The best of the comedy week ahead

The comedy week ahead…

Monday January 25

LIVE IN LONDON: Leading indie venue and producers The Invisible Dot have booked the Hammersmith Apollo to celebrate their seventh birthday. The impressive line-up includes Adam Buxton, Harry Hill, Sara Pascoe, Tim Key, Josie Long and The Horne Section. Tickets

LIVE IN LONDON: As is now traditional, the Glasgow International Comedy Festival officially launches its 2016 programme with a Burns Night gig in the Leicester Square Theatre. On the bill tonight are Damien Clark, Abigoliah Schamaun, Mark Nelson, Larry Dean, David Morgan, Andrew Doyle, Richard Gadd, Eleanor Morton and host Bruce Devlin.

Tuesday January 26

TV: Mom, the latest sitcom from Two and a Half Men and Big Bang Theory creator Chuck Lorre – more critically acclaimed than his other hits – returns to ITV2 for a third series. 9pm.

LIVE IN LONDON: John Robins won plaudits aplenty for his seventh stand-up show at the Edinburgh Fringe last year. Speakeasy went beyond the affable banter of his delivery to take an eloquent, insightful and funny look at the way we present ourselves online… and it’s at the Soho Theatre all week before embarking on a small UK tour Review and dates.

Wednesday January 27

TV: Catherine Tate, Miles Jupp and Car Share’s Sian Gibson lead an ensemble cast in Do Not Disturb, a one-off farce for the Gold channel. Tate and Jupp play an estranged husband and wife who have gone to a hotel to attempt reconciliation talks after her extra-marital affair. But there’s a stag do running wild and a 21-year-old man is lying semi-naked and asleep in the bathtub… 10pm.

LIVE IN LONDON: With his all-conquering glitzy camp, Irishman Al Porter brings an unadulterated joy to his performance - and his audience. Share in his glorious anecdotal showmanship at the Soho Theatre for the rest of the week…

LIVE IN LONDON:… and you could make it a double-bill with The Story Beast, John Henry Falle’s larger-than-life take on the storytelling genre, encompassing everything from a modern(ish) version of Beowulf to a deconstruction of the Teddy Bears’ Picnic. Prepare to be rapt…

Thursday January 28

LIVE IN GLASGOW: Limmy, aka Brian Limmond, takes his hit internet sketches into the real world… and any suggestion that he’s a just a cult figure is disproved by the fact he’s got a four-night run at the Clyde Auditorium. It was the tour linked to his acclaimed book, Daft Wee Stories, last year that persuaded him to take to the stage, and fans can expect the likes of Jacqueline McCafferty, the reformed heroin addict; Raymond Day, the cynical psychic medium, and, of course, Falconhoof, the fantasy game show host.

LIVE IN BIRMINGHAM: Habitual Edinburgh nominee James Acaster brings his quirky stand-up to the Chortle award-winning Comedy Carousel at the Glee.

Friday January 29

TV: Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker head to the Australian Outback for The Last Leg Down Under, in which they have two weeks to complete a 3,000-mile road trip to reach Sydney in time for Adam’s 97-year-old grandpa’s party. Channel 4, 10pm.

LIVE IN BANBURY: Simon Evans has spent the last couple of years immersing himself in economics for his Radio 4 series, Simon Evans Goes to Market. Now he puts that research to good use in a stand-up tour, sardonic and informative, that visits the Mill Arts Centre tonight. Full schedule

LIVE IN WINDSOR: There’s a broad mix of styles at the Fuzzy Bear both tonight and tomorrow, with comic magician Pete Firman, irresistibly upbeat Luisa Omielan and the jaunty Geordie banter of Dave Johns.

LIVE IN WAKEFIELD: Pun king Gary Delaney takes time out of his tour schedule to appear at a club night in the Holiday Inn Leeds-Wakefield, just off the M1. Master self-deprecator Johnny Pelham, who took the silver in more new act competitions than you’d think existed when he started in 2012, is among the supporting line-up.

Saturday January 30

LIVE IN LEEDS: Bob Mortimer’s been given the all-clear after his triple heart bypass, so now the most-anticipated comedy tour of the year can finally go ahead. Vic and Bob’s Poignant Moments tour, featuring the greatest hits from their 30-plus year partnership, kicks off in Leeds. Prepare to spin, spin, spin the wheel of justice, see how fast the bastard turns. If you’ve no idea what that means, do yourself a favour and find out… Dates

LIVE IN LONDON: There’s sharp-edged club comedy from both Carey Marx and Josh Howie, well-mixed with the slick observational comedy of Greg Burns. The full line-up doubles up at both the Comedy Carnival gig in Bar Rumba, Piccadilly Circus, and the Comedy Tree at the Lala Lounge in Hammersmith, so twice the chance to see them…

Published: 24 Jan 2016