On Russell Howard's Good News

March 2011

More Dan Atkinson videos

Following a five-year residency hosting The Other Side in York, Dan Atkinson debuted at the Edinburgh Festival as part of the long-running Comedy Zone mixed-bill showcase in 2006, returning the following year with his solo debut: Dan Atkinson Knows That He Knows Nothing

He also works as a TV warm up act, having bantered with audiences on Never Mind the Buzzcocks and Bremner, Bird and Fortune.

He was nominated best compere in the 2010 Chortle awards.

GIT: Edinburgh 2010
Live Review

Jon Richardson, Dan Atkinson and Lloyd Langford take great pains to explain this show is an idea in progress, bandying around words like ‘experimental’, ‘shambolic’ and ‘rough around the edges’ before they even start.

I can’t really top those descriptions, for although the key idea is a good one, and the accomplished trio are quick enough to provide some decent laughs, there are way too many embarrassed lulls that bring them so close to dying you expect Gazza to show up with a fishing rod and a can of lager.

The idea is that each comic takes it in turns to present games based on strangers’ profiles posted on social networking websites. The other two have no idea what their colleague has prepared, providing the spark for improvised banter.

Sections include a missing words round, similar to Have I Got News For You but based on status updates rather than newspaper headliners, as well as more ad hoc games, like Langford’s What’s The Frequency Of Kenneths, where Richardson and Atkinson have to guess which of the internet users are named Kenneth, and which aren’t, based only on their photographs.

There is actually a decent strike rate of decent gags, such as Langford’s inspired comparison of MySpace with Mad Max, and quick-witted ad libs between a trio who are clearly on each other’s wavelength. And the idea that last night’s loser must suffer a forfeit in this show (Richardson performed in a stiflingly hot penguin outfit today) is a nice one.

But the whole energy of the enterprise is too sluggish. It takes forever to get going, while a bit of Brucie-style showmanship to get the audience more involved in the ridiculous games would be more-than welcome, rather than reducing us to largely passive observers of their indulgence.

Creativity needs talented people to dick about, and there’s lots of potential in this idea. But their main mistake was in charging £8.50 to watch them. If ever there was a show that was perfect for one of the free venues, where established comics can workshop without the demands of satisfying a paying audience, it was surely this one.

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Nearly a Paul Merton.

Rose, March 2011

Something from Dan's Edinburgh show last year, to me (after a conversation I have since forgotten) "Remember, if you don't like it, your mum's the c*nt that brought you here." Priceless stuff. I'll never forget that. And now it's on Chortle, nor will Dan!

F, August 2010

If I'm honest I wasn't really familiar with Dan as a compere or standup, only as a writer for Russell Howard's Good News. I saw him as part of the GIT show and he was absolutely brilliant. He had some banter with members of the audience and had you laughing right from the beginning. I would definitely love to see him on stage again, he's definitely worth watching.

Rebecca, June 2010

Great compere, got a really cold crowd going at Haywards Heath, and then picked them up and got them going again after Miles Jupp dropped the ball. So popular by the end some of the crowd tried to keep him from his train. Top bloke.

Adrian Breeds, February 2008

Exellent, some of the best gags Ive ever heard.

Barry Dodds, January 2007

Bloody funny! An amazing compere, had the audience laughing throughout the night. Spontaneous, hilarious, and lovely

Ian Smith, July 2006

Saw him at Red Rose on April 1 - a very lacklustre night all round . Dan seemed not to have prepared at all, and to lack spontaneity too. A few bits were good. As MC he perhaps didn't want to outshine the acts...?

Iain, April 2006

Extremely funny.

Fran, March 2006

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