How to tell if comedy is for you
Dave Cohen describes the giveaway signs
14/11/2012 … Comedy clubs in crisis, the BBC in crisis.
2012 Opinions
Chortle's Opinions section is an arena for fans to share their views on any aspect of comedy.
We invite general comment pieces about particular aspects of the comedy scene (although reviews of individual shows or performers tend not to be suited to this section except in very rare circumstances). Contributions should be at least 500 words in length, in a similar tone to something you might read in a broadsheet newspaper, and emailed to steve@chortle.co.uk
We reserve the right to edit pieces – although we will be careful not to change the meaning of anything – or not to use them at all. By submitting an article you grant Chortle indefinite licence to use it freely; though you retain the copyright on it to use it elsewhere.
Wed 14 November 2012
Mon 12 November 2012
What's acceptable?
Comic Alfie Moore on comedy's bad-taste goalposts
12/11/2012 … The subject of race and religion is never far away in the modern comedy arena, which got me thinking where the goalposts are sited in respect of all things ‘sensitive’.
Sun 11 November 2012
Did you hear what happened at the Comedy Store last night?
No? Well, that's the problem with live comedy, says Lewis Schaffer
11/11/2012 … Back in New York in the mid-Nineties, a TV producer asked me to test an idea he had.
Fri 09 November 2012
You can't ban 'rape jokes'
09/11/2012 … The furore regarding offensive comedy and the biggest bête noire, the ‘rape joke’, shows no sign of abating.
Sun 04 November 2012
Panic on the streets of London
Laughing Horse boss Alex Petty's take on the state of the comedy club business
04/11/2012 … The seeds of failure in any business are most often sown when a business is at its most successful.
Fri 02 November 2012
Pilot error
Joe Milnes gripes about sitcom writing competitions
02/11/2012 … Disclaimer: This piece stems primarily from a place of bitterness and resentment, which as any two-bit therapist could explain, is really a manifestation of feelings…
Thu 01 November 2012
Clubbed to death
In a new series of monthly columns, Chortle editor Steve Bennett looks at the crisis in comedy clubs
01/11/2012 … Stand-up is said to be enjoying a boom - with more people than ever flocking to big gigs in arenas and major theatres, and comedians rarely off our TV screens.
Wed 31 October 2012