Comedy

PREVIEW MUSICAL COMEDY TIM MINCHIN Usher Hall, Edinburgh, Sat 10 Oct; Pavilion Theatre, Glasgow, Sun 11 Oct

I’ve interviewed Tim Minchin several times, but never in the surprisingly big, hairy and hungover flesh before. ‘I’m totally comfortable on stage but I like to appear discomforted and vulnerable because it works with my material. I’m surprised how effectively make-up hides my slightly chunky, not particularly nice to look at . . .’ I protest, but he shrugs and simply says of his kohl-eyed, Tim Burtonesque stage persona: ‘He’s just closer to Johnny Depp than I am basically. And make-up works, that’s why people wear it.’ With a career spanning three continents, the Aussie comedy pianist

has few reasons to be modest. But after experimenting with various musical genres, from campfire song to beat poetry and nu-rave, he’s contemplating making his sound bigger, indeed following Bill Bailey by appearing with a full orchestra, beginning in Australia in 2011. ‘“You Grew on Me” could be amazingly funny and disconcerting with an orchestra and I want to make songs that are genuinely beautiful and then genuinely jarring,’ he says. ‘So I’ll do that, then write a sort of half-hour musical about a hyper-pretentious, massive orchestrated journey of sorts for my character and get a choir.’

He hopes the character and his shows will grow, outlandishly and Dame Edna-like, to keep pace with his burgeoning popularity, and Minchin speaks wistfully about performing in the style of Elvis Costello or Rufus Wainwright, brimming with comic mischief but not necessarily worried about maintaining a constant rate of laughs. Before that, though, comes his biggest challenge to date. Having suggested the adaptation a decade ago, by complete coincidence he’s been commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company to turn Roald Dahl’s Matilda into a musical which is slated to premiere at the end of next year. ‘I couldn’t believe it, this iconic company. The first thing I ever wrote in musical theatre was for Love’s Labour’s Lost, so in a way it’s perfect!’ (Jay Richardson)

58 THE LIST 8–22 Oct 2009

Events are listed by date, then city. Submit listings at least 14 days before publication to comedy@list.co.uk. Listings are compiled by Siân Bevan. ✽✽ Indicates Hitlist entry

Thursday 8

Glasgow DiScOmBoBuLaTe The Arches, 253 Argyle Street, 565 1000. 7.30pm. £4 (£2). Ian MacPherson hosts another verbose outing of the literary/comedy evening. Part of Glasgow Poetry Week. Comedy Corner Bacchus, 80 Glassford Street, 572 0080. 8.30pm. £5 (£3). Compere Bratchy introduces headliner Scott Agnew, with support from Rhona Mackenzie, Stephen Halkett, Will Trimble and David Black. Comedy at the Gram Café Gramofon, 7 King Street, 552 7177. 8.30pm. £5. The comedy night set up by Viv Gee and Rob Kane continues to offer a prime selection of comedians to whet your palate every week. The Thursday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870 600 6055. 8.30pm. £8 (£7; members £4). MC Raymond Mearns and comedians Bernadette Pauley, Martin McAllister and the madness of Ian Cognito and Paul Pirie are all here to cheer up the weekend. Edinburgh FREE Heresy The Jekyll & Hyde, 112 Hanover Street, 225 2022. 9pm. Depravity and jokes combine in the Basement of Doom, held together by Rick Molland. The Thursday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £8 (£7; members £4). Yay! A whole weekend hosted by the most brilliantly cheerful person in comedy: Mrs Barbara Nice. She’s joined by Sandy Nelson, Janice Phayre and Gordon Alexander.

Friday 9

Glasgow Jongleurs Comedy Club Jongleurs, UGC Building, 11 Renfrew Street, 0844 844 0044. 7.30pm. From £12. Local lady Janey Godley tells it how it bloomin’ well is. She’s joined by funny boys Mat Reed, Mark Maier and Andy Askins.

✽✽ Billy Connolly SECC: Clyde Auditorium, Finnieston Quay, 0870 040 4000. 8pm. £27.50–£30. The Big Yin of Scottish stand-up takes a break from all that globe-trotting and acting for a Scottish stand-up tour. A rare chance to see live what made him famous. The Friday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870 600 6055. 8.30pm. £10 (£9; members £5). See Thu 8 for line-up.

Edinburgh Jongleurs Comedy Club Jongleurs, Omni Centre, Greenside Place, 0844 844 0044. 7.30pm. From £11. Brendan Riley, Andy White, Kyle Grooms and Eddy Brimson. They are all comedians. They are all performing in Edinburgh this weekend. That is a lot to have in common. The Friday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £10 (£9; members £5). See Thu 8 for line-up. The Improverts Bedlam Theatre, 11b Bristo Place, 225 9893. 10.30pm. £4 (£3.50). Late night laughter involving much audience participation, drunken revelry and spontaneous comedy games from the troupe.

Saturday 10

Glasgow Jongleurs Comedy Club Jongleurs, UGC Building, 11 Renfrew Street, 0844 844 0044. 7.30pm. From £12. See Fri 9.

✽✽ Billy Connolly SECC: Clyde Auditorium, Finnieston Quay, 0870

040 4000. 8pm. £27.50–£30. See Fri 9. The Saturday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870 600 6055. 9pm. £13. See Thu 8 for line-up.

5 THINGS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW ABOUT. . .

ALISTAIR MCGOWAN 1 McGowan first started impersonating people at school. During an early stage appearance in West Side Story, he went marginally off-script to mimic some of his teachers. 2 He studied English at the University of Leeds, an establishment which has spawned other comedic talents such as Barry Cryer, Dominic Holland, Jeremy Dyson and Mystic Meg. 3 A keen campaigner on green issues, he and Emma Thompson are among the Greenpeace activists who bought land which was earmarked for the third runaway at Heathrow. 4 He has recently recorded a sitcom pilot for Radio 2 alongside Michelle Gomez. The Sharp End is based on a consumer watchdog radio show. 5 All of his amazing impersonations of the English footballing world (Becks, Sven, Motty, Shearer, Kieron Dyer for pity’s sake) appears to have come at some personal cost. He recently admitted that he split from fellow mimic Ronni Ancona over his total obsession with the game, recalling how he’d often go to the theatre with a football programme in his pocket and spend hours analysing attendances on Ceefax. It comes as quite a surprise, then, that he and Ancona have now co-authored a book entitled A Matter of Life and Death Or How to Wean a Man off Football. Which sounds a lot like therapy and/or revenge. (Brian Donaldson) The Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow, Sun 18 Oct.

Edinburgh Jongleurs Comedy Club Jongleurs, Omni Centre, Greenside Place, 0844 844 0044. 6.30pm & 10pm. From £11. See Fri 9.

✽✽ Tim Minchin: Ready for This? Usher Hall, Lothian Road, 228 1155. 7.30pm. £17.50. The shock-haired Aussie music-comedy guy delivers more of his piano-madness goods. See preview, left. The Saturday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £13. See Thu 8 for line-up.

Sunday 11

Glasgow ✽✽ Glasgow Kids Comedy Club The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0870

600 6055. 3–4pm. £3. Live laughs for younger comedy fans. This week Graeme Thomas, Barbara Nice and host Sian Bevan keep it clean for ages 8–12. No under 5s; all kids must be accompanied by an adult.