Stand-up special comes to Sky Comedy next month

James Acaster's Hecklers Welcome special will air in the UK on December 10.

Earlier this month, Chortle reported how the stand-up show had been recorded for American cable channel HBO at the  Royal & Derngate Theatre in Northampton, close to the comedian’s Kettering hometown.

It will air in the US this Saturday, ahead of its UK premiere on Sky Comedy as part of a season of stand-up specials. Paul Chowdhry’s Family-Friendly Comedian will air on December 14 and Micky Flanagan’s If We Ever Needed It will air at a yet-to-be announced date next month.

Hecklers Welcome  explores Acaster’s ‘love/hate relationship with stand-up by relinquishing control of his set and accepting a healthy dose of audience interference’.

He  said: ‘Performing in the round, in a theatre I went to growing up, with the audience chipping in whenever they felt like it, meant this was the most I’ve enjoyed filming a special, and I’m delighted it’s coming to HBO. Also I jumped onto the stage via a trampoline and I don’t want that to go unacknowledged.’

Here’s the trailer:

Nina Rosenstein, HBO’s executive vice president in charge of comedy specials, added: ‘We’re longtime fans of James and are so thrilled to work with him. 

‘This special is a bold concept—not many comedians would allow hecklers at their shows; fewer still would openly encourage them to interrupt a live taping of their set, but James has never been one to approach his comedy in a traditional way.

‘ Filmed in his hometown somewhere in the middle of England, Hecklers Welcome is a hilarious and brilliantly strange hour where James examines his complicated relationship with comedy.’

Published: 22 Nov 2024