Comedy Edinburgh The Thursday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £8 (£7; members £4). The beautifully manic Ian Cognito heads up the weekend, with fellow joymakers Quincy, Jojo Sutherland, Ben Verth and host Joe Heenan.
5 THINGS
YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT . . . ANDREW O’NEILL 1 Quite possibly the only cross- dressing vegan occultist on the stand-up circuit, Andrew O’Neill recently got involved in the Equal Love campaign when he was refused a civil partnership at Camden registry office with Stephanie Munro, an admin manager with No2ID. Alongside OutRage!, they are seeking to overturn the law which bans gay couples from civil marriages and straights from having a civil partnership. 2 He appeared in Steve Coogan’s Saxondale as a hi-fi shop owner. Season one, episode six, if you want to dig it out.
3 In one interview to ‘promote’ a show in Leicester in 2009, O’Neill claimed that his success was down to mass hypnosis, that the more famous you get the smellier you become and among his hobbies are medical sabotage and light industrial parks. Apparently, that interview never quite made the light of day. 4 That same year, he was nominated for the Breakthrough Act in the Chortle Awards but lost out to Sarah Millican. The biggest disappointment to him was that he didn’t get a chance to deliver his acceptance speech, which was to sing the Queen number, ‘Breakthrough’.
5 When he’s not doing comedy, O’Neill is in a steampunk band called The Men That Will Not Be Blamed For Nothing and runs a London walking tour around Jack the Ripper’s murder sites. (Brian Donaldson) ■ The Stand, Edinburgh, Tue 18 Jan.
44 THE LIST 6–20 Jan 2011
Friday 14
Glasgow highlight Comedy Highlight, UGC Building, 11 Renfrew Street, 0844 844 0044. 8pm. £12. A trio of popular funny gents entertain the weekend troops, namely Alex Boardman, Louis Ramey and John Scott. The Friday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £10 (£9; members £5). See Thu 13. Edinburgh highlight Comedy Highlight, Omni Centre, Greenside Place, 0844 844 0044. 8.30pm. £13. Dave Johns and Barry Castagnola are joined by afro-celtic comedian Bruce Fummey and his shirts. The Friday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £10 (£9; members £5). See Thu 13. Upstairs @ The Beehive Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 9pm. £5. Resident compere Keara Murphy brings forth the joke machine from Aberdeen, Mr Gus Tawse. With Gus Lymburn, Richard Gadd and Chris Conroy.
Saturday 15
Glasgow highlight Comedy Highlight, UGC Building, 11 Renfrew Street, 0844 844 0044. 8pm. £12. See Fri 14.
✽✽ Half Price Comedy Club Uisge Beatha, 232–246 Woodlands Road,
332 1622. 8.30pm. £6 (£4). Ha Ha Comedy presents the newly crowned Scottish Comedian of the Year Ro Campbell, who introduces Steven Dick and Noel James. The Saturday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 9pm. £13. See Thu 13.
Edinburgh highlight Comedy Highlight, Omni Centre, Greenside Place, 0844 844 0044. 8.30pm. £13. See Fri 14. The Saturday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £13. See Thu 13. Upstairs @ The Beehive Beehive Inn,
Des Clarke
18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 9pm. £5. See Fri 14. Sunday 16
Glasgow Michael Redmond’s Sunday Service The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £5 (£4; members £1). This week, Steve Day stays on after his weekend appearances with Sean Grant, Martin McAllister and Lucy Oldham for some chillaxing with the Redmond.
Edinburgh ✽✽ FREE Whose Lunch Is It Anyway? The Stand, 5 York Place,
558 7272. 1.30pm. See Sun 9. The Sunday Night Laugh-In The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £5 (£4; members £1). Quincy’s hanging round after his weekend’s gigs, with performances from John Gavin, Ray Bradshaw, Mark Davies and host Sian Bevan.
Stand-up from the leftfield with the thoughtful metalhead vegan and popular Fringe veteran in his latest show Occult Comedian. See 5 Things. Wednesday 19
Glasgow Benefit in Aid of Marie Curie Hospice Glasgow The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £7 (£5). Fund-raising aplenty for the hospice which helps care for people affected by cancer and other life-limiting illnesses. Line-up includes the very clever Gavin Webster and fellow funny people. Edinburgh Save WoW! The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £7. A night under the superintendence of Susan Morrison, raising funds to help rescue the charity Women onto Work, which provides invaluable assistance to disadvantaged women in Edinburgh. With performances from Stu & Garry and Jay Lafferty.
Monday 17 Thursday 20
Edinburgh Fit O’ The Giggles Out With The Old Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8pm. £2 (£1). See Mon 10. Red Raw The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £2 (£1). Another cohort of new acts and fresh material. With Davey See and John Ross. Not to be confused with Jonathan.
Tuesday 18
Glasgow FREE Comedy at the Halt Bar The Halt Bar, 160 Woodlands Road, 352 9996. 8.30pm. See Tue 11. Red Raw The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £2 (£1). Tonight Bruce Fummey and John Ross are performing with those ambitious wee stars of tomorrow.
Edinburgh ✽✽ Andrew O’Neill The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £8 (£7).
Glasgow The Thursday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £8 (£7; members £4). Thursdays sparkle with the joy of a looming Friday and a cheaper night to catch the weekend’s line-up. The whirlwind Geordie Gavin Webster joins Andy Sir, Alex Maple, Mark Davies and host Joe Heenan. Edinburgh The Thursday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £8 (£7; members £4). A bargainous night to catch the weekend’s line-up of comedians, with the added bonus of going-out-on-a- school-night-giddiness. Get in early for hot food yumminess. He’s been attracting attention for a wee while now (in a good way not as in a stripper-turned-bank- robber kind of way) and now Carl Donnelly is here for the weekend. He’s on with Keir McAllister, Chris Ramsey, Alan Sharp and MC Susan Morrison.
He’s shared a Saturday telly couch with Cat Deeley and performed sketches with Lucy Porter, but thankfully for Des Clarke, there have been some perks to his comedy career. Such as coming second in the 2000 So You Think You’re Funny contest and apparently collecting a gag for each Scottish town. ■ Highlight, Glasgow, Fri 7 & Sat 8 Jan.