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Edinburgh The Beehive Comedy Club Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8.30pm. £9. See Fri 12.
Saturday 27
Glasgow Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £15–£25. The bells are ringing and laughs are heading your way c/o Tom Stade, John Gillick, Susie McCabe, Dan Petherbridge and Billy Kirkwood. Edinburgh The Beehive Comedy Club Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8.30pm. £9. See Fri 12. FREE Causewayside Splitters The Old Bell, 233 Causewayside, 668 1573. 8.30–10pm. See Sat 13. Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £15–£25. If you’re planning on heading down to The Stand’s Hogmanay extravaganza, you’ve made the right decision. Laugh it up in celebration with Ian Coppinger, Jo Caulfield, Keir McAllister, Liam Withnail and Bruce Devlin.
Sunday 28
Glasgow Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £15–£25. See Sat 27. Edinburgh FREE Stu and Garry’s Free Improv Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 1.30pm. See Sun 14. Footlights Comedy Edinburgh Footlights, 7 Spittal Street, 229 6466. 7–9.30pm. £4 (£3). See Sun 14. Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £15–£25. See Sat 27.
Monday 29 Glasgow Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £15–£25. See Sat 27.
Edinburgh ✽ Al Murray: The Pub Landlord’s Festive Saloon St Andrew
Square, edinburghschristmas.com. Times vary. £26–£31 (£23.50–£28.50). The pub philosopher is joined by a series of special guests each night, with everything from comedy to variety and music on the menu. Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £15–£25. See Sat 27.
Tuesday 30 Glasgow FREE Chris Henry’s Comedy Creche DRAM!, 232–246 Woodlands Road, 332 1622. 8–11pm. See Tue 16. The Tuesday News Review! Vespbar, 14 Drury Street, 07939 054581. 8–10pm. £5. A sideways glance at the news – both local and international – from the funny guys behind the Referendum Review Show. Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £15–£25. See Sat 27.
Edinburgh ✽ Al Murray: The Pub Landlord’s Festive Saloon St Andrew Square,
edinburghschristmas.com. Times vary. £26–£31 (£23.50–£28.50). See Mon 29. Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £15–£25. See Sat 27.
Wednesday 31 Saturday 3
Glasgow Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £15–£25. See Sat 27. Glasgow The Saturday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 9pm. £15. See Fri 2 for line-up.
STAND-UP ROBIN INCE The Stand, Edinburgh, Tue 13 Jan
Some comedians will go to great lengths as they gather up material for their next show. But not many people can match Robin Ince for his research into Blooming Buzzing Confusion. ‘I had a brain scan done for fun: I met a guy on a train who offered me an MRI. My last show, In (and Out of) His Mind, was based more on reading and pondering, whereas this one is more about me going into laboratories and having experiments done on me. I found out how my mind puts together images of the world around me. So it has more direct practical experience and there are a few experiments that the audience can do when they get home later. They’re simple, but very disconcerting.’ One thing you can always be certain of with a Robin Ince show is
that there’s nothing lightweight or flippant about the subject matter. Not for nothing has he conducted a TED talk and considers Prof Brian Cox as a colleague and pal. His stand-up is big and it’s certainly clever, but the key worry for some people popping out for their evening’s comedy might be: is it actually funny? Ince is here to reassure you all. ‘If I was doing observational comedy
about day-to-day things, I’d have those same concerns. What I don’t have is that worry when you’re on a mixed bill and from backstage you hear someone else do that bit about being drunk. Whereas not so many people are doing routines about rubber hand illusions and the Caputo effect. But it’s always about getting that balance right.’ (Brian Donaldson)
Edinburgh ✽ Al Murray: The Pub Landlord’s Festive Saloon St Andrew Square,
edinburghschristmas.com. Times vary. £26–£31 (£23.50–£28.50). See Mon 29. Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £15–£25. See Sat 27.
Thursday 1 Edinburgh Hogmanay Hootfest! The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £15–£25. See Sat 27.
Friday 2
Glasgow The Friday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £12 (£10; members £6). With Ian Coppinger, Janey Godley, Marc Jennings and host Joe Heenan. Edinburgh Comedydoo The White Horse, 266 Canongate, 557 3512. 8–10pm. £9. Up and coming comedians with a headliner. The Friday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £12 (£10; members £6). With Vladimir McTavish, Kai Humphries, Fern Brady and host Stuart Murphy.
Best of Vespbar Virgins Vespbar, 14 Drury Street, 204 0060. 10pm. £5. Graham Barrie hosts some up-and- coming talent. Edinburgh The Saturday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £15. See Fri 2 for line-up.
Sunday 4
Glasgow Glasgow Kids Comedy Club The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 3pm. £4. Every month a selection of comedians tweak their material for the toughest audience on the planet. Michael Redmond’s Sunday Service The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £1). See Sun 14. Edinburgh FREE Stu and Garry’s Free Improv Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 1.30pm. See Sun 14. The Sunday Night Laugh-In The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £1). See Sun 14, but with Fern Brady and host The Reverend Obadiah Steppenwolfe III.
Monday 5 Glasgow Improv Wars The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £6. It’s a fight to the death between improv experts Garry Dobson, Stu Murphy and Billy Kirkwood.
COMEDY
Edinburgh Red Raw The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £2. The Stand’s spankingly good new talent night, encouraging the latest comedy stars out of the woodwork. With Jay Lafferty.
Tuesday 6 Glasgow FREE Chris Henry’s Comedy Creche DRAM!, 232–246 Woodlands Road, 332 1622. 8–11pm. See Tue 16. Red Raw The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £2. See Tue 23.
Edinburgh ✽ FREE Richard Melvin Presents: More Radio Recordings
The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. (ticketed). Melvin continues his showcasing of radio programmes with Phill Jupitus performing some poems for Extra Stands Up, John Moloney recording some segments for GOSPEL and Julia Sutherland giving audiences a preview of Fat Chance.
Wednesday 7
Glasgow Comedian Rap Battle The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £6 (£4). Are you bored with hip-hop scene bores moaning on about their fast cars and beautiful women? The Wee Man aims to solve all this by bringing a Scottish slant to the genre and pitting the country’s best comedians against its best rappers. Game on. Edinburgh The Broken Windows Policy The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £5 (£4). The Stand’s monthly sketch show returns with new skits and character treats featuring the best of fresh Scots comedy, including Larah Bross, Dave MacGregor and Ben Verth.
Thursday 8 Glasgow The Thursday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £10 (£7; members £5). With Pierre Hollins, Pat Cahill, Ally Houston and Susan Morrison.
Edinburgh ✽ The Thursday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £10
(£7; members £5). With Paul Tonkinson, Edinburgh Comedy Award winner John Kearns, Stephen Buchanan and host JoJo Sutherland.
Friday 9
Glasgow The Friday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £12 (£10; members £6). See Thu 9 for line-up. Jongleurs Comedy Club Jongleurs, The Glasshouse, 20 Glassford Street, 0870 011 1960. 8.30pm. £15. With Garr Murran and Allyson Smith. Edinburgh The Beehive Comedy Club Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8.30pm. £9. See Fri 12.
✽ The Friday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £12 (£10;
members £6). See Thu 9 for line-up.
Saturday 10
Glasgow Jokes at Jayz Jayz, 87 Kilmarnock Road, 387 9046. 7–9.30pm. £12.99. Food and comedy. What a night out. Jongleurs Comedy Club Jongleurs, The Glasshouse, 20 Glassford Street, 0870 011 1960. 8.30pm. £16. See Fri 9. The Saturday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 9pm. £15. See Thu 8 for line-up. 11 Dec 2014–5 Feb 2015 THE LIST 77