Features
Why comedians are dubbing Hollywood
In the UK, if we think of improvised comedy we normally think of Paul Merton.
Inside Features
The Cambridge Footlights: First steps in comedy
Wednesday, 28 January 2009
Now celebrating its 125th anniversary, it’s produced generations of British comedy stars, yet being part of the gang is no laughing matter, says Ben Miller
Lasting impression: Will Ferrell's Dubya is back for one last swansong
Thursday, 15 January 2009
Will Ferrell made his name impersonating Bush – and now he's pulling on his cowboy boots to reprise the role in a one-man show
Highlights of 2009: Stand-up comedy
Friday, 2 January 2009
Lily Allen's second album, Jude Law as Hamlet, Michael Sheen as Brian Clough, Martin Amis on feminism – 2009 promises a variety of treats in the arts. Our critics predict what will make waves in the coming months
The comedian: Barunka O'Shaughnessy
Saturday, 27 December 2008
Barunka O'Shaughnessy once worked in a jam factory in order to make ends meet. It was mind-numbing work. "My job was to pick up any jam-jars that had fallen over," she recollects, "but one only fell over every five hours. I was going mad there!"
Three Godless Christmas shows
Tuesday, 16 December 2008
Forget Nativity plays, a different kind of Christmas show is coming to town. And with a talk by Richard Dawkins and stand-up by Ricky Gervais, it's a gift for the non-believer, says Julian Hall
Julian Hall: Loony bins and 'rubbish' jokes
Wednesday, 10 December 2008
It goes without saying that someday you will be offended by a joke. You might have been one of those 30,000 recruits to the Brand/Ross complaints bandwagon, you might well have cringed when Billy Connolly made his infamous Ken Bigley joke a few years ago or you might hide behind the sofa when Frankie Boyle is in full swing with Madeleine McCann jokes to the right of him, paedophile jokes to the left of him.
Julian Hall: My favourite joke
Monday, 8 December 2008
During the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year one of my friends remarked to me how irritating they found it when comedians remarked at the pleasure of making their own jokes.
Frank Skinner: 'Swearing can still be beautiful'
Friday, 5 December 2008
He's known for his racy humour, working-class background and love of football, but there's so much more to the comedian
Julian Hall: Yuletide capers
Friday, 5 December 2008
As the festive season gets underway the comedy calendar gets into a real yule log-jam and an already vast choice becomes that bit harder and suddenly going to see comedy becomes an agonising chore, well almost. Let me do what I can to ease the pain by flagging up a few gigs that have caught my eye.
Julian Hall: In praise of the female foursome
Thursday, 4 December 2008
While I am wary of damning anything after just one episode, I don't think that too many people were holding their breath that E4's Beehive, aired last night would deliver us an all-girl comedy band of the quality of Smack The Pony - and they were right not to.
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King of the Hill, 15
An unexceptional thirtysomething (Leonardo Sbaraglia) is minding his own business in the Spanish countryside when he is shot by an unknown assailant with a hunting rifle in this a taut, stripped-down, cat-and-mouse thriller.
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Vicky Christina Barcelona, 12A
Woody Allen’s best film for a decade is a sunny and sexy romantic drama, about two young Americans who go to Barcelona for the summer and become involved in a ménage à quatre. Rebecca Hall, Scarlett Johansson, Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz star.
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Three Monkeys, 15
A claustrophobic and sweaty interior drama about guilt, sexual violence and the abuse of power from the Turkish director, who is quietly becoming a major force in European cinema. Yavuz Bingol stars as a driver who takes the rap for his employer’s hit-and-run offence in return for a cash payment to help out his family.
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Revolutionary Road, 15
Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio star as a dissatisfied, warring couple in this consistently absorbing and occasionally heart-rending adaptation of the Richard Yates novel.
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Slumdog Millionaire, 15
An antic, and romantic, fable about the joys and nightmares of childhood, about a boy’s search for love, and about a teeming, terrifying city on the rise. Dev Patel stars as Jamal, the 18-year-old recounting his life as a “slumdog” on the streets of Mumbai. Nationwide