Comedy
The Saturday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £15. See Thu 7 for line-up. Jekyll & Hyde Comedy Club The Jekyll & Hyde, 112 Hanover Street, 225 2022. 9.30pm. £8 (£6). See Sat 25. Sunday 10 Glasgow Michael Redmond’s Sunday Service The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £1). Everyone’s favourite Sunday comedy uncle hosts a chilled out evening featuring Gary Little, Jim Park, Jay Lafferty and John O’Brien. Edinburgh FREE Whose Lunch Is It Anyway? The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 1.30pm. See Sun 26. The Sunday Night Laugh-In The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £1). A delicious blend of music and comedy from Sandy Nelson,
with Michael Manley, Phil O’Shea and Mickey Anderson. Hosted by your favourite host and ours, Sian Bevan. Monday 11
Edinburgh The Beehive Comedy Club Newbees Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8pm. £2 (£1). See Mon 27. Fit O’ The Giggles Out With the Old City Café, 19 Blair Street, 220 0125. 8.30–10.30pm. £3 (£2). See Mon 27. Red Raw The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £2. A buffet of new talent, served up by Stuart Murphy.
Tuesday 12 Glasgow Red Raw The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £2. Ushering in the newbies is old hand Billy ‘The Hair’ Kirkwood.
PREVIEW STAND-UP HANNAH GADSBY The Stand, Edinburgh, Tue 5 Jul; The Stand, Glasgow, Wed 6–Sat 9 Jul
There’s not one single route, rhyme or reason for people to take their first plunge into stand-up comedy, but how many have grasped the mic because of a farmyard accident? That’s right, surely only Hannah Gadsby. ‘I was planting trees in a drought-stricken area and the ground was very tough,’ recalls the Tasmanian-born comic. ‘A piece of machinery I was using backfired and tore my wrist up so I had to have all the bones fused and ligaments repaired. There were lots of plates and screws and bone grafts there. Not to have a functioning right hand was tough and it was all floppy, painfully floppy too; it wasn’t even a rubber party-trick hand. It took about a full year and three lots of surgery for it to heal properly.’
Allowing that trauma to ponder just what life was all about, Gadsby decided she’d enter a comedy competition which, lo and behold, she won. A second place in the 2006 So You Think You’re Funny Awards and a Barry Nomination for this year’s show, Mrs Chuckles (which she’s bringing to the Fringe in August alongside a comedic analysis of the Virgin Mary as represented in art, entitled Mary, Contrary) has kept her competitive edge burning.
And as a helpful contributor to her Wiki page has pointed out, it can all be put down to her dysfunctional parents. ‘If they ever read that, they’d be a bit upset,’ counters Gadsby. ‘In the scheme of things, they’re raised five functioning kids. Well, four functioning kids and me. So they’re no more dysfunctional than the next person, but as soon as you look beneath the surface of any person, they look dysfunctional. As I become a fully functioning adult, I can see the method in their madness. But don’t get me wrong, they’re still idiots.’ (Brian Donaldson)
58 THE LIST 23 Jun–21 Jul 2011
Edinburgh Electric Tales The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £4 (£3). A blended mix of comedy and storytelling with the sole aim of cheering you up.
Wednesday 13
Glasgow The Fun Junkies The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £5 (£4; members £2.50). The new show from the How Do I Get Up There? sketch boys hosted by Des Clarke. Expect a magical weirdness. Edinburgh Melting Pot The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £5 (£4; members £2.50). Local writers come up with fresh comedy nuggets which are then performed by a troupe of actors. Vote for your favourite and ensure the future of the country.
Thursday 14
Glasgow The Thursday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £8 (£7; members £4). Surreality from be- quiffed Canadian Tony Law, with Mark Nelson, Joe Rowntree and Elaine Malcolmson. Hosted by Joe Heenan. Edinburgh The Thursday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £8 (£7; members £4). Dougie Dunlop shares his take on the world, with Andy Sir, Marcel Lucont and Ben Verth. Hosted by Susan Calman.
Friday 15
Glasgow ✽✽ Foster’s Comedy Live @ highlight Highlight, UGC Building,
11 Renfrew Street, 0844 844 0044. 8.30pm. £12–£15. Visual humour from Phil Butler, Tom Deacon and Wayne Deakin. The Friday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £10 (£9; members £5). See Thu 14 for line-up. Jongleurs Comedy Show Jongleurs, The Glasshouse, 20 Glassford Street, 0870 011 1960. 8.30pm. £15. Raymond Mearns’ boisterous style is joined by John Ryan’s wit and Des Clarke.
Edinburgh The Beehive Comedy Club Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8.30pm. £4–£7. See Fri 24. Foster’s Comedy Live @ highlight Highlight, Omni Centre, Greenside Place, 0844 844 0044. 9pm. £10–£13. Sharp observations from Gary Little with Canada’s fierce Dana Alexander and Steve Harris. The Friday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £10 (£9; members £5). See Thu 14 for line-up.
Saturday 16
Glasgow ✽✽ Foster’s Comedy Live @ highlight Highlight, UGC Building,
11 Renfrew Street, 0844 844 0044. 8.30pm. £12–£15. See Fri 15 for line-up, plus Smug Roberts. Jongleurs Comedy Show Jongleurs, The Glasshouse, 20 Glassford Street, 0870 011 1960. 8.30pm. £15. See Fri 15. The Saturday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 9pm. £9. See Thu 14 for line-up.
Edinburgh The Beehive Comedy Club Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8.30pm. £4–£7. See Fri 24. Foster’s Comedy Live @ highlight Highlight, Omni Centre, Greenside Place, 0844 844 0044. 9pm. £10–£13. See Fri 15. The Saturday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £15. See Thu 14 for line-up.
Jekyll & Hyde Comedy Club The Jekyll & Hyde, 112 Hanover Street, 225 2022. 9.30pm. £8 (£6). See Sat 25. Sunday 17
Glasgow Michael Redmond’s Sunday Service The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £1). Mark Nelson keeps his dark humour on the lighter side of macabre, with Joe Rowntree, Keara Murphy and Mark Davies. Edinburgh FREE Whose Lunch Is It Anyway? The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 1.30pm. See Sun 26. The Sunday Night Laugh-In The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £6 (£5; members £1). The laconic French wit of Marcel Lucont with Niall Browne, Ben Verth and Garry Dobson. JoJo Sutherland hosts.
Monday 18
Glasgow Improv Wars The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £4 (members £2). See Mon 4. Edinburgh The Beehive Comedy Club Newbees Beehive Inn, 18 Grassmarket, 225 7171. 8pm. £2 (£1). See Mon 27. Fit O’ The Giggles Out With the Old City Café, 19 Blair Street, 220 0125. 8.30–10.30pm. £3 (£2). See Mon 27. Red Raw The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £2. It’s a whimsical pair shepherding the new kids on stage tonight: James Mullinger and Sian Bevan.
Tuesday 19
Glasgow Red Raw The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £2. Observations from James Mullinger and Stuart Murphy. Edinburgh Jo Caulfield’s Comedy Collective The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £5 (£4). Jo Caulfield hosts an evening of experimental stand-up from Edinburgh’s finest including Vladimir McTavish, Tom Stade, Jojo Sutherland, and Sian Bevan as Myfannwy.
Wednesday 20
Glasgow Benefit in Aid of Yorkhill Children’s Foundation The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £7 (£5). A night of laughter and love in aid of Yorkhill. Edinburgh Benefit in Aid of Gay Men’s Health The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 8.30pm. £10. With a line-up including the observational rants of Bruce Devlin.
Thursday 21
Glasgow Q-Fusion Improv Highlight, UGC Building, 11 Renfrew Street, 0844 844 0044. 8pm. £4. Throw your craziest ideas at the troupe and they com up with fast- paced sketches, songs and jokes. The Thursday Show The Stand, 333 Woodlands Road, 0844 335 8879. 8.30pm. £8 (£7; members £4). Observational humour from Dougie Dunlop, with Greg Cook, Teddy and Fern Brady, and Scott Agnew hosting. Edinburgh The Thursday Show The Stand, 5 York Place, 558 7272. 9pm. £8 (£7; members £4). With Noel James veering between droll and lunacy, deadpan one-liners from Mark Bratchpiece, Rebecca Donohue and Gus Lymburn, ably hosted by Bruce Devlin.