'Losing Gina Yashere to America was one of Britain’s greatest comedic shames'

Andrew White picks his Perfect Playlist

Andrew White embarks on his debut tour – Young, Gay & A Third Thing – later this month, having previously supported Kiri Pritchard-McLean and Helen Bauer and Catherine Bohart’s Trusty Hogs podcast. Here he shares his Perfect Playlist of comedy favourites.

Joan Rivers: Enter Talking

Born Standing Up by Steve Martin is lauded as THE comedy book for stand-ups finding their way, but this Joan Rivers memoir should be considered just as totemic.

Rivers is probably the act I most wish I could be. From wardrobe to wit, she was an icon who fought through familial, societal, and personal doubts to present her truest and most unfiltered self on stage, especially at a time when women had very little representation in the comedy arena.

This book charts her early life and comedy career in an uncharacteristically unglamorous blow-by-blow of every step on the way to her 1965 Johnny Carson debut.

You can really see her persona, steel, and joke writing ability forged over the chapters, and it is brutally honest about the hardships of a comedy career whilst still being inspirational rather than off-putting. The opening of Chapter 10 particularly fires me up to keep going, and I fully urge any aspiring comic to seek it out. (It’s available on Amazon here)

https://youtu.be/-lEX6HI4Mew?si=WeR5in66jJiFQUkY

Hacks

While we’re in the world of Joan Rivers, this heavily JR-inspired sitcom is a recent favourite and easily some of the best TV being made at the moment, as evidenced by its three recent Emmy wins.

Jean Smart –who has won the lead actress Emmy every year Hacks has aired – plays the inimitable Deboarah Vance, a millionaire Vegas comic who is at risk of losing her residency. She gets partnered with a new young comedy writer (Ava, played by Hannah Einbinder) by her agent and slowly starts to change her approach to comedy and life.

It is so achingly funny, the characters are all brilliantly written and acted, and there is endless stand-up wisdom interspersed. Vance is clearly a homage to Joan Rivers which may be why I’m especially drawn to it, but even my stand-up-ambivalent partner loves this show.

Maria Bamford: The Burning Bridges Tour

I came to Maria Bamford very late but instantly fell in love, listening to all of her albums in the space of a week. Her style is a far cry from the front-footed confidence of Joan Rivers, but she is just as uncompromising.

The stand-up is beautifully raw and honest, but also often brilliantly observed. Bamford’s jokes on the minutiae of life, relationships, and her own mind are often praised (or dismissed) as whimsical and offbeat, but so much of the material has a relatable emotional core that I really connect with.

Her debut album, The Burning Bridges Tour, is a great entry point, and I also recommend her latest work, Crowd-Pleaser. Listen to them back-to-back to hear how much her persona has solidified over 20 years; it’s a great lesson in finding your voice.

Patton Oswalt: Werewolves & Lollipops

I really love listening to stand-up albums, and especially driving so much, audio is often the only way I can regularly enjoy comedy. Plus, the discover feature of Apple Music (sorry Spotify purists) meant it was perfect to find new people and expand my tastes.

As a teenager listening to albums, I got really into acts like Hannibal Buress, John Mulaney, Eugene Mirman, Ron Funches and Patton Oswalt.

Oswalt’s Werewolves & Lollipops was probably the first recording I re-listened to multiple times and forced friends and family to check out. I love his literary style and truly unique flights of fancy. The concepts are brilliant and their execution even better…

Gina Yashere

My friend (and brilliant comedian), Sunjai Arif, said that losing Gina Yashere to the USA was one of Britain’s greatest comedic* shames, and I couldn’t agree more.

She is a powerhouse of a performer, a brilliant joke writer and a voice that we are severely lacking on the UK scene. I’m obviously pleased she got the recognition she deserved stateside, but I am secretly bitter to never have had the chance to gig with her on the circuit.

The Live at the Apollo clip with her mum always makes me howl and stands out as one of the best moments in the show's 18 series history.

(*Sunjai actually said greatest shames full stop, but I, as a white person, thought I couldn’t dismiss colonialism)

Kit & The Widow / McConnell

Musical theatre was my first introduction into performance, and I’ve always loved comedy with theatrical flair and musical motifs ever since. Although musical comedy is much maligned, Kit & The Widow (and latterly Kit & McConnell) were pure class and I fell in love with their witty and often scathing tunes as a teenager.

Sadly, Kit Hesketh-Harvey who led the duos passed away last year and a lot of their work can’t be found online any more, but their Somebody Else song is so funny, musically clever, and takes down my least favourite musical theatre composer of all time, Andrew Lloyd-Webber.

They also have a great song about Joan Rivers that they used to play when they supported her on tour, and it’s maybe the best tour support opening gambit I’ve ever seen!