August 15, 2007
"Stand-up must be a very hard thing to do"
that's what our motley crew of comedy-goers kept saying last night, "you've got to admire them for having the guts to get up there."
Well, quite. But I don't have to admire them for being funny. They weren't.
I've been to a fair amount of stand-up in my life. I wouldn't say I'm an expert, but I once made Eddie Izzard apoplectic with rage when I pretended to be a Swede who didn't understand him (I love you, Eddie, really) and I do like a laugh.
I didn't do a huge amount of that at the Laughing Horse last night, though.
Sure, I admire the guts of the men and one woman who stood up in front of the audience and I accept that we might have been a tough bunch to please, but as Bood said, "Alexei Sayle would have won us over..."
I thought that one half of the Ham Yard Tourists was funny (in the spirit of the act, I won't say which half) and there was a Geordie whose jokes were OK - hotly disputed by others in our group, but I reckon that's partly because his accent was so thick and they had a hard time following him.
One boring thing I have noticed over the years is the number of comedians who, either because they are struggling with a tough audience (maybe I'm the common denominator?) or simply because their material is weak, fall back on being rude and/or swearing for comic effect.
It doesn't work. I can swear. Really, I can. I can swear quite effectively, but I try not to because profanity in itself isn't funny.
I concede that picking on members of the audience can get a few laughs, but they're pretty hollow because it's the same sort of laugh that you hear from the bully's sidekick in a schoolyard.
Hats off to Nessie Flange for trying to engage with the audience rather than just insulting us. The rest of our group thought there was lots of potential in this character. Maybe.
Yesterday's show won't stop me from going to stand-up, but I'm glad the friend I invited last night couldn't make it.
Still, you've got to admire them for having the guts to get up there.
Posted by dompannell at August 15, 2007 7:11 AM