Broadcaster embraces stand-up

Sky Comedy is branching out into stand-up specials, debuting shows from Katherine Ryan and Rob Beckett later this month.

Rob Beckett’s Wallop! will air on Boxing Day with Ryan’s Missus on December 29. Both will also be available to steam on Now.

Ryan’s previous specials, In Trouble and Glitter Room, both aired on Netflix, which also carried her narrative comedy series The Duchess.

Missus, which was filmed at the Edinburgh Playhouse, will be broadcast three days before the New Year’s Day launch of the Sky Comedy series Romantic Getaway,  in which stars alongside Romesh Ranganathan.

The stand-up show, which has recently completed a substantial UK tour, covers Ryan’s change of heart. Having previously denounced marriage, monogamy, and categorising men as ‘like dolphins – best enjoyed on holiday’, she ended up marrying her childhood sweetheart following a chance encounter back home in Canada.

Beckett is a familiar face on Sky – where he also regularly alongside Ranganathan. The pair have fronted four series of the Rob and Romesh Vs for the broadcaster, in which they travel the world taking on challenges.

His Wallop show played to more than 200,000 fans at  160 tour dates in the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand.

The show – his first stand-up special – was recorded at the Cliffs Pavilion in Southend, Essex, which he describes as one of his favourite venues in the UK>

Published: 6 Dec 2022