A tight 5: July 11

Simon Amstell has announced a 2015 tour, To Be Free. He has unveiled 30 dates, staring in Edinburgh on February 6 and ending at the Shepherds Bush Empire, West London, on March 26. Five warm-up dates at the Leicester Square Theatre for this October have already been announced, and he will also be appearing at the Brighton Comedy Festival the same month. The show is described as exploring 'freedom, joy, love, death, adventure, art, peace, sex, regret, success, eating, suffering, dreaming, healing, forgiving and other areas'. Schedule.

THE KUMARS' Sanjeev Bhaskar is to appear in the next series of Doctor Who. His role in the season finale has not been confirmed, but he will come to the aid of Peter Capaldi's Doctor. Other guests in the new series include Michelle Gomez, Frank Skinner and Ben Miller.

THE DEAD PARROT sketch is the nation's favourite Monty Python routine, a survey has found. TV channel Gold polled 2,000 adults about their favourite sketches and found they were, in order: 1. Dead Parrot; 2. The Lumberjack Song; 3. The Ministry of Silly Walks; 4. The Spanish Inquisition; 5. Spam; 6. Four Yorkshiremen; 7. Nudge Nudge; 8. Fish-Slapping Dance; 9. The Restaurant Sketch (dirty fork); 10. The Killer Joke.

BROOKLYN NINE-NINE and Cuckoo star Andy Samberg is to be crowned comedy person of the year at the Montreal Just For Laughs festival. The event will also honour Bill Burr as stand-up as the year; Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg as comedy directors of the year for The Interview; Michael Schur as comedy writer of the year, also for Brooklyn Nine-Nine; and Nathan Fielder of Comedy Central's Nathan For You as the breakout star.

BESTIVAL has announced its comedy line-up, with appearances from Nina Conti, Abandoman, Andrew Maxwell, Jarred Christmas, Daniel Sloss and Matt Richardson. The event kicks off on the Isle Of Wight on September 4, with music acts including Outkast, Foals and Chic, and adult tickets are £195. Website

Published: 11 Jul 2014