Are you experienced?
Nicola Vaughan De'Wheel on comedy's cult of youth
05/05/2009 … I have just read a biography of a comedian on a comedy club website which wrote of his meteoric rise from nervous open spot to headliner of major comedy clubs in…
Latest 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.
Tue 05 May 2009
Thu 30 April 2009
The wrong man in the right place at the wrong time
Dave Cohen remembers the legendary Wizo
30/04/2009 … Ask any comic of a certain age, who was the maddest, drunkest, most reckless, over-the-top person they’d ever met on the circuit - nearly all would answer Malcolm…
Mon 27 April 2009
In defence of elitism
Nigel Denning, Tom Rosenthal (and David Hume) reply
27/04/2009 … Two writers respond to Daniel Walker’s article Elitists? What Do They Know… First, Nigel DenningI read Daniel Walker’s article Elitists? What Do They Know……
Fri 24 April 2009
Elitists? What do they know...
Daniel Walker criticises the critics
24/04/2009 … Elitism is a dark cloud that hovers over comedy, limiting and damaging the enjoyment of the audience.
Wed 22 April 2009
At least it'll be funny...
Chris Hallam looks on the bright side of a possible Tory victory
22/04/2009 … Picture the scene.
Mon 20 April 2009
The day the comedy died
Anthony Harvison on Tommy Cooper's death, 25 years on
20/04/2009 … When the plane carrying rock and roll musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper crashed on February 3, 1959, it would come to be remembered as the…
Wed 08 April 2009
The Half Hour that changed comedy
Anthony Harvison pays tribute to Tony Hancock
08/04/2009 … Watching the majority of today's sitcoms makes me despair.
Fri 03 April 2009
Comedy's better on radio
Says Sean Prower, a teenage fan of vintage shows
03/04/2009 … The BBC’s new head of radio comedy, Jane Berthoud, says that with audiences of more than five million, radio comedy remains ‘a jewel in the crown of British…