There's more than one Fringe in this week's live comedy picks

The week ahead in live comedy.

Sunday July 30

LONDON: Russell Brand’s been touring his latest show, Re;Birth, about how fatherhood has changed him, for several months now. But tonight’s special as it’s being performed at the Regents Park Open Air Theatre. And the forecast is for no rain, too.

BRISTOL:  Sticking to outdoor gigs, Bristol Zoo hosts its annual Giggle night tonight, with a line-up that includes Ed Gamble, Steve Bugeja, Matt Forde and Mark Olver.

DERBY: Bar One hosts its last all-dayer of Edinburgh previews… and let’s face it if the shows aren’t ready by now, there’s very little time to fix them. Giving their hours one last run-through, from 2pm, are the likes of  Howard Read, Ian D Montfort and Patrick Monahan.

Monday July 31

LONDON: The Camden Fringe starts tonight, with more than 900 performances of 270 or so shows, across all artistic disciplines. For openers, how about The Bill Murray, which hosts stand-up Chris Stokes at 6.30pm then character comedy as award-winner  Jasper Cromwell Jones (aka Joe Bor, pictured above) introduces an alternative book festival featuring other characters at 8pm.

Tuesday August 1

SWANSEA: Russell Howard’s Round The World tour has done what the title said, with gigs in Australia across last month. Now it returns to the UK to wind down with a couple of nights at the Grand tonight, and a couple more at the Brighton Dome on Saturday and Sunday.

Wednesday August 2

EDINBURGH: We think something comedy-related starts today… more details to follow.

Friday August 4

YORK: The Hyena Lounge hosts a strong stand-up bill tonight, with pun king Gary Delaney, the charming whimsy of Tom Wrigglesworth and skilled crowdpleaser Andre Vincent. Delaney and Wrigglesworth are back tomorrow, too.

SALFORD: If you like comedy and mixed martial arts, Brendan Schaub could be for you. The former UFC fighter, and host of The Big Brown Breakdown podcast is also a stand-up... and will be at the Lowry tonight, then the Sugar Club in Dublin for the next three nights.

Saturday August 5

SOUTHPORT: The Atkinson hosts an appealing mixture of talents, with old-school entertainer in a young-man’s-body  Jack Carroll, the domestic observations of Michael McIntyre writer  Paul Tonkinson and musical fun and games with Rob Deering.

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Published: 30 Jul 2017