Comic Harry Deansway claims UKTV show copied his idea

Comedian Harry Deansway has been telling the High Court how the Dave TV series  Live At The Moth Club ripped off his YouTube series Shambles.

Both shows were set in comedy clubs and mixed on-stage performances with behind-the-scenes elements more like a sitcom.

Deansway – under his real name Joshua Rinkoff – is accusing programme makers Baby Crow of ripping off his idea in a case that made it to court yesterday. Baby Cow  – which was co-founded by Steve Coogan – is contesting the claim. The Alan Partridge star  remains the company’s creative director, but is not named in the lawsuit.

Deansway claims Baby Cow’s head of comedy development, Rupert Majendie stole the idea of the 2022 show Live At The Moth Club from his series, which had been on YouTube from 2013. 

The pair previously worked together on the comedy circuit, and in a legal filing seen by Chortle, Deansway said he pitched an earlier version of the idea to Majendie when he was working at the BBC ‘which he liked enough to put it forward to his boss’.

In the papers, he adds: ‘Rupert very well might have had the idea to set a sitcom in a comedy club but having worked with him I do not believe that he has the creative vision or technical skills to come up with the filmic language to tell that story and present that content on the screen.’

Majendie, pictured above at the Moth Club with star Mark Heap,  testified yesterday that any similarities between the two series were a coincidence and denied there was any possible crossover, saying he did not know about Deansway’s series when he began developing the show at Baby Cow. 

The company’s position is that ‘no substantial similarities between the two shows that would lead one, in context, to believe one has been copied from the other’.

Comedians Ellie White, Alexander Owen and Ben Ashenden  – who all wrote on Live at the Moth Club – also appeared on the witness stand to say they had not  been aware of Shambles when they began working with Baby Cow.

When Live At The Moth Club was launched,  Majendie said: ‘I wanted to watch a great UK ensemble show in the vein of SNL for years and years. There has been countless attempts, so to be able to have a crack at it and house some of the best UK talent out there is the dream.

‘It began as a real club night I was involved in running at the Moth Club in Hackney which has a real party energy. What we wanted for that night was to have an ensemble, so comedy talent including Jamie Demetriou, Natasia Demetriou, Ellie White and Cardinal Burns all became residents, plus we had like-minded people come and go every month.

‘Bringing that to TV screens to showcase alternative comedy while capturing the fizz of a live club night is something I've always wanted to do and I'm proud of the team that helped to achieve it.’

Deansway’s court filings also reveals some history between himself and Majendie, stating: ‘ There was an incident in 2013 when I was involved in a protest against the ever-expanding footprint of the BBC on the Fringe. 

‘Another comedian, Bob Slayer, and I stormed the stage during the live record to protest on behalf of the Spirit of the Fringe. Rupert, who it turns out was producing this show, ran on stage and kicked me  up the backside. I had no problem with Rupert after this incident, but I got the feeling he was rather upset about it.’

Trade magazine Variety also reports that the courtroom erupted in giggles yesterday when Ellie White was talking about her comedy partner Natasia Demetriou, and confirmed Demetriou’s company had been called Horny4Cash Limited.

The case continues today in front of Recorder Amanda Michaels in The Rolls Buildings, London.

» Comic launches legal action over Live At The Moth Club : Exactly how Harry Deansway claims producers stole his idea

Published: 5 Nov 2024