Burning with narrative intensity, Irish-American Des Bishop learnt to perform standup in Gaelic and now Mandarin, such is his commitment to following through on an idea. He gives us a compelling insight into how he morphed from a circuit headliner to a voracious documentarian, and rages at the reviewer who attacked his integrity.

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Filed Under: Chortle, Daniel Kitson, Eddie Izzard, Edinburgh, Fringe, Interview, Jason Byrne, Live, Made in China, RTE, Russell Kane, Steve Bennett

In the second part of this conversation, we look in detail at John’s principles for directing standup. Not so much a list of rules as a whole approach to helping a comic achieve their own goals, and not those of the director…

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Filed Under: Carey Marx, Directing, Eddie Izzard, Edinburgh, Festival, Interview, Michael McIntyre, Reginald D. Hunter, Ross Noble, Russell Kane, Sarah Millican

Occult comedian Andrew O’Neill describes jokes as “spells to make people laugh”.
We talk about the differences between magick and faith, getting information about the world through standup, nailing your really weird colours to the mast, and trying to be your own favourite comedian…

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Filed Under: Eddie Izzard, History of Heavy Metal, Interview, Magick, Monty Python, Occult, Paul Foot, Radio 4, Stewart Lee, Touring Comedian

It’s episode 100 of the podcast and Stu’s been saving this one up! If you’ve donated in the last few months you’ll have heard this one as a sneaky pre-release but here it is for the rest of us…
Phil Kay is a force of nature. Not a metaphorical one; an actual force of nature. “The guy that speaks really fast until it goes wrong” waxes sagacious about staying in the bit that works, no longer being appropriate to the bullets, and most importantly of all believing in belief.
Phil’s autobiography “The Wholly Viable” is available online now and you’d be an idiot to miss it.

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Filed Under: Andrei Tarkovsky, Apocalypto, Arthur Smith, Boogie NIghts, Brotherhood Of The Wolf, Corky And The Juice Pigs, Dave McSavage, David Lynch, Dr Brown, Eddie Izzard, Exclusive, Force Of Nature, Gandalf, Gilded Balloon, Glasgow Caledonian University, How To, Interview, Katie Taylor, Late N' Live, Live, Magnolia, Malcolm Hardee, Mark Lamarr, Mulholland Drive, Oblivion Boys, Once Upon A Time In Anatolia, Paul Thomas Anderson, Phil Kay Feels, Phil Nichol, Poetry, Sean Cullen, Sean Hughes, So You Think You’re Funny, Steve Frost, The Wholly Viable, Touring Comedian

The leading voice of feminism in UK comedy, devastatingly funny Bridget Christie is adept at unearthing humour in difficult or important topics.
She talks here about her comic origins in surrealism, and reveals beneath her insecurities the wilfulness that kept her going in the face of critical bewilderment.

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Filed Under: A Bic For Her, ACMS, Alison Vernon-Smith, An Ungrateful Woman, Bridget Christie, Bridget Christie Minds The Gap, Celebrity Squares, Charles II, Cheese Roll, Daily Mail, Danielle Ward, David Trent, Eddie Izzard, Edinburgh, Feminist, Festival, Fosters Comedy Award, Fringe, Hannibal Buress, Housewife Surrealist, Interview, Kate Smurthwaite, Live, Radio 4, Sam Simmons, Soho Theatre, The Alternative Comedy Experience, The Alternative Comedy Memorial Society, The Comedy Stop, The Comedy Store, The Stand, War Donkey, Warwick Davies, We Love Comedy

Claudia O’Doherty is a genuine comedy pioneer, who uses high concepts and holograms in order to have fun behaving like a dickhead.
We talk about the inspiration behind topics like ocean research or soil erosion, and how she manages to make such esoteria properly funny, as well as why both clowns and standups are jerks.

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Filed Under: Bridget Christie, Brisbane Comedy Festival, Christopher Guest, Comedy Blaps, Dr Brown, Eddie Izzard, Edinburgh, Festival, Fringe, Gilded Balloon, Interview, Josie Long, Live, Live at the Purple Onion, London, Melbourne Comedy Festival, Monsters Of The Deep 3D, Nick Kroll, Phil Burgers, Pig Island, Telescope, Tig Notaro, Waiting For Guffman, YouTube, Zach Galifianakis

The quintessential comic raconteur, Tom Allen’s work sizzles with wit, candour and warmth.
We discuss his rhythm, musicality and sociable methods of generating material, as well as investigating the self-criticism and loneliness with which he sometimes struggles. This delightful man also makes a convincing case for recognising comedians as “artists who are entitled to support”…

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Filed Under: Clowning Around, Eddie Izzard, Eugene Mirman, Frankie Howerd, Improv, Interview, Kenneth Williams, Lizzie Roper, Louis CK, Maria Bamford, So You Think You’re Funny, Victoria Wood

One of the nicest men in comedy, with an effervescent wit and fantastic jokes, Rob Rouse is also better placed than most to observe the ups and downs of a career in TV.
He talks here candidly about the effect his changing fortunes have had on his outlook, and how his family life has helped him grow as a comic as well as a man.

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Filed Under: 8 Out Of 10 Cats, Alan Carr, Alun Cochrane, Eddie Izzard, Edinburgh, Festival, Frankie Boyle, Friday Night Project, Fringe, Gig Recordings, Interview, Jimmy Carr, Justin Lee Collins, Mental Health, Michael J Fox, Rex Boyd, Rob Rouse, Sarah Millican, Sharon Horgan, So You Think You’re Funny, Touring Comedian