How comedy can change lives
Dave Chawner's seen first-hand
29/07/2014 … It might be awful but having read how many amazing performers have mental health issues my first thought was: ‘How brilliant’!I would never wish harm on anyone…
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 29 July 2014
Mon 28 July 2014
Weird Al Yankovic keeps changing his tune
Ben Alborough on how the musical comic has spent 30 years at the top of his game
28/07/2014 … Weird Al Yankovic’s latest album Mandatory Fun is his first to get to No1 in the US in a songwriting career spanning four decades – a career which has thrived…
How to win the Edinburgh Fringe
Stuart Goldsmith has the answers...
28/07/2014 … We all remember the sentient computer out of the 1980s film War Games, you know, the one that played chess against itself to stalemate over and over again.
Fri 25 July 2014
Reviewing the Fringe reviewers
'Mr Kipper' on another new festival website
25/07/2014 … First of all, there is no plug for an Edinburgh Fringe show tacked onto the end of this article.
Wed 23 July 2014
13 ways to get the most out of the Fringe
...and you won't believe No 9! By Gein’s Family Giftshop
23/07/2014 … We’re very excited to be heading for the Edinburgh Fringe next week.
Tue 22 July 2014
White male comics have a head start in this race...
Ola on how the industry marginalises comedians when punters don't
22/07/2014 … The discussions around race in comedy have equally intrigued and tired us all from the surge of black comics in the 1970s and 1980s until today.
Tue 15 July 2014
'On stage is the only place I feel normal'
Andy Holloway on being a comic with Asperger's
15/07/2014 … Before I start, I need to warn people that this article ends with the biggest cliche imaginable.
Mon 14 July 2014
Goals; they're so hack...
Nathan Cassidy imagines a comedy critic's take on the World Cup
14/07/2014 … It’s the age-old debate isn’t it? Is the biggest Festival in the world a good thing for comedy or the death of the clubs? With everyone, comedians and audiences…