Will comedy ever become high culture " and should it care? by Brian Logan

Comedy is growing out of pubs and arenas, and making inroads into respected arts festivals " but could it lose its edge as a result?Interesting times for comedy fans: we're watching an artfo…

Will Franken " Edinburgh festival review by Brian Logan

Just the Tonic at the CavesThe term character comedy doesn't quite cover what San Francisco standup Will Franken does in an underground cave, late at night on the Fringe. Yes, he flits in an…

Meow Meow | Burlesque review by Brian Logan

Soho Theatre, London"Kamikaze cabaret", "post-postmodern performance", "opera brut". Read Meow Meow's publicity, and you expect something new and indefinable. W…

The Invisible Dot Cabaret review " slim pickings from a sketchy mixed bill by Brian Logan

Pavilion theatre, ManchesterManic trio Sheeps redeem a Manchester festival comedy night whose amusement value even the performers seem uncertain about"Are you having a good night?" compere M…

Edinburgh festival 2015: the art of the comedy fringe poster by Brian Logan

Last year, Holly Walsh posed with an upside-down cigarette, this year Nish Kumar is going retro … what makes for a good comedy poster? And does a comic's offering actually draw audiences t…

Dave Chappelle review " an outrageous, thrilling white-knuckle ride by Brian Logan

Hammersmith Apollo, LondonChappelle kicks off with gleeful, scorching indelicacy, but his cock-of-the-walk comedy doesn't always match his considerable charisma You'd think it was a rock sta…

Monty Python: five favourite sketches " video by Brian Logan

Rumour is rife that Monty Python's surviving members are to reform – but can they ever be as good as their heyday? Here are some favourite clips (and not a parrot among them) Continue …

Sara Pascoe: 'There are certain things I've done that are just horrible' by Brian Logan

The outspoken standup talks about teenage bad behaviour, panel shows and the 'stubborn' iPhone pest who inspired her Manchester international festival showThe seeds of Sara Pascoe's Manchest…

Steen Raskopoulos review " audience improv can't match standup wit by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonThe character comic is charismatic and subtle, but his attempts to get the audience to deliver the laughs sometimes fall flatWant to be a duck? Want your face lathered in…

Rob Delaney review " a playful experiment in transgression by Brian Logan

Queen Elizabeth Hall, LondonComedy's king of Twitter is flamboyantly smutty " not only for the fun of it, but as a way to test the boundaries of good tasteAs declarations of intent go, it's …

Rob Delaney review " flamboyantly juvenile and smutty by Brian Logan

Queen Elizabeth Hall, LondonThe US standup and Catastrophe star is unsentimental and dissolute " not only for the fun of it, but as a way to test the boundaries of good tasteAs declarations …

Edinburgh festival 2015: 10 comedy acts to watch by Brian Logan

I'm expecting great or unusual things on the fringe from this selection of standups and sketch trios " who's on your list?Anticipating the Edinburgh fringe is almost as much fun as being the…

Whose Line Is It Anyway? Live review " impro that's improved with age by Brian Logan

Adelphi, LondonClive Anderson, Josie Lawrence and Greg Proops bring their Channel 4 hit to the West End " and the laughs are even bigger and better this time roundIt is striking to see impro…

Diane Chorley review " a kitsch night out with Essex's nightclub legend by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonIf you're up for a Cinzano-fuelled dance and a giggle then this bathetic nostalgia trip with the Duchess of Canvey probably won't disappoint"Goodnight, my babes, you've b…

What China's 'morality-building' comedy boom says about standup by Brian Logan

A new generation of Chinese comedians are cracking gags about buying property in Beijing. Is it further proof that standup " which is about individual assertion rather than collective endeav…

Tommy Tiernan review " fire, brimstone and gags about Clooney's sex drive by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonThe wild-eyed philosopher of love and life ruminates dangerously on everything from erectile dysfunction to the failings of capitalismNot many comedians generate a sense …

Bourgeois & Maurice and David Hoyle review " a biting celebration of blandness by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonThe trio's tart, funny Middle of the Road show is a heavily sardonic paean to the joys of dressing down, brainlessness and the oeuvre of James BluntQueer culture is being…

The Boy With Tape on His Face " review by Brian Logan

Duchess, LondonThe stages of Britain may be heaving this month with glitz, glitter and TV celebs, but you won't find a more reliably fun-for-all-the-family experience than the West End debut…

Ian McKellen and Derek Jacobi tie the knot, while Tina Fey lets rip at Republicans by Brian Logan

In this week's roundup: illustrious actors to star in a new sitcom called Vicious Old Queens, and Fey makes her displeasure known at 'grey-faced men' sounding off about rapeHow's about this …

What German comedians think of Brits " from bad to wurst by Brian Logan

British standups have plenty of stereotypes about Germans, but is the opposite true? Yes " according to a viral clip about a Brexit from the EU on Germany's version of The Daily ShowWatching…

Andy Parsons review " shoes can't stop him by Brian Logan

The Mock the Week star launches a joke-rich rallying call for a better Britain Continue reading...

Aerial attack: How a new wave of broadcast comedy is shaking up the nation's living rooms by Brian Logan

John Kearns and Nick Helm are bringing their oddball humour to TV and radio, showing just how far those mediums have come in showcasing bold new talent It never stops being fascinating watch…

Andi Osho | Edinburgh comedy review by Brian Logan

Arj Barker | Comedy review by Brian Logan

Henning Wehn - review by Brian Logan

Frankie Boyle's Election Autopsy is too hot for TV " so much the better by Brian Logan

Comedy that takes a stand with a coherent set of convictions is more compelling than satire that ridicules everybody equallyThere was doom and gloom among comedy lovers when it was announced…

Paul Merton's Impro Chums review " this stuff couldn't be written by Brian Logan

Richmond theatre, LondonIt follows a well-worn format, but what the show lacks in jeopardy it gains in camaraderie and offers the audience, and improvisers, a unique brand of fun"Try not to …

Reginald D Hunter review " charisma and curveballs from self-mythologising standup by Brian Logan

Richmond theatreHunter's mercurial logic takes him into territory other comics don't occupy … but sometimes leads him astray Continue reading...

Lee Nelson review " suited, booted and peddling sexist gags by Brian Logan

Bedford Corn ExchangeSimon Brodkin's cheeky-chappy cliches about class, immigrants and women are arduous and screamingly predictable Continue reading...

Eddie Pepitone: What Rough Beast review " a howl of despair at life's vacuity by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonThe New York comic's rants against corporate culture and modern America are vivid and amusing " even if he does keep interrupting to say so himself Continue reading...

Heard the one about the Pakistani standup? Finding the funny in ethnicity by Brian Logan

Sami Shah jokes about being a Karachi-based funnyman in his entertaining act. But often playing on your cultural heritage can be a lazy way to get a quick laughThere's an old Stewart Lee rou…