In today’s trip down memory lane, the ever effervescent Shaparak Khorsandi leads the way – with a quick stop off at Comedy’s figurative playground – via her own yellow brick road. We dissect second chances, shifting statuses, and how the pursuit of money stunts artistic quality...

Candid, nuanced, and not lacking in poise, Shaparak opens up on the difficult situations to which her early standup inexperience subjected her, and the realisation of how bullying is ultimately rooted in jealousy.

Stu's new comedy special "I Need You Alive" has a worldwide digital premiere on Feb 23rd, see the trailer and find the ticket link at www.stuartgoldsmith.com

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Filed Under: Age, Audiences, BBC, Bullying, comcompod, Coping, Diversity, Dr Brown, Dylan Moran, Edinburgh, Fame, Fear, Feminism, Festival, Fringe, Interview, Katherine Ryan, Persona, Sara Pascoe, Shaparak, Shappi Khorsandi, Stage Persona, Structure, Success, TV, Writing Jokes

The only comic ever to have consecutively won Best Newcomer and Best Show at the Edinburgh Fringe, John Kearns is a master at finding pathos in the prosaic, combining clowning and standup in a way that makes absolutely no sense written down. With influences from Jacques Tati to Neil Hamburger, we explore his sense of place within himself, overreaching in his writing, and ambition in his career...

Thirty minutes of extra content available exclusively to members of the Insiders Club includes John's brilliant technique for underpinning all his material with genuine pathos, and delves into writing for Harry Hill, meeting Chris Morris, and how the spotlight can burn...
@johnsfurcoat 

Get tickets for Stu's tour:

04/12/19

Aldershot – The West End Centre

25/01/20

Corsham – The Pound Arts Centre

01/02/20

Newcastle Stand (early show – 5pm)

02/02/20

Glasgow – The Stand

07/02/20

Farnham Maltings

11/02/20

York – The Basement

12/02/20

Leeds – Hyde Park Book Club

28/02/20

Cambridge Junction

www.comedianscomedian.com | @comcompod

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Filed Under: Alternative Comedy, Art, Audiences, Awards, BBC4, Best Newcomer, Bill Cosby, Bob Monkhouse, Character, Chris Morris, Clown, comcompod, Competitions, Dave (TV channel), Directing, Dr Brown, Eddie Izzard, Edinburgh, Fame, Festival, Festival Comedian, Fosters Comedy Award, Free Fringe, Fringe, Gregg Turkington, Harry Hill, Interview, Isolation, Jobs, John Kearns, London, Mental Health, Neil Hamburger, Onstage Persona, Perrier Comedy Award, Persona, Phil Burgers, Problems, Radio 4, Risk, Soho Theatre, Stage Persona, Success, Tom Allen, Tony Hancock, Twitter, Whimsy, Woody Allen, Writing Jokes

Multiple international award-winning physical comedy duo The Kagools are an explosion of pure silliness, that don't conform even to the "rules" of contemporary clowning, let alone straight standup. Double-act Nicky Wilkinson and Claire Ford describe their amazingly supportive relationship, and outline the highs and lows of a life under lightweight waterproof material...

Sign up for the Insiders Club at www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders to get access to all the extra content from any episode that has it, plus loads of extra stuff on a special private podcast!

www.thekagools.com | @TheKagools

Get tickets for Stu's tour:

25/10/19

Teignmouth Pavillions

26/10/19

Swindon Arts Centre

04/11/19

Nottingham Glee Club

08/11/19

Bristol – The Comedy Box at the Hen and Chicken

04/12/19

Aldershot – The West End Centre

25/01/20

Corsham – The Pound Arts Centre

01/02/20

Newcastle Stand (early show – 5pm)

02/02/20

Glasgow – The Stand

07/02/20

Farnham Maltings

11/02/20

York – The Basement

12/02/20

Leeds – Hyde Park Book Club

28/02/20

Cambridge Junction

www.comedianscomedian.com | @Comcompod

LISTEN HERE

Filed Under: Acting, Actor, Alternative Comedy, Audience Participation, Audiences, Awards, Blue Man Group, Dr Brown, Edinburgh, Festival, Fringe, Interview, Melbourne Comedy Festival, Money, Phil Burgers, Rob Deering, Robin Williams, Sam Simmons, Sketch, Stage Persona, Structure, Success, Tape Face, The Boy With Tape On His Face, Writing On Stage, YouTube

"Britain's greatest living anti-comedian" (Guardian), Ed Aczel is an oddball among oddballs. We analyse his "instinctive adventure" within comedy, and discover how to create and burst tension in unexpected ways; the secret of destabilising beauty; and whether Ed knows why he's funny.

Join the Insiders Club at www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders to access extra material including Ed on the rise of the oddball act on the UK scene, a recap of the "Dr Brown" clown course Ed and Stu found themselves on together, and why there's no such thing as a wasted journey...

Edward Aczel (@edwardaczel)

Book now for LIVE ComComPods:
Mar 23rd 1pm - Live special with comedy legend TBC @ Birmingham Podcast Festival!

Stu’s 2019 tour of “End Of” is on sale now!
“A comedy masterclass… Endlessly inventive” (The List)
Tickets for the first half of the tour at these links:
22/02/2019 Maidenhead – Norden Farm
01/03/2019 Falmouth – The Poly
13/03/2019 Salisbury Art Centre
20/03/2019 Cheltenham Playhouse
29/03/2019 Crawley -The Hawth
05/04/2019 Reading – South Street Arts
12/04/2019 Leamington Spa - Royal Spa Centre
17/04/2019 Oxford Old Fire Station
19/04/2019 Bromsgrove – The Artix
27/04/2019 Plymouth Barbican
9-11/05/2019 Soho Theatre, London

@comcompod | www.comedianscomedian.com

And don't forget to join the Comcom Facebook group, which you can do here.

LISTEN HERE

Filed Under: Acting, Actor, Alternative Comedy, Audiences, BBC, Clown, Dr Brown, Edinburgh, Festival, First Open Spot, Fringe, Improv, Interview, Isolation, Jimmy Carr, Jobs, John Kearns, John Luke Roberts, Kate Copstick, Robin Ince, Sam Simmons, Sarah Millican, Simon Munnery, So You Think You’re Funny, Stage Persona, Stewart Lee, Success, The Comedy Store, The Guardian, Tom Allen, Tommy Cooper, Tony Law, Twitter, Underbelly, Vic And Bob, Whimsy, Writing Jokes, Writing On Stage, YouTube

As you might expect from the impish British-Iranian comic who wears her heart on her sleeve, this conversation gets pretty deep pretty fast! We talk about shifting status, manufacturing common ground with your crowd and the nature of addiction. We also discover Shappi’s recent enthusiasm for “giving love” to an audience, and what it’s like when the comedy circuit starts to resemble the playground…

Get ad-free new episodes, bonus content from interviews and much more by joining the Insiders Club at www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders

@comcompod | www.comedianscomedian.com
And don't forget to join the Comcom Facebook group, which you can do here.

LISTEN HERE

Filed Under: Compere/MC/Hosting, Corporate Work, Dr Brown, Dylan Moran, Eddie Izzard, Edinburgh, Feminism, Feminist, Katherine Ryan, Mental Health, Sara Pascoe, School, Shappi Khorsandi

With a cut-glass accent that reflects her precision-tooled comedy, Tania Edwards inflicts maximum damage with faint praise. We talk about her process, her practice and her peeves - and learn why you can’t have your cake and eat it too…

Get ad-free new episodes, bonus content from interviews and much more by joining the Insiders Club at www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders

@comcompod | www.comedianscomedian.com
And don't forget to join the Comcom Facebook group, which you can do here.

LISTEN HERE

Filed Under: 8 Out Of 10 Cats, Alcohol, Andrew Maxwell, Dr Brown, Edinburgh, Feminism, Festival Comedian, Holly Walsh, Interview, Jerry Sadowitz, Joan Rivers, Joe Wilkinson, Julian Deane, Katherine Ryan, Lenny Bruce, London, Louis CK, Luke Toulson, Mock The Week, Nathan Caton, Political Humour, Quality Control, Radio 4, Reviews, Rich Hall, Risk, Stage Persona, Stand Up For The Week, Stewart Lee, Storytelling, Structure, Success

Winner of two UK Barry Awards - voted on by comedians - for his 2015 show “Proper Job”, Spencer Jones is a natural born, funny-boned twinkler. Never mind his clowning, props, vocal loops and charming idiocy, he reduces an audience to tears just by walking on to the stage. The hard work and professionalism underpinning the chaos might surprise you…

Get ad-free new episodes, bonus content from interviews and much more by joining the Insiders Club at www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders

@comcompod | www.comedianscomedian.com
And don't forget to join the Comcom Facebook group, which you can do here.

LISTEN HERE

Filed Under: Adam Larter, Ali Bryce, Big Babies, Broken Biscuits, Character, Clown, Dan Kirwan, Dr Brown, Ecole Philippe Gaulier, Edinburgh, Festival, Festival Comedian, Fringe, Improv, Inspiration, Interview, Karl Schultz, Live, Lucy Hopkins, Physical Comedy, Quality Control, Red Bastard, Risk, Sketch, Stage Persona, Success, The Boy With Tape On His Face, The Herbert, Writing On Stage

The complex relationship between a ventriloquist and her puppets is brought to life in mind-expanding detail in this live episode, as comedian, clown and filmmaker Nina Conti lays her creative process bare! Startlingly innovative and imaginative, Nina traces her development via mentor Ken Campbell (and criticism from Daniel Kitson), and why she feels she’s “more Monkey than Nina”…

Get ad-free new episodes, bonus content from interviews and much more by joining the Insiders Club at www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders

@comcompod | www.comedianscomedian.com
And don't forget to join the Comcom Facebook group, which you can do here.

LISTEN HERE

Filed Under: 8 Out Of 10 Cats, Clowning Around, Dr Brown, Family Tree, Her Master’s Voice, Improv, Interview, Jeff Dunham, Ken Campbell, Live, Live At The Apollo, Phil Burgers, Philippe Gaulier, Touring Comedian, Ventriloquism