Comedy
Events are listed by date, then city. Submit listings at least 14 days before publication to comedy@list.co.uk. Listings are compiled by Siân Bevan. ✽✽ Indicates Hitlist entry
Thursday 24 Glasgow The Thursday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870 600 6055. 8.30pm. £8 (£7; members £4). The utterly unique Addy Van der Borgh headlines, with Gary Little, Luke Benson, Mark Davies and MC Raymond Mearns. Part of the West End Festival.
5 THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT
DES DILLON 1 Des Dillon is the joint second oldest (he has a twin sister) of a family of nine kids, having been born in Bellshill in 1960 before moving to Coatbridge. Although he has been writing for as long as he can remember – penning poems at primary school about ‘frolicking lambs and babbling brooks’ – his serious writing career began at the age of 18, influenced heavily by Bob Dylan, comics, fairy tales, Coatbridge patter and Meat Loaf.
2 Before becoming a full-time writer, Dillon was a fruit machine engineer, a joiner, a DJ, a bouncer and an English teacher. 3 Among his books are Itchycooblue, Six Black Candles and The Glasgow Dragon, while he has hit theatrical paydirt with his play about sectarianism, Singin’ I’m No a Billy, He’s a Tim. He’s also written for both of the nation’s soaps, Take the High Road and River City.
4 For the 2003 World Book Day, his 1995 tale Me and Ma Gal was voted the novel that best portrayed contemporary Scotland. The story of two pals on the run from a local psycho, Dillon heeded the advice of Edwin Morgan and wrote the way he spoke. 5 Probably the most depressingly daft comment he’s likely to have ever heard in a public place came at the Edinburgh Book Festival in 2008, when a Scottish woman stood up during his event with Alan Bissett and Anne Donovan to utter these less than immortal words: ‘I find it hard to take work in Scots seriously; it feels to me as though I’m reading an adult version of the Dandy or Beano.’ Nice. (Brian Donaldson) ■ Gilmorehill G12, Glasgow, Fri 25 Jun.
58 THE LIST 24 Jun–8 Jul 2010
Edinburgh Ghillie Gags Ghillie Dhu, 2 Rutland Place, 222 9930. 8.30pm. £15 inc dinner. A different line-up every week, with the chance to laugh with your dinner, courtesy of Calverto. FREE Heresy The Jekyll & Hyde, 112 Hanover Street, 225 2022. 9pm. More comedy teetering on the edge of bad taste. And then falling off, into an abyss of controversy. The Thursday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £8 (£7; members £4). The weekend commences with the offbeat charm of Mike Wozniak, with Garry Dobson, Jim Park and host Billy Kirkwood.
Friday 25
Glasgow ✽✽ Des Dillon Tells Tall Tales Gilmorehill G12, 29 University Avenue, University of Glasgow, 330 5522. 7.30pm. £10. Stand-up meets storytelling as Des Dillon blethers about washing machines, religious apparitions and alcoholics. See 5 Things.
✽✽ Famous for Comedy Highlight, UGC Building, 11 Renfrew Street, 0844 844 0044. 8pm. From £12. Those clever people at Not-Jongleurs have only gone and booked one hell of a line-up for the weekend: Mick Ferry, Paul Pirie, Alun Cochrane and Gavin Webster, all headliners in their own right. The Friday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870 600 6055. 8.30pm. £10 (£9; members £5). See Thu 24 for line-up. Part of the West End Festival.
Edinburgh FREE Comedy Club at The Station Station Tavern, 316 Gorgie Road, 347 8955. 7.30–9.30pm. Free comedy on the Edinburgh scene, with a rolling line-up of top local talent. Famous for Comedy Highlight, Omni Centre, Greenside Place, 0844 844 0044. 8.30pm. From £10. Mike Milligan, Steve Royle and joined by caustic Canadian comedian Tom Stade. Ticket price includes entry to the aftershow club. The Friday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £10 (£9; members £5). See Thu 24 for line-up.
Saturday 26
Glasgow ✽✽ Famous for Comedy Highlight, UGC Building, 11 Renfrew Street, 0844 844 0044. 8pm. From £12. See Fri 25. The Saturday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870 600 6055. 9pm. £13. See Thu 24 for line-up. Part of the West End Festival.
Edinburgh Famous for Comedy Highlight, Omni Centre, Greenside Place, 0844 844 0044. 8.30pm. From £10. See Fri 25. Fit O’ The Giggles Upstairs Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 9pm. £5. The more professional night in the Fit O’ The Giggles brand, with a bill of proper comedians for a fiver. The Saturday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £13. See Thu 24 for line-up.
Sunday 27 Glasgow FREE Ha Ha Raw Comedy Ivory Hotel, Langside Avenue, Shawlands, 8.30pm. New act and material night, courtesy of Alan Anderson. Michael Redmond’s Sunday Service The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870 600 6055. 8.30pm. £5 (£4; members £1). Joining Redmond’s caravan of love this weekend are Jason Arnstein, Ben Verth, Luke Benson and the anecdote-riddled Gary Little. Part of the West End Festival.
MY COMEDY HERO DANIELLE WARD The Stand, Edinburgh, Tue 6, Thu 8 Jul; The Stand, Glasgow, Wed 7 Jul
My comedy hero is Chris Morris. Many people assume the only point of a comedian is to make people laugh, but an ambitious comic realises there is much more potential than that. Chris Morris is an artist rather than a tradesman, creating things rather than being a ‘hired clown’. I find the dark tag is often misused. I consider dark comics to be the ones that are purposefully offensive: Jerry Sadowitz is dark. Chris Morris writes very, very silly jokes in the vicinity of taboos. The Brass Eye Paedophilia Special has some ridiculously stupid jokes as well as being a brilliant bit of satire yet people remember the subject first, and forget it is one of the funniest things that’s ever been shown on TV.
He is a fearless comic and satirist producing the work he wants to, knowing the audience will come to him, rather than tailoring everything to a fictional demographic. And he uses the medium he’s working in to its best results: Blue Jam was a wonderful bit of radio comedy and it’s impossible to watch rolling news items without them feeling like a Brass Eye feature. Finally, I love Chris Morris because, like those other greats such as Daniel Kitson and Stewart Lee, he lets his work speak for itself. He’s not one for cropping up on a Big Brother spin-off show simply to ‘boost his profile’. He is a comedian. (Interview by Brian Donaldson)
Edinburgh FREE Whose Lunch is it Anyway? The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 1pm. Everyone’s favourite improvisational duo, Stu and Garry, present their weekly lunchtime comedy show. Hot food’s available. The Sunday Night Laugh-In The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £5 (£4; members £1). Stuart Murphy puts his improv comedy skills to good use as he hosts tonight’s show, featuring Mike Wozniak, Jim Park, Daniel Webster, Davey See and Richard Melvin.
Monday 28
Glasgow Dance, Monkey Boy, Dance The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870 600 6055. 8.30pm. £4. Another dose of the all- improvising Monkey Boys, Raymond Mearns, John Ross and Allen Chalmers, as they prepare to hand over power to their faithful audience. Edinburgh Red Raw The Stand, 5 York Place, 558
7272. 8.30pm. £2 (£1). Up to ten newer acts have a go at the funnies, with proper comedians Gary Little and Stu & Garry offering a helping hand. Stars of tomorrow and all that. Tuesday 29
Glasgow Red Raw The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870 600 6055. 8.30pm. £2 (£1). Sweaty, nervous or cocky: have fun playing New Act Top Trumps at this ace beginner’s showcase. With Jeff O’Boyle and Stu & Garry. Edinburgh FREE Stand-Up @ The Still The Illicit Still, 2 Brougham Street, Tollcross, 8.30pm. The Still team bring you another fine mix of comedy treats, with line-ups more varied than most. Midweek Comedy Cabaret The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £4 (£2). Four quid gets you in to see a pretty fine line-up, including John Gillick, Elaine Malcolmson, John Gavin and Bruce Devlin.