Despite government advice to curb non-essential travel

Comedian Ashley Blaker is to stage a theatre show with no audience this weekend – despite government instructions that non-essential workers should not travel.

While many comics are putting on shows from their own homes, Blaker will drive to the JW3 Jewish community centre in North London on Sunday to perform to rows of empty seats.

But there will be cameras there, broadcasting the show to fans who pay from £5 for a virtual ticket. The sliding scale of pay-what-you-want options on the website goes up to an optimistic £1,000.

When asked about the gig, a spokeswoman for the Department of Health pointed to government guidance which said you should ‘leave the house for very limited purposes’ – food, medicines, and only for work that cannot be done at home.

Blaker told Chortle he was within the guidelines as he could do the show by keeping more than 2m away from other people.

He said:  ‘I will be travelling by car directly door to door and all the social distancing protocols will be adhered to.’

Blaker – an Orthodox Jew who has had his own Radio 4 show – has performed at JW3 six times previously, including a joint show with Muslim comic Imran Yusuf. 

He added: ‘I have seen lots of shows with comedians performing on Zoom from their homes, but I am delighted that Raymond  [Simonson, the venue’s chief executive] and JW3 have given me the opportunity to try something really different.’

Simonson said:’ I could not think of a better person to commission to write and headline our first ever JW3 TV live comedy show. This will be a hilarious and memorable night to lift the spirits.'

Published: 1 Apr 2020