Chortle editor Steve Bennett's personal highlights of the year

Another year, another 250-plus comedy shows watched as editor of Chortle. Here’s my rundown of the most memorable of them. That’s not always the same as the best, but there’s usually a strong correlation…

10. Adam ​​Riches and ​John ​Kearns ARE Ball & Boe 

Soho Theatre, London, December

It was something of a mystery as to what this limited-run show was going to be. A tribute, of sorts, to the mainstream duo, it turned out – and a masterful display of mucking about with a daft idea just for the hell of it. However that silliness was underpinned by writing as sharp as the real Ball & Boe’s suits, and impressively performed.

The comics, who’ve both won the Edinburgh Comedy Award in their own right, explored the (surely fictional) double-act dynamic between the two, with running jokes and a playfulness the audience readily embraced, fully buying into the premise.

Are the crooners the entertainers Riches and Kearns hope to be, for all their own alt comedy quirks? It’s not clear, but there is some respect, albeit of the ‘we only roast those we love’ kind, beneath the gags at the consummate entertainers’ expense. The show explored the conflict between art and commerce, but mainly offered a good time for all. You’ll never hear The Greatest Show in the same way again.

The show continues at Soho until January 7 then returns - it has just been announced - from April 7 to 19.

9. A Christmas Carol (ish)

@sohoplace, London, December 

Sometimes things make the ‘most memorable’ list for the wrong reasons… and this definitely falls into this camp.

Expectations were high for Nick Mohammed’s take on the Dickens classic in the guise of his enthusiastic, if irritating and egocentric, alter-ego Mr Swallow. Joined by his regular sidekicks of Kieran Hodgson and David Elms – plus new recruit Martha Howe-Douglas from Ghosts, he was given a huge high-tech venue and an elaborate set as his festive playground.

Mohammed’s very well-connected and opening night was packed to the gills with the great and good of British comedy  –  Jack Whitehall, Martin Freeman, Julia Davis and Reece Shearsmith among them. But sadly the venue, despite being the newest in the West End, refused to play ball and the night was hit by technical issue upon technical issue, prompting restarts and, ultimately, the abandonment of the show after the first half.

The disappointment etched on the face of Mohammed, the rest of his cast and producer Owen Donovan of Berk’s Nest was very apparent as they broke the news. 

Luckily, however, the show was soon back on its feet – and my colleague Tim Harding returned a couple of nights later for a four-star review.

8. Garry Starr: Classic Penguins

Pleasance, Edinburgh, August 

Nudity usually ensures memorability, and Garry Starr – the alter-ego of Aussie clown Damien Warren-Smith – performed his entire show in the buff, save for save for a tailcoat, flippers and Elizabethan ruff. And that, which he never referenced, was just the start of this absurd show.

Starr largely ignored his nakedness as he presented a long series of puckish visual puns, based on the titles, and occasionally plots, of literary classics. With some splendid, consensual, audience interaction and plenty of silly set pieces, this was guaranteed to bring a smile to almost anyone’s face. Mine included.

7. Demi Adejuyigbe Is Going To Do One (1) Backflip

Pleasance, Edinburgh, August

The American delivered an impressive calling card with this high-concept show, all about the mental build-up to the titular stunt. 

Daft sketches, crappy PowerPoint presentations, subversive comedy songs and unpredictable audience interactions all conspired to drag out the comic tension and display the fruits of his highly creative mind. There was even a bit of a message to all the madness, though not so laboured to be overwrought. The main take-out was  definitely what a unique talent Adejuyigbe is.

6. Rhod ​Gilbert And The Giant Grapefruit

G Live, Guildford, May

This was Rhod Gilbert’s show about his brutal treatment for head and neck cancer, the title referring to the size of his tumour, so perhaps it’s not surprising that it packed a hefty emotional punch. The overarching sense was that his experiences have made the previously grouchy comedian appreciate the world and those closest to him all the more.

But it was as funny as it was life-affirming, with Gilbert extracting laughs from every physical indignity he suffered – carefully ramping up already extreme situations to brilliant effect. And his driver, John, unwitting star of the comic’s previous tour show, returned as a character, his odd utterances offering more comic relief. 

5. The Taskmaster Live Experience

Canada Water, London

Much of the fun of watching Alex Horne’s blockbuster TV show is second-guessing how you would tackle the challenges he sets the usually hapless comedians. Well, here you can find out you’re probably not as smart, or lateral-thinking as you might want to believe.

The experience attracted some criticism for its pricing – the most expensive tickets are a wallet-straining £100 – but throwing yourself fully into silly tasks such as weighing ducks or bouncing ping-pong balls is something you’ll remember for a long time. 

The attention to detail in recreating the feel of the real Taskmaster house is impressive. And, for me, doing it on launch night where so many former contestants gathered to re-live their own enjoyable time at the show, made it extra special.

The Taskmaster Live Experience is in situ until Feb 23.

4. Joe ​Kent-Walters is Frankie Monroe: LIVE

Monkey Barrel Comedy, Edinburgh, August

After winning the Covid-interrupted Student Comedy Award and the subsequent BBC New Comedy Award, Joe Kent-Walters was one of the most anticipated debutants of the Edinburgh Fringe.

And he didn’t disappoint. His alter-ego is one-seen, never forgotten – an archetypal Northern English working-men’s club comedian on one level, a more sinister presence on another, with his creepy grin, manipulative manner and white-painted face. That the latter effect was achieved by Swarfega, which melted down as the hour went on, was an early indicator that Kent-Walters wasn’t taking the evil connotations of performing at an active hellmouth all that seriously. Any intensity of the premise was dispersed by his endless playfulness and insistence that behind the performance, he’s just a normal guy.

A winning mix of Boosh and the League of Gentlemen, but with a much lighter vibe, this show – which won best newcomer – is surely a harbinger of great things to come for this formidable performer.

3. Comedians On Stage Auditioning For Musicals.

Max Watts, Melbourne, April

This one-off is a much-loved staple of the late-night Festival Club at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. Michelle Braiser and  Ben Russell play hard-to-impress casting directors, with Gillian Cosgriff on keyboards, as stand-ups offer their renditions of Broadway staples.

On this night  Laura Daniel and Joseph Moore, the married Kiwi double act known as Two Hearts, started with the requisite banter before launching into a banger from Les Mis.

But in an unexpected coup de theatre they were gradually joined by more are more Aotearoa comedians playing the festival – including the likes of Roy O’Leary,  Melanie Bracewell, Guy Montgomery and Rose Matafeo (whose impressive singing voice could give Kiri Te Kanawa a run for her money, for the record) until the stage was rammed full of people, a huge New Zealand/  flag being waved over their heads, truly channeling the proud revolutionary spirit of the song.

So, not exactly comedy but it was a truly impressive surprise display… and so stirring that if they’d led a march on Melbourne Town Hall, the audience would definitely have overthrown the city council…

@lauradanielnz We (Two Hearts) were on at "Comedians auditioning for musicals" at Max Watts as part of Melbourne Int Comedy Festival and we bought back up. Truly a highlight of all of our lives  #comedy #musicalcomedy #NewZealand #MICF #melbourneinternationalcomedyfestival  @David Correos @Johanna Cosgrove @Paul Williams @Guy Montgomery @Eli Matthewson @Chris Parker @Melanie Bracewell @rhys.mathewson @guywilliamsguy ♬ original sound - Laura Daniel

2. Natalie ​Palamides: Weer

Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, August 

The LA-based clown has a skill for creating unforgettable moments in her shows, and in Weer she was given the biggest canvas yet for her fully-committed clowning. 

This took the form of a full-on 1990s-style romcom, with Palamides playing both roles – the left the woman, the right the man. And she made full use of the Traverse space with all the props and set-pieces she could muster.

It was all in the services of a preposterously frenetic melodrama, spanning three years of a tempestuous relationship. On a sheer technical level she had much to manage, but wore it all lightly for a performance that was appealingly loose, even incorporating some sharp crowd work. This was a tour-de-force from a comic who never fails to impress with her creativity.

1. Stamptown

Soho Theatre, London, January

It’s a myth that every critic is a frustrated performer. Certainly, I don’t feel the stage is my natural home. But some persuasive cajoling from Stamptown mastermind Zack Zucker – and the fact I’ve always loved their high-octane chaos, manic energy and insane running jokes – convinced me to take part for one night only.

The show already has its own in-house critic in the form of Martin Urbano, who takes sharply satirical, close-to-the-bone sideswipes at both the performance and  snooty journalists who don’t get it. So the gag would be that the reviewer gets reviewed… by me. With a one-star verdict.

 I think it went down OK, which can be attributed to the encouraging mugging of Zucker’s pumped-up alter-ego Jack Tucker behind me, rather to anything I said. But it was certainly fun – and most definitely memorable –  to be part of the in-joke for one night only.

My only regret is that with Stamptown’s penchant for massively overrunning, a genuinely talented circus/burlesque performer Marshall Arkley got bumped for this nonsense. That seemed a tad unfair…

Published: 30 Dec 2024