Comic Details

Paul Merton

Date Of Birth: 17/01/1957

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Reviews

Comedy Store Players 25th anniversary show
Live Review

Comedy Store Players 25th anniversary show
Twenty-five years the Comedy Store Players have been going; and you’ll be hard-pressed to think of many credible improv groups that have sprung up in all that time – not counting those which boast the same members.

For no one else makes it look as easy as they do. A quarter-century of honed ad-lib skills and professional camaraderie make them unassailable. With much improvised comedy, especially the student collectives that spring up every Edinburgh Fringe, the laughs come from seeing them struggle for words and jokes.

But not with the Players. There are a few minor stumbles, but it can be as slick as any scripted show. In fact, it often takes one of them to deliberately put a spanner in the works – and Paul Merton is always the prime candidate for this – to remind the audience that it is unscripted after all. People do tend to be surprisingly sceptical about the authenticity of improv, especially when it’s as apparently effortless as this.

The games never change – and many will be familiar from Whose Line Is It Anyway? – but their direction does. Sure, the same suggestions come up – there are only so many film and theatre styles; and the team must be so bored of people yelling ‘dildo’ as a household object that it’s graciously batted away – but making it seamlessly funny is a tall order.

Yet many of the scenes here – especially in the quickfire game in which contestants can yell ‘freeze’ then replace one of the actors on stage, assuming the same physical stance – are snappy one-liners any writer would be rightly proud of. But after tonight, a night just like any other for the Players despite the occasion, they will evaporate into the ether; as will the extended musical playlet about a Chaucerian badger-farmer’s wife (the loosest item of the night); the hyrda-headed explanation of monkfish lacrosse, and the incomprehensible Spanish expert on chorizo and marriage.

It helps that they can read each other so well after all these years of course, taking over well-defined roles in the group. Neil Mullarkey is the de facto leader, the upper-middle class bloke whose control freaky becomes a running joke; Merton’s the disruptive child (at one point pulling down the Comedy Store sign); Andy Smart, looking like a bedraggled Top Gear presenter, brings bold, larger-than-life performance to contrast with more restrained, but deceptively sharp-witted, everyman of Lee Simpson. Richard Vranch is more precise, contributing pithy one-liners as well as musical accompaniment when needed – which is where the unfeasibly talented Josie Lawrence comes in to her own, generating quick-witted lyrics in any style, belying her usual delightfully bewildered persona.

This show will run and run…

Date of live review: Monday 1st Nov, '10
Review by Steve Bennett
Paul Merton's Silent Clowns
Paul Merton's Silent Clowns

Show - Edinburgh Fringe 2006 -
Comedy Store's 30th Anniversary Charity Gala
Comedy Store's 30th Anniversary Charity Gala

Show - Misc live shows -
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Comments

I saw Paul Merton and his Impro Chums 12th June in Brighton and they were awesome. The jokes were really off the cuff and really funny! A must to all comedy fans, You simply cannot beat Improv Comedy!!! Paul is simply a fantastic comedian and it shows in his shows, I am still laughing at the sketches the team did....... ;)

Tracey Baker, June 2010


He seems to be the Lone Ranger of comedy; he turns up, does his thing, then disappears (for a week at least). To continue the cowboy motif he is the fastest gunslinger (improviser) and.... well that's all I've got on that. But he is consistently funny, his sketch show was marvellous and long may he continue to make us laugh.

Billy, June 2010


How can Paul Merton only have one comment on this site? I've only ever seen him on TV but he is amazing.

JLA, August 2009


The word genius is so often banded about these days but there is no disputing that Paul Merton is worthy of that title. If you've only seen him on Have I Got News For You or Room 101 then you've only seen a fraction of his talent. When he performs with the Comedy Store Players on Sunday nights at The Comedy Store, he is on fire.

Gareth Lewis, January 2007




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Where can I see Paul Merton next?

Where can I see Paul Merton next?

Recommended
20:00 - Sunday 26th Feb, '12
Venue: Comedy Store
Prices: £17 (£12 concs)
Show: The Comedy Store Players
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Sunday 4th Mar, '12
Venue: Comedy Store
Prices: £17 (£12 concs)
Info: Paul Merton, Neil Mullarkey, Lee Simpson, Richard Vranch, Suki Webster, Josie Lawrence
Show: The Comedy Store Players
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Sunday 11th Mar, '12
Venue: Comedy Store
Prices: £17 (£12 concs)
Info: Paul Merton, Lee Simpson, Neil Mullarkey, Richard Vranch, Andy Smart, Josie Lawrence
Show: The Comedy Store Players
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Wednesday 14th Mar, '12
Venue: Nottingham Royal Centre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
20:00 - Monday 19th Mar, '12
Venue: Liverpool Empire
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Tuesday 20th Mar, '12
Venue: Llandudno Venue Cymru
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
20:00 - Friday 23rd Mar, '12
Venue: Eastbourne Congress Theatre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Saturday 24th Mar, '12
Venue: Guildford G Live
Prices: £24 (£21 concs)
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Sunday 25th Mar, '12
Venue: Blackpool Grand
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
19:30 - Monday 26th Mar, '12
Venue: Perth Concert Hall & Theatre
Prices: £20
Show:
Show starts: 19:30 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
19:30 - Tuesday 27th Mar, '12
Venue: Glasgow Pavilion Theatre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 19:30 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Friday 30th Mar, '12
Venue: Dunstable Grove Theatre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Saturday 31st Mar, '12
Venue: Southampton Guildhall
Prices: £23
Show:
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
19:30 - Sunday 1st Apr, '12
Venue: Yeovil Octagon Theatre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 19:30 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
20:00 - Monday 2nd Apr, '12
Venue: Torquay Princess Theatre
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
Tuesday 3rd Apr, '12
Venue: Weston-super-Mare Playhouse
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
20:00 - Friday 6th Apr, '12
Venue: Watford Colosseum
Prices: £21 to £24
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
20:00 - Saturday 7th Apr, '12
Venue: Birmingham Alexandra Theatre
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
Sunday 8th Apr, '12
Venue: Richmond Theatre
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
Monday 9th Apr, '12
Venue: Dartford Orchard Theatre
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
Tuesday 10th Apr, '12
Venue: Leicester De Montfort Hall
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Friday 13th Apr, '12
Venue: Southend Cliffs Pavilion
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
Saturday 14th Apr, '12
Venue: Northampton Royal & Derngate
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
Sunday 15th Apr, '12
Venue: Cardiff Wales Millennium Centre
Prices: £21 to £24
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
20:00 - Monday 16th Apr, '12
Venue: Oxford New Theatre
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Tuesday 17th Apr, '12
Venue: Swindon Wyvern Theatre
Prices: £24
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Wednesday 18th Apr, '12
Venue: Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Friday 20th Apr, '12
Venue: Brighton Dome
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Saturday 21st Apr, '12
Venue: Kings Lynn Corn Exchange
Prices: £24 (£21 concs)
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
Monday 23rd Apr, '12
Venue: Ipswich Regent
Prices: £23 (£20 concs)
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
19:30 - Tuesday 24th Apr, '12
Venue: Canterbury Marlowe Theatre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 19:30 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Friday 27th Apr, '12
Venue: Bournemouth Pavilion Theatre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
19:30 - Saturday 28th Apr, '12
Venue: High Wycombe Swan
Prices: £24 (£21 concs)
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 19:30 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
Sunday 29th Apr, '12
Venue: Woking New Victoria Theatre
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Monday 30th Apr, '12
Venue: Tunbridge Wells Assembly Hall
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
Tuesday 1st May, '12
Venue: New Wimbledon Theatre
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
20:00 - Friday 4th May, '12
Venue: York Grand Opera House
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
Saturday 5th May, '12
Venue: Cambridge Corn Exchange
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Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
20:00 - Sunday 6th May, '12
Venue: Wolverhampton Grand Theatre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
19:30 - Monday 7th May, '12
Venue: Buxton Opera House
Prices: £21 and £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 19:30 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
Tuesday 8th May, '12
Venue: Croydon Fairfield Halls
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
20:00 - Friday 11th May, '12
Venue: St Albans Alban Arena
Prices: £23 (£20 concs)
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Saturday 12th May, '12
Venue: Halifax Victoria Theatre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
19:30 - Sunday 13th May, '12
Venue: Salford Lowry
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 19:30 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
20:00 - Monday 14th May, '12
Venue: Nottingham Royal Centre
Prices: £23
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
Tuesday 15th May, '12
Venue: Peterborough The Cresset
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
20:00 - Friday 18th May, '12
Venue: Coventry Warwick Arts Centre
Prices: £23 (£20 concs)
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
20:00 - Saturday 19th May, '12
Venue: Newcastle Journal Tyne Theatre
Prices: £20 and £23
Show:
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
Sunday 20th May, '12
Venue: Stoke-on-Trent Regent Theatre
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
Monday 21st May, '12
Venue: Sheffield Lyceum Theatre
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
Wednesday 23rd May, '12
Venue: Swansea Grand Theatre
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Recommended
20:00 - Thursday 24th May, '12
Venue: Truro Hall For Cornwall
Prices: £23 and £25
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
20:00 - Friday 25th May, '12
Venue: Bristol Colston Hall
Prices: £23 (£20 concs)
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
Show starts: 20:00 (Doors open approx 30 mins earlier)
Recommended
Saturday 26th May, '12
Venue: Chatham Central Theatre
Prices: Call for prices
Show: Paul Merton's Out Of My Head
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