Kay classic in a show called How Far Away Are They? It runs at Just The Tonic from the eighth to the sixteenth of August…

  • Joe Lycett announces new tour

    Joe Lycett has announced his first tour since twenty twenty two, heading out on the road in twenty twenty seven and twenty twenty eight. The show's title is a typically elaborate pun — Do You Really Lycett? Is It, Is It Wicked? We're Lovin' It, Lovin' It, Lovin' It, We're Lovin' It Lycett. Tickets go on general sale this Friday at ten am…

  • Filming underway for third series of Am I Being Unreasonable

    Daisy May Cooper and Selin Hizli have begun filming the third and final series of their BBC comedy thriller Am I Being Unreasonable? The pair, who also wrote the show, are back alongside returning cast members, with new faces joining them including Joe Wilkinson and People Just Do Nothing's Allan Mustafa. The six-part series is being filmed in Bristol and the West Country…

  • Praise for new Sky documentary on Rik Mayall

    A new Sky documentary about Rik Mayall has been drawing warm praise from fans and critics alike. It features fond memories from friends and collaborators including Ben Elton and Stephen Fry, as well as heartfelt reflections from his former partner. The film traces his journey from Kevin Turvey and The Young Ones through to Blackadder, The New Statesman and Bottom, celebrating the anarchic spirit that made him one of the most beloved comics of his generation ..

  • 25 years since The Office

    Martin Freeman and Mackenzie Crook are reuniting on screen to mark twenty five years of The-Office. The pair, who played Tim Canterbury and Gareth Keenan in the BBC mockumentary, hadn't seen each other for more than fifteen years before filming the special, which airs on BBC Two and iPlayer at ten pm on Wednesday the eighth of July ..

  • Michael McIntrye breaks social media record

    Michael McIntyre's Big Show has broken records on social media, with the BBC confirming that the ninth series generated a quarter of a billion views globally — nearly double the figure for the previous series. The biggest hits included the Remember Me segment, which alone clocked up a hundred and twenty million views, with the show also setting a new high for iPlayer viewing…

  • Dan & Phil announce fourth headline world tour

    Online duo Dan &- hil have announced their fourth headline world tour. The Hard Launch Tour takes in more than sixty five dates across North America, Australia, Europe and finally the UK and Ireland, wrapping up at the Eventim Apollo in London in February next year.

  • Rob Brydon stars in new animated film

    And finally, Rob Brydon, Diane Morgan and Jamie Demetriou are among the British comedy names joining a star-studded animated film called Not Alone. The three comedians will voice aliens in the movie, which also stars Timothée Chalamet and Selena Gomez and is produced by the studio behind Despicable Me. It's due in cinemas next April.

  • Disney+ gives green light to new dark comedy drama

    And finally, Disney Plus has given the green light to a new dark comedy drama called Dad. The six-part series, written by Clem Garritty and produced by A24 UK, follows three adult siblings whose lives are turned upside down when their father is accused of a historic murder committed during their childhood. Cast and broadcast date are still to be announced.

  • Edinburgh Comedy Award winner swaps stage for air guitar

    Edinburgh Comedy Award winner Sam Nicoresti is swapping the stage for the air guitar championship. The stand-up will be competing in the UK national finals in Camden this Saturday, playing Van Halen's Eruption on an imaginary guitar. If she wins, she'll represent Britain at the world championships in Finland in August…

  • Nick Mohammed brings Young Magicians books to the screen

    Nick Mohammed is bringing his Young Magicians books to the screen as a new animated series. The Ted Lasso star will serve as showrunner on the project, which is based on his two novels about a group of young magicians uncovering secret conspiracies. The series is being made by Blink Industries and BBC Studios and is aimed at children aged eight and over…

  • Allan Finnegan passes away

    The comedy world has paid tribute to Allan Finnegan, the Merseyside stand-up and Baptist minister who died on Friday at the age of fifty nine. Allan made the semi-finals of Britain's Got Talent in twenty-twenty, winning all four judges over with his dog collar and sharp wit. He'd been living with cancer since shortly after his TV appearance and earlier this year published a book about his experiences. Our thoughts are with his family.

  • Tom Read Wilson announces debut tour

    Celebs-Go-Dating favourite Tom Read Wilson is heading out on his debut UK tour. The television presenter and performer will take his show, The-A-to-Z-of-Me, around the country from September following a run at the Edinburgh Fringe, with dates including Manchester, Cardiff, Oxford and a London finale at the Bloomsbury Theatre.

  • Leicester hardship fund set up.

    A hardship fund has been opened for comedians left out of pocket by the financial troubles at the Leicester-Comedy-Festival. The-Live-Comedy-Association has set aside five thousand pounds from its wider support fund to help acts facing urgent losses following reports that hundreds of performers were not paid ticket money owed to them from shows at this year's event.

 

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