All stories by Brian Logan on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, November 9, 2022

'You should remain silent': John Shuttleworth squares up to his own creator by Brian Logan

Graham Fellows' film Father Earth records the Sheffield comedian's trip to Orkney with his dad " and a bid to step out of his alter ego's shadow When I last saw Graham Fellows in character a…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:06PM[SHARE]
Sunday, November 6, 2022

Peter Pan's Labyrinth review " wig out with Barrie, Bowie and Del Toro by Brian Logan

The Vaults, London Slapdash daftness propels Sleeping Trees' glam mashup of a Christmas show, though more risk-taking would summon the magic to really fly Sleeping Trees are known for their …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:24AM[SHARE]
Wednesday, November 2, 2022

Elf Lyons: Raven review " fierce and funny fright-night by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonLyons raises her personal demons so she can publicly refuse to play by their rules in this complex comedy-horror crossover The eye-popping final sequence of Elf Lyons's R…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:24PM[SHARE]
Monday, October 31, 2022

Harry Hill review " reliably, joyously madcap as ever by Brian Logan

Milton Keynes theatreWhile not quite reaching previously attained heights of absurdity, the comic still pulls off a successful stream of nonsense It's been a decade of tumultuous change sinc…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:42PM[SHARE]
Thursday, October 27, 2022

Maybe a Ghost Story review " Daniel Kitson scares up a sparkling Halloween yarn by Brian Logan

Shakespeare's Globe, LondonThe comedian is as spontaneous as ever in this unadorned show featuring a one-ghost campaign to rewild the sanitised customs of All Hallows Eve 'Just a very long-w…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:33AM[SHARE]
Wednesday, October 26, 2022

'My parents wanted to give me horse hormones' " Sam Campbell, comedy's new champion by Brian Logan

He breezed into the Edinburgh fringe late with just half a show " and won the 'Oscar of comedy'. In his first ever face-to-face interview, the eccentric Aussie standup reveals what's next ('…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:37PM[SHARE]
Monday, October 24, 2022

Suzi Ruffell review " self-mocking snapshot of hapless parenthood and cats' behinds by Brian Logan

Farnham Maltings, Surrey The Portsmouth native is good company, cheerfully goofing around for our entertainment, but the set feels one draft short of its full potential New baby. Spiking anx…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:07AM[SHARE]
Sunday, October 23, 2022

Joe Rogan review " 'dumb guy' comedy grounded in an alpha male world by Brian Logan

O2 Arena, London The controversial US podcaster finds fertile material challenging society's sensitivities " yet while his standup takes pains to short-circuit offence, fear of emasculation …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:07AM[SHARE]
Friday, October 21, 2022

Brown Girls Do It Too: Mama Told Me Not to Come review " candid carnal chatter by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonRubina Pabani and Poppy Jay hop between banter, song and comedy skits in a show with a solid emotional and political core You get a particular type of laughter, undergird…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:07AM[SHARE]
Tuesday, October 18, 2022

Jerry Sadowitz on his Edinburgh ban: 'Cancel culture isn't a culture. It's a diktat that's been imposed on us' by Brian Logan

When his show was pulled this summer over reports of nudity, sexism and racism, it caused a furore. In his first major interview since, the comedian explains why he will never tone down his …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:33PM[SHARE]
Sunday, October 16, 2022

Dara O Briain review " the Mock the Week man gets intimate by Brian Logan

Hammersmith Apollo, LondonFine crowd-work, choice joke-writing and a standout set-piece about the comedian's Kafkaesque efforts to trace his birth parents We have Covid to thank for So Where…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:03AM[SHARE]
Friday, October 14, 2022

Tentacular Spectacular review " wade through Oozing Gloop's psychosexual swamp by Brian Logan

Fierce festival, BirminghamThis immersive cabaret invites you into a world of 'goblin core', drag ogres and live art happenings Birmingham's Fierce festival opened this week with a compellin…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:49AM[SHARE]
Thursday, October 13, 2022

Dave Gorman review " a geeky rummage through what the rest of us overlook by Brian Logan

Hackney Empire, LondonThe crossword-setting comic has lost none of his zest as he noodles in the nooks and deep-dives into the details Struggling for comedy work under lockdown, Dave Gorman …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:13PM[SHARE]
Tuesday, October 11, 2022

'I'm a venal narcissist' " standup Leo Reich on skewering his inner Gen-Z monster by Brian Logan

The hotly tipped comic was the talk of Edinburgh with his blistering hour of hilariously hollow egomania " and audiences haven't a clue whether to pity or deplore him UK standup has a new su…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:33PM[SHARE]
Friday, October 7, 2022

Michelle Wolf review " no taboo is off limits for spiky standup by Brian Logan

Leicester Square theatre, LondonThe American comedian goes straight for the jugular in a fearlessly off-colour and skilfully constructed show 'Oh, your queen died," says Michelle Wolf, faux-…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:55PM[SHARE]
Wednesday, October 5, 2022

Louis CK review " sordid, cynical and queasy comedy by Brian Logan

Wembley Arena, LondonThe standup returns to the UK with a set on morality, sex and religion that often excels but also stalls with casual misanthropy The last time Louis CK performed major U…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:33AM[SHARE]
Tuesday, October 4, 2022

Hasan Minhaj: The King's Jester review " slick comedy boastfully told by Brian Logan

NetflixThe campaigning US satirist covers politics, parenthood and 'the jurisprudence of jokes' in a brash set delivered with major brio You can't accuse Hasan Minhaj of not packing enough i…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:43AM[SHARE]
Monday, October 3, 2022

Hannah Einbinder review " inventive, off-kilter standup from the Hacks star by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, London A brief but brazen set by the HBO series co-star shows a talent in full control of her own brand of scattershot comedy Emmy Award-nominated for playing a standup comedia…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:19AM[SHARE]
Thursday, September 29, 2022

Isy Suttie review " charming comic on a wild childhood chase by Brian Logan

Old Market, Brighton A thoroughly likable autobiographical show, comparing Suttie's domestic midlife and her past daredevilry, hits the comic jackpot with its songs When Isy Suttie was a gir…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:55AM[SHARE]
Wednesday, September 28, 2022

Stewart Lee review " underpowered show still stronger than most by Brian Logan

Leicester Square theatre, LondonLess richly structured than his best work, this looser-limbed evening has given the comic wing-spreading room to experiment "Pure. Simple. Classic." That's th…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:07PM[SHARE]
Thursday, September 22, 2022

Sarah Keyworth: Lost Boy review " serious self-analysis whips up gales of laughter by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonThe standup was planning an altogether sillier show, but life got in the way, resulting in a set that spins grief and loss into an uproarious hour Before Covid, and in co…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:25PM[SHARE]

Kim Noble: Lullaby for Scavengers review " strange, tender and endlessly funny by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonThe notorious comic and performance artist explores loneliness and the human/animal divide in an intricately assembled scrapbook show It's taken Kim Noble seven years to …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:25AM[SHARE]
Wednesday, September 21, 2022

'It could have some negative pushback': has extreme comedian Kim Noble finally gone too far? by Brian Logan

In Lullaby for Scavengers, the no-holds-barred performance artist returns to outfox and outrage audiences. He talks about trying to snog his mother, bathing with maggots and being an 'old wh…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:33AM[SHARE]
Sunday, September 18, 2022

Dawn French Is a Huge Twat review " mini-masterpieces of self-mockery by Brian Logan

New theatre, OxfordFrench heaps detail upon self-abasing detail as she shares hugely engaging stories from her 40-year career It's called semantic satiation, when you say a word so many time…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:07PM[SHARE]
Monday, September 5, 2022

The satire of Joe Lycett is a fitting response to our era of scorched-earth politics | Brian Logan by Brian Logan

Shows like Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg exist to make politicians seem upright and substantial. ​Lycett rightly pointed out that some of them are not "Memo: don't put comedians on Que…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:55AM[SHARE]
Sunday, September 4, 2022

Tom Walker: Javelin review " lots to enjoy, even if the central conceit does not soar by Brian Logan

Assembly George Square, EdinburghThe Australian physical comedian conjures up a career for himself as a professional spear-thrower in this wacky if uneven show There is a distinguished, if n…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:03AM[SHARE]
Friday, September 2, 2022

'Did Will Smith hurt me? He played Ali!' " Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle live by Brian Logan

M&S Bank Arena, LiverpoolThey are arguably the two greatest US standups of their generation " and both topical for not always lovely reasons. Could this double-whammy possibly live up to…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:55AM[SHARE]
Thursday, September 1, 2022

Jessica Fostekew review " sexuality switch exposes rich vein of fast-paced mirth by Brian Logan

Monkey Barrel, EdinburghSince her last show, about weightlifting, the 39-year-old has split from her son's father and moved in with a woman. Which adds up to hilarity for the audience if not…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:03AM[SHARE]
Wednesday, August 31, 2022

Jamali Maddix review " the somewhat funny side of sex addiction by Brian Logan

Pleasance, EdinburghMaddix is a fluent, playful comic, but the window opened here on his conflicted psyche feels unresolved " for him as much as his audience 'I needed to say it more than yo…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:49AM[SHARE]
Tuesday, August 30, 2022

BriTANick review " dazzling mirth from two SNL sketch masters by Brian Logan

Assembly George Square, EdinburghThere are few bells and whistles in Brian McElhaney and Nick Kocher's fringe debut, just two seasoned US comics in effortless harmony with each other Here's …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:07PM[SHARE]

Sam Campbell once joked about killing me " but the Aussie comedian's Edinburgh win is well-deserved | Brian Logan by Brian Logan

The baby-faced oddball has gone from performing to tiny audiences to winning live comedy's most coveted prize, the Edinburgh festival fringe comedy award What does an Edinburgh comedy award …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:03AM[SHARE]

All that Chat