Overnight success isn't the real story
Marc Blake on the reality of stand-up
23/02/2012 … A month ago I was approached by a PR company to ‘train’ five journalists who had never performed before to each do a five-minute set for the Dave channel at…
Latest Opinions
Chortle's Opinions section is an arena for fans to share their views on any aspect of comedy.
We invite general comment pieces about particular aspects of the comedy scene (although reviews of individual shows or performers tend not to be suited to this section except in very rare circumstances). Contributions should be at least 500 words in length, in a similar tone to something you might read in a broadsheet newspaper, and emailed to steve@chortle.co.uk
We reserve the right to edit pieces – although we will be careful not to change the meaning of anything – or not to use them at all. By submitting an article you grant Chortle indefinite licence to use it freely; though you retain the copyright on it to use it elsewhere.
Thu 23 February 2012
Wed 22 February 2012
Don't read the reviews!
They won’t always give your spirits a lift, says Al Cowie
22/02/2012 … I believe it was Andy Warhol who said ‘don't read the reviews, count the column inches’ The debate about whether or not to read my own reviews hadn't been one…
It's not who you are, but who you know
Paul Rickets wonders whether comedy really is a meritocracy
22/02/2012 … I am going to start off this article by saying this is NOT a competition.
Tue 21 February 2012
Good for its age?
Chris Hallam wonders why some comedies date better than others
21/02/2012 … Why does some comedy date so much worse than others?Why, for example, is the groundbreaking Fifties radio series The Goon Show now almost entirely incomprehensible…
Healthy mockery... or barely-disguised racism?
Hartley Pool on the comedy scene in Malaysia
21/02/2012 … At a nightclub in the heart of Kuala Lumpur, Tyneside-educated local Kavin Jay jokes about his size and improvises well with a crowd of 350, lapsing in and out of…
Mon 20 February 2012
Competition, schmompetition
Taylor Glenn dislikes comedy's competitive side
20/02/2012 … Nope, this isn't about comedy competitions, it's about comic competition.
Journalism for clowns
20/02/2012 … So it was last week when Bonzo – head of the talky clowns union and editor of the Daily Chuckle called me into his office.
Fri 17 February 2012
Stop press: There's more to stand-up than a single gig
Matt Price takes issue with 'have-a-go' hacks
17/02/2012 … Of all the comedy cliches that exist, I never thought that journalists having a go at ‘a bit of stand-up’ would be one.