Comedy club wants to ban punters who can't show they're enjoying the jokes

The owner of London’s Top Secret Comedy Club says he wants to ban audience members who have had Botox.

Mark Rothman says comedians are increasingly complaining about facing a sea  of ‘expressionless’ faces

He told Metro: ‘It can completely ruin the show if the front row is full of people with Botox. Comedians need that crowd communication which is more than just laughter – you need to see the emotion on their faces.

‘Performers are coming straight off stage and saying "what the hell is going on with the crowd?".’

Perhaps in jest he added: ‘We are going to train security into sniffing out Botox as best they can. f people are suspected of having it, we will ask them to make a surprised face. If they do look surprised, we’ll apologise and let them through, but if they can’t do it, then we’ll have to look at alternatives.’

Published: 7 Mar 2025