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Royal, 282 Hope Street, 0844 871 7647. 7.30pm. £23. See Fri 17. Billy Kirkwood’s Sunday Service The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £1). Billy pulls on his Sunday shoes, joined by Danny Ward and Rob Kane. Edinburgh FREE Whose Lunch Is It Anyway? The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 1.30pm. See Sun 19. The Sunday Night Laugh-In The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £1). Adam Staunton, Ben Verth and Susie McCabe.
Monday 3 Glasgow FREE Comedy and Cocktails Cocktail & Burger, 323 Sauchiehall Street, 353 0953. 8pm. See Mon 20. Improv Wars The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £4 (£2). See Mon 20.
Edinburgh Red Raw The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £2. Rick Molland hosts Kai Humphries plus some aspiring acts.
Tuesday 4
Glasgow FREE Pop-Up Comedy The Halt Bar, 160 Woodlands Road, 353 6450. 8.30pm. See Thu 16. Red Raw The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £2. Kai Humphries shows newbies how it’s done. Edinburgh Burger, Beer and Comedy Night The White Horse, 266 Canongate, 557 3512. 7.30pm. £6 (comedy only £1). A burger, a beer and some delicious comedy hosted by Rick Molland. Wicked Wenches The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £3). Susan Calman hosts Loretta Maine, Meryl O’Rourke and Jay Lafferty (see My Comedy Hero, page 65).
Wednesday 5
Glasgow ✽ Eddie Izzard: Force Majeure SECC, Finnieston Quay, 0844 395
4000. 8pm. £35. The master of absurdity takes his whimsical ramblings on tour. See 5 Things, page 65. New Material Night Vespbar, 14 Drury Street, 204 0060. 8pm. £3. See Wed 22. Wicked Wenches The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £3). See Tue 4.
Edinburgh The Broken Windows Policy The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £4 (£2). The Stand’s monthly sketch show returns.
Thursday 6 Glasgow FREE Pop-Up Comedy The Halt Bar, 160 Woodlands Road, 353 6450. 8.30pm. See Thu 16. The Thursday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £10 (£7; members £5). Susan Morrison, Gavin Webster, Dave Ward and Rob Kane.
Edinburgh ✽ Bill Bailey: Qualmpeddler Edinburgh Festival Theatre, 13–29
Nicolson Street, 529 6000. 8pm. £26.50. Another master of surreality is in town. Thursday Notebook Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8.30pm. £3. See Thu 16. The Thursday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £10 (£7; members £5). Stu Murphy hosts Loretta Maine.
NEW NIGHTS THE COMEDY EXPLORERS’ ALTERNATIVE COMEDY CLUB/COMEDY AND COCKTAILS
The current slow-down in gig attendances, suggesting even comedy isn’t recession-proof, puts new nights under pressure to be distinctive. Two ambitious ventures launched in Glasgow recently take diametrically-opposed approaches to persuading punters through the door.
Set in the intimate but awkward basement space of The Flying Duck, The Comedy Explorers’ Alternative Comedy Club ●●●●● lives and dies by its purist ethos. Hosted by Andrew Learmonth and Sarah Cassidy, this monthly Saturday night requires comics to arrange their material around a theme (jobs and money on the night I saw), presumably to capitalise on headliner and serial sackee Bob Graham’s preoccupations. This creates all sorts of headaches and over-thinking for newish acts with a limited number of routines. Some of the night’s funniest moments, specifically during Richard Brown’s drolly cynical performance, consisted of admitting they had absolutely nothing on the subject, which worked considerably better than Geoff Gawler’s stilted efforts to wrap tortuously elaborate gags around it.
By contrast, weekly night Comedy and Cocktails ●●●●● is red
in commercial tooth and claw. Held downstairs in Cocktail and Burger with free entry, compere Chris Henry apologetically flags up drinks promos between acts to a room intermittently stuffing their faces. Commanding headliner Gary Little comes out loud and fast, silencing the background chatter, while Jamie Dalgleish and Ashley Storrie managed to get laughs from mocking some disruptive eating. Television writer Chris Grady is a relatively new comic, with tongue-in- cheek impressions and some lovely, surreal-tinged lines. But his more leftfield gambits were never going to impact. Rowdier evenings could overwhelm more reflective comics but for a Monday night, this was an entertaining first show with a compelling, knockabout atmosphere. (Jay Richardson) ■ See listings for details.
Friday 7 Saturday 8
Glasgow The Friday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £12 (£10; members £6). See Thu 6. Jongleurs Comedy Club Jongleurs, The Glasshouse, 20 Glassford Street, 0870 011 1960. 8.30pm. £15–£16. R David, Rory O’Hanlon and Matt Reed.
Edinburgh ✽ Bill Bailey: Qualmpeddler Edinburgh Festival Theatre, 13–29
Nicolson Street, 529 6000. 8pm. £26.50. See Thu 6. The Beehive Comedy Club Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8.30pm. £7. See Fri 17.
✽ The Friday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £12 (£10; members £6). 30 Rock’s Frank Rossitano AKA Judah Friedlander is in town (see feature, page 64), alongside Loretta Maine and host Stu Murphy.
Glasgow Jongleurs Comedy Club Jongleurs, The Glasshouse, 20 Glassford Street, 0870 011 1960. 8.30pm. £15–£16. See Fri 7. Comedy @ The State The State Bar, 148 Holland Street, 332 2159. 9pm. £7 (£5). See Sat 18. The Comedy Explorer’s Alternative Comedy Club The Flying Duck, 142 Renfield Street, 564 1450. 8pm. £3. See Sat 18. The Saturday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 9pm. £15. See Thu 6.
Edinburgh ✽ Bill Bailey: Qualmpeddler Edinburgh Festival Theatre, 13–29
Nicolson Street, 529 6000. 8pm. £26.50. See Thu 6. The Beehive Comedy Club Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8.30pm. £7. See Fri 17.
COMEDY
✽ The Saturday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £15.
See Fri 7.
Sunday 9
Glasgow Michael Redmond’s Sunday Service The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £1). Redmond returns with his brand of lo-fi comedy plus Dave Ward. Edinburgh FREE Whose Lunch Is It Anyway? The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 1.30pm. See Sun 19.
Monday 10
Glasgow ✽ Bright Club Meets Glasgow Skeptics: Festival Special
The Admiral, 72a Waterloo Street, 221 7705. 7–11pm. £8. Stand-up comedy and science, with Simon Watt, Bright Club and Helen Arney (see preview, page 66). FREE Comedy and Cocktails Cocktail & Burger, 323 Sauchiehall Street, 353 0953. 8pm. See Mon 20.
Edinburgh Red Raw The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £2. New talent night, with Kwame Asante.
Tuesday 11
Glasgow FREE Pop-Up Comedy The Halt Bar, 160 Woodlands Road, 353 6450. 8.30pm. See Thu 16. Red Raw The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £2. See Mon 10.
✽ Helen Arney: Voice of an Angle Blackfriars, 36 Bell Street, 552 5924. 9–10pm. £6. Stand-up science, songs and silliness. See preview, page 66.
Edinburgh Jo Caulfield Presents . . . The Speakeasy Scottish Storytelling Centre, 43–45 High Street, 556 9579. 8pm. £6. This month’s delights come from Ian Rankin, Susan Calman, mindreader Colin McLeod, storyteller James Spense, musician Colin McEwan, comedian Ben Verth, a ten-minute play by Dave McFarlane, plus MC Jo.
Wednesday 12
Glasgow New Material Night Vespbar, 14 Drury Street, 204 0060. 8pm. £3. See Wed 22. The Fun Junkies The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £5 (£4; members £2.50). A madcap show from the How Do I Get Up There? sketch boys. Edinburgh Melting Pot The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £5 (£4; members £2.50). Vote for the best of the new sketches and skits.
Thursday 13
Glasgow FREE Pop-Up Comedy The Halt Bar, 160 Woodlands Road, 353 6450. 8.30pm. See Thu 16. The Thursday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £10 (£7; members £5). Jo Caulfield, Ian Moore and John Scott. Edinburgh Thursday Notebook Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8.30pm. £3. See Thu 16. The Thursday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £10 (£7; members £5). Martin Mor comperes Markus Birdman, Allyson Smith and Eddie O’Dwyer.
16 May–13 Jun 2013 THE LIST 67