A tight 5: Janaury 26

Cardinal Burns and Trevor Noah will be performing stand-up as part of the Comic Relief telethon on March 13. BBC One’s Red Nose Day broadcast will come from the London Palladium, with filmed clips including the return of Mr Bean – as revealed by Chortle – and the Vicar Of Dibley, plus highlights of Peter Kay’s Phoenix Nights Live starring Peter Kay.

ALAN DAVIES and Paul Merton are to perform at Hampton Court this summer. The pair will perform a double-bill at Henry VIII’s Tudor Palace on June 17, with Davies’s stand-up show followed by Merton’s Impro Chums. It is part of a festival at the Surrey landmark that also includes Paloma Faith, Alfie Boe and Jools Holland. Tickets go on sale at 11am tomorrow.

DANIEL DUFFY, the nervous, whimsical Irish creation of Michael Stranney, with the NATY new act of the year competition at the Bloomsbury Theatre last night. Joint runners-up were Spencer Jones in the guise of The Herbert, and Jenny Collier, with Francis Foster taking third.

RUSSELL BRAND, Graham Norton, David Walliams Avalon bosses Richard Allen-Turner and Jon Thoday and theatre owner and Edinburgh Comedy Awards impresario Nica Burns have been named among the top most influential people in Britain today by upper-class publishers Debrett’s.

COMIC Joseph Wilson is fronting a new advertising campaign for Freeview. In the commercials, he plays a character called Freddy who delivers a stream of impersonations to customers at cinema and theatre box offices, giving the advertiser’s message that entertainment is better when it’s free. Here’s one of the ads:

Published: 26 Jan 2015