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From Live At The Apollo 2010

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John Bishop performed stand-up comedy for the first time in October 2000, and the following year made it to the final of all the major new act competitions, including So You Think You're Funny, the Daily Telegraph Open Mic Awards, the BBC New Comedy Awards and the City Life North West Comedian of The Year Award, which he won.

In 2002, he was named best newcomer by BBC Radio Merseyside, and in 2004 he won the North West Comedy Award for best stand-up. And in 2009, he was nominated for the Ediburgh Comedy Award

His material is drawn from his life's experiences, from fatherhood to cycling around the world, to playing semi- professional football, to working as a nightclub doorman.

Teenage Cancer Trust benefit 2011
Live Review

Comic Relief might be the most symbolic melding of laughter and charity, but it’s far from the only comedy fundraiser in the calendar.

Tonight's Teenage Cancer Trust Concert played it safe to suit the clientèle likely to be attracted to the sumptuous Royal Albert Hall, employing the talents of dependable comics such as host John Bishop.

Bishop's bankability comes double-edged, with a tendency to labour through routines such as predictable battle of the sexes set-pieces or material about sexual behaviour. The latter sees him adopt a kind of Carry On posture of mock indignation, something that seems to typify the limited range of some of his observations.

While his pacing meant Bishop was never going to whip the Albert Hall up into a frenzy, his material caused a few frissons; perhaps the most daring was his honesty about his fellow Liverpudlians and their hostile attitude to the royal family. Kevin Bridges, the first full act of the evening, went one further by suggesting that the Queen's funeral would afford her nation a longer holiday than even Kate and Will's nuptials.

Bridges was bright and bullish from the start, pointing out the upsides of obesity and depression, but the Scotsman got bogged down during a riff on American reality TV show My Super Sweet 16 that saw his focus veer in and out.

Seann Walsh, meanwhile, conducted his whole set with some aplomb and managed to draw the audience in. Familiar routines about the behaviour of London commuters with their strange ability to fall asleep on the Tube, (‘You need to know this is wrong,’ he says, a line reminiscent of Dylan Moran) were ratcheted up a notch and this coupled with his wry eye won his audience over. Walsh's momentum could, however, link his routines better – at the moment they feel accomplished but very separate from each other.

Dan Renton Skinner's Angelos Epithemiou character seemed a strange and token choice for this otherwise stand-up heavy gig. Him closing the first half in his trademark ramshackle style was befuddling without being endearingly funny, as he can sometimes be. In this context Angelos's corny jokes and goofing around to music could have benefited from a shorter slot.

James Corden kicked off the second half with a rare stand-up appearance, and it was a curiosity to see the ebullient performer in a less lairy mode than usual, as he carefully plotted a routine around the emasculating effects of the iPhone. He recalled a sequence from a Horne and Corden sketch in which he simulates sex – a haunting image, as John Bishop remarks, but one that bolsters the energy levels.

Similarly louche and self-deprecating is the fabulous Greg Davies, whose turn was the undoubted highlight of the evening. Though the tales of his eccentric family, particularly his father, are now a tried-and-tested part of his act, he always invests them with a great deal of energy and always looks happy to be wherever he is. Meanwhile, his take on growing older, as seen through the Dead or Alive song You Spin Me Round (Like A Record) and its reworking by Flo Rida, is a routine that has undergone a remix itself, and is all the better for it.

Given that he is nursing a broken foot, thanks to an embarrassing tumble, Jason Manford still proved pretty nimble; and cleverly employed his testicular cancer routine, one that was obviously appropriate for tonight’s cause. The Mancunian's even-tempered timbre is often belied by some sharp asides, for example likening Andy Gray's downfall to his own recent off-screen problems in a way is more deft than it first appears.

Despite a brief Miranda Hart cameo at the end, playing opposite James Corden's Smithy character, this was a solid evening that lacked surprises and fireworks, yet was never in danger of being a non-event.

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I was a contestant in the same competition back in 2001 and knew John Bishop already as he'd been a featured act at the venue a number of times previously. It made me think I had no chance of winning cos he was being unfairly championed. A few months later I went to see a friend perform at a local show and Bishop was on the bill. He spent most of the time poking fun at a member of the audience who I later found out to be me. It wasn't until he came over to apologise that I realised who he'd been referring to. Seeing his face on billboards and photoshopped DVD covers made me wonder how this guy had progressed with an act that borders on comedy. His performance on Live at the Apollo was all about him being on the show before. What a conceited man he is. Phony accent too. Pathetic

Nick, November 2010

I saw the show at Southport theatre and was not very impressed. Twenty minutes material spread out into two plus hours. He used bad language and tried to use the audience to drag the show out a bit longer by asking questions and encouraging them to call out answers, this backfired when he received an answer he did not approve of. His Liverpool accent I thought was a little to contrived so I looked up his origin it read as Runcorn now living in Manchester. I don't think Liverpool people would class Runcorn Cheshire as being in Liverpool.

Liverpool Lou, November 2010

Saw John Bishop in Southport on November 3, he was brilliant, a warm and witty comedian who really engaged with the audience. Unfortunately, in the second half, someone in the front row made some sort of very abusive remark relating to mothers and John found it very hard to recover himself from this, I felt really sorry for him (as I think many of the audience did) and he kept apologising to this guy . It slightly took the edge off for him but he is a great performer and was very popular and well liked by the audience.

Marie, November 2010

Ken and Riera obviously are cuckoo John Bishop is the best thing for a long time. If John Bishop was so rubbish why oh why has he sold out everywhere ? John Bishop is brilliant!

Natalie, October 2010

He is crap: 'Men don't like texting, do they', and so on

arthur seaton, June 2010

Was him in Norwich very funny. My daughter has not stop laughing since

James, April 2010

I forgot to say that in the Cardiff gig (and all his gigs i presume), he talked about television appearances. He explained he didnt like watching himself on tv but did so to see what of his material had been shown, so he could then remove it from his shows. True to his word, every part of the show was fresh to me and i have seen most of his tv appearances.

James, April 2010

Saw John in Cardiff few weeks ago. He was better than i was expecting, and i was already a fan. He was witty, funny and very warm. The gig in question was a re-scheduled date from a january gig which he cancelled. There were only about 200 of us crammed into the bar, very intimate. He apologised for cancelling on us in january and put on a free bar during the interval! Can't argue with that!

James, April 2010

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