Meice’s Comedy Cult

Geeks can be funny too

I have had some limited success in my own short career as a stand-up comedian – even if that success has been very limited to local pubs and a disastrous appearance at my secondary school talent competition. But on the rare occasions that I do step into the spotlight, audience are always slightly surprised to hear that this cool, sophisticated and debonair comic that they see before them spends his days providing Apple Mac repair London to the needy and desperate computer owners of the capital. Perhaps these “fans” of my comedy have even seen me in my everyday guise, and not realised that they were in the presence of an, ahem, comedy genius.

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‘The Main Components of Dark Comedy#2.’

Comedy may be an art form in its own right, but we should never forget that it can be added to… A comedian can ‘insert'new material or ideas into his/her act in exactly the same way as using a SD or R4 card in a computer/games console! And one of the most effective ‘add-ons'to consider is ‘sarcasm’… People will often describe sarcasm as being ‘the lowest form of wit'and this may well be true (especially if it is delivered in a cruel and cutting manner). However, sarcasm also happens to be the most effective form of wit (especially if it is delivered in a cruel and cutting manner!). If you really want to make someone look like a complete and utter imbecile, then sarcasm is the best way to go by far!!!

Sarcasm seems to be extremely unpopular with a large portion of the population, with many people finding it downright offensive! And this is a terrible shame… The fact of the matter is that sarcasm doesn’t have to be overly nasty (although I must admit that I personally have a soft spot for that particular blend!!); it can also actually be used to very great effect without upsetting anyone at all…

Life is full of its own absurdities and if we took each of these to heart, then we would simply sit around crying! So why not turn the whole thing on its head and make a conscious decision to be sarcastic? It certainly beats being miserable and you can have a damn good laugh about everything at the same time!

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Making People Laugh With Your Eyes

I have been into comedy for ages and one thing I have noticed is that most of the jokes many comedian give have as much to do with the joke itself as it does with the facial expression it is done with and the yes especially. In fact may comedian simply make us laugh with their eyes only. Now nothing can be more expressive than the eyes. From the joy of seeing a friend, to the disappointment of running out of gas oil, to the anger of being cut off in traffic, to the excitement of a new job, the eyes show what we feel inside.

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Sarah Millican: A comic To See

Caught Sarah Millican at the Fringe festival recently and I must say was impressed and laughing my pants off and not many comics can do that to me. I had heard of Millican before but had never saw one of her show and certainly seeing her live was a real bonus. At Millican’s show, you can be sure that you will have a nice time listening to vast array of anecdotes and jokes.

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Black Humour During Black Times

The recent disturbances in the world have left me with high hopes from the world of black comedy. Of course, I do not support these disturbances and personally believe that the all the rioters and looters should be dealt in the harshest manner possible. However, I just cannot wait for my favorite black humor comedians to come up with their next round of performances based on these disturbances.

A diplomat from Syria advised the London government to be soft on protesters and stated that their decision to use the army to shoot innocent protesters was no different than the reaction of London police. I have heard that anybody can become a diplomat in a country ruled by a dictatorship but this is completely ridiculous. I feel that this diplomat should be lampooned using the blackest humour possible.

The fact that Asians did not participate in the recent events in London is another telling fact. These immigrants are probably the only persons who treated London as their own home and decided not to go on a mindless looting spree just because they could get away with it.

Of course, many rioters are discovering to their disadvantage that they cannot do so. Their faces show up on police cameras as brightly as neon pop up banners show up against the night landscape of a city. All these disturbances throw light on the convoluted minds and this should provide sufficient motivation for black humour artists to come up with the best jokes and gags.

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Black comedy

I know I like my comedy dark, but one Edinburgh Fringe show has taken the concept of “black comedy” to an extreme even I hadn’t even thought of before. They are, literally, performing in the dark. The pitch black. No lights. Aside from the health and safety concerns (damn, my day job seems to sneaking its way into my blog) I think it sounds like a fantastic idea, though performing in the show must be a bit of a nightmare. And how exactly do you promote a show like that? A black poster or canvas printing?

Different comedians perform in the show each night, which runs for the length of the Fringe at the Gilded Balloon. In the past, the organisers have persuaded come pretty big names to step out of the spotlights and deliver their act, or a slightly altered one, for the benefit of an invisible audience. And that’s what I mean about performing in the dark being very difficult.

Think how much of a comedy performance, even a regular stand-up comedian, is non-verbal. Body language, facial expressions, gestures; they all combine to add to the show and can even be vital to a punch line on occasion. Most comedians simply couldn’t step onto a darkened stage and repeat their lit-up act verbatim. I bet plenty of jokes that made it past the cutting room end up falling flat in the dark, because of some tiny gesture or visual aspect that the comedian had forgotten.

Still, as an experimental concept I’d be more than happy to go along and try it out. I’m not sure exactly how funny it would be, but then most of the Fringe is a bit hit and miss these days. You might as well risk it for a biscuit on something that is at least going to make for an interesting story in the pub later!

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Local talent rules supreme

I was sorting through my finances for a few hours last night and as I put the phone down after speaking to Rowan Dartington, I decided that it was about time I went out to cheer myself up. I headed out into town to Hahas, my local comedy club. I enjoy nothing more than to see some really good raw comedy talent, and this is definitely what I got last night! The club was quite empty last night, and this can make it very difficult for someone to create a good atmosphere, but when Jason Drennel came on, the room livened up and people began to sit up and listen. He was brash, rude and really quite outrageous, but done in a clever and charming way. The problem with the majority of comics in the mainstream circuit at the moment is that they are too scared to say what they want for fear of being ‘slammed'by the people who pay their wages. This self censorship is strangling the very essence of truly great comedy. Last night I heard some of the most outrageous things I have heard in a long time, and if it was repeated on the TV would cause a real storm – and it was great!

So if you are bored of seeing the some old comics and want to see something a little darker and a lot funnier, get down to your local comedy club and see what’s going on. A resurgence in raw comedians, not being censored by the mass public TV viewers is just what this country needs.

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The Importance of Being Earnest

I’ve polished off my top hat, taken out my coat tails and decided that there is nothing for it but to embrace the seediness.

And for what, you may ask?

Why for Diesel Devon of course!

As part of a cultured event, the glad ragged populace trooped into Diesel Devon’s, the seedy haunt of degenerates from all manner of life, now transformed into a cultural Mecca.

Oscar Wilde’s ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’, revamped with improv comedy. This night would surely be a night to remember.

To begin the night a stout tattooed bouncer patrolled the doors, scowling at audience members with evident glee, checking tickets; as if the possibility of gatecrashers would be a likely scenario.

The venue; foul black walls, foul black floors, foul black furniture and a foul smell seemed like the obvious choice for such a well known and well loved piece of theatre art. The punters streamed in, oblivious to the surrounding, scrambling for tables for good views of the miniscule stage. Feathered scarves, sequences, glitter, top hats, bling and colour decorate corners of the bar which never knew colour before. The sound of lively chat and conversation from the strangest collection of people gathered together in one spot fills the room to surprising volume. Pitchers of beer and bottles of blue demon alcohol cascade over the bar at an alarming rate, the noise level increasing in time with the amount of alcohol consumed.

Suddenly silence, the players have taken their spot on the tiny stage, and a hush falls on the crowd, this group of sophisticates. A pin could fall and shatter the silence but instead a shrill ring tone pierces the stillness; Britney Spears, Hit Me Baby One More Time!

A man, in an impressive Blue Zoot suit, reaches into his pocket and sheepishly takes out his phone and presses decline……you can’t take them anywhere, these hob nobs…least of all to a biker bar in the worst part of town, they will always manage to lower the tone.

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Russell Howard’s “Right here, right now” Review

I did a hair drug test and a good friend of mine had accompanied me. He asked me when last I had seen a comedy show live and suggested seeing Russell Howard.

British comedian Russell Howard knows not to mess with a good formula. His latest show, titled “Right here, right now”, sold out within days, and has been extended with new dates in December 2011. It delivers more of his signature comedy, a pleasant, genuinely humorous mix of heartwarming anecdotes, popular culture observations and hilarious personal stories about his family.

His humor does target different audiences and isn’t exactly universal, in the one joke fits all categories. For fans of his BBC show, for example, he will include topics that will be engaging to adolescent girls – riffs on Twilight and Justin Bieber. For his hipster contemporaries, he gives his snarky observations and anecdotes. And for all of his female fans, he gives a little silver screen idol sugar, made all the sweeter now that he’s clearly been working out!

His best material, and that seemed closest to the “one joke fit all” category, are the stories about his family. The zany family vacation adventures, doing unexpected things with unexpected family members (playing video games with an elderly female relative, for example) all have such a sincere, affectionate, and genuinely funny ring to them.

Howard also does amusing, offbeat impressions, too, and sometimes of inane things. (Actually, the more inane, the funnier, usually.) He ends the show with a question and answer session that shows his quick wit and charm as well. Overall, it’s an enjoyable show, with lots of laugh out loud moments. </S

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Frankie goes to Portugal? Spain? Greece?

Being an amazing Dark Lord of Comedy, I can never quite figure out how offensive you should be during a show. A case in point is Frankie Boyle whom I saw on DVD during his supposed ‘last ever tour’. Knowing Frankie he’s probably telling the truth when he said during one diatribe that he doesn’t really give a f**k anymore so would say whatever the hell he wanted.

The thing is to be a great comedian you don’t need to be overly offensive. Frankie Boyle has always managed to balance his offensiveness with very dark and wry humour. He also got himself kicked off ‘Mock the Week'for raising objections to being censored by the producers when on air. His reason was basically that he didn’t see the point of being hired to be censored when the producers knew what kind of person he was and what kind of jokes he would come out with during the show.

Frankie is now taking a (probably) well deserved break from the comedy circuit and rumour has it has been jetting off to stay in a different luxury villa every month or so. With weather being a bit off in the UK at the moment, going off to offend another country whilst staying in a great villa in Portugal overlooking the sea sounds like the perfect remedy. Will Frankie be back from his extended leave though? He may or may not. With the great man who can tell. And tell he will no doubt, probably offending half the population of Portugal in the process.

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