Comedy

African American Comedians
Sparkling wit is a quality synonymous with the African American community. It comes as no surprise that many legendary comedians hail from this community. Several have used their satire to address deeper issues. Each, with their own unique style, have helped shape stand-up comedy history.

The Conundrum That Is Russell Brand
The British comedian is far from being definable; you either love him or hate him.

D.L. Hughley’s CNN Show Starts Well
Despite obvious nervousness during the show’s debut, D.L. Hughley performed well during the initial run of "D.L. Hughley Breaks the News," though we’re waiting to see what the network’s reaction will be.

List of Famous Comedians
Here is a list of famous comedians who have made us laugh and contributed to the popular genre of comedy!

Types of Comedy
There are several types of comedy that are included under the popular comedy genre. Read on to find out...

New York Comedy Festival is Almost here
The Fifth Annual New York Comedy Festival has expanded to include 26 shows and adds a search for "New York’s Funniest Stand-Up".

Comedy Plays: Congreve and Restoration Comedy
This article is written to introduce very special and important subset of great literature. It also introduces to Congravian comedy.

Classical Comedy Movie given New Life through Black Widows - Mad or Not?
How long did it take for the two grannies to turn the classical comedy movie ‘Arsenic and Old Lace’ into a living nightmare?

The Divine Mockery
Sci-Fi comedy…sort of Douglas Adams with toothache…

Don't Make Me Laugh
Decca Aitkenhead: Women should not be afraid of condemning Wag culture for fear of being called humorless.

Comedy of Manners
This week two internet pioneers made the case for politeness on the web. Tim Dowling got there first, but his campaign against invective left him shocked by what he found.

Stand Up Comedienne - Gagging For A Joke
Why are stand up comediennes the most popular performer at special occasions.

The Kings of Silent Comedy
A look back at the stars of the silent era of movie history which helped to shape the entire future of the film industry.

Strange Brew: Keeping Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Alive
The movie Strange Brew is a delightful comedy about Bob and Doug MacKenzie, the two famous Canadian Brothers that popularized Canada's beer drinking culture. What many fans don't realize, The movie was loosely based on the Shakespeare play, Hamlet, and that Bob and Doug were loosely based on the characters Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

The European Joke
Most of Europe regard Britain as a comedy show. It is also apparent that the British either don't see this or just don't care anymore.

Where Are You, King of Comedy? Sport Needs You
Sport needs characters, writes Harry Pearson, and the reappearance of boxing promoter Don King is long overdue.

The Daily Show is a Must See on Comedy Central
The Daily Show on Comedy Central allows viewers to laugh and learn a bit about current events at the same time. This article covers the benefits the Daily Show has to offer.

Critics Slam 'crass' Comedy Film on Disabled Twins
Farrelly brothers accused of going too far with conjoined brothers caper. A Hollywood film that uses conjoined twins as the subject matter for a slapstick caper has been criticised by disability awareness campaigners for being crass and tasteless.

Sexist and racist but certainly not surreal
Black American's show White Woman represents a fight against political correctness in stand-up comedy. They are questions that can silence a comedy crowd in an instant: "Who do you think is more likely to beat their girlfriend, a white man or a black one?" And: "Which of the two do you think is more likely to sell you drugs?"

Stand up to answer the question: how good are female comics?
New wave of funny women are attempting to overcome pro-male prejudice at Edinburgh's ever-expanding Fringe. They are foul-mouthed, brutish and nasty - and that's just the effete Oxbridge ones. But all may be about to change in the world of the stand-up comedian.

Coming at you
'When it says 'rabbit', does it actually mean bunny rabbit?" This is Jocelyn Jee Esien; she's a comedian, but also quite an unusual woman, who talks to everyone as if they've just been on holiday with her and know exactly what she's on about. The waiter thinks she's just a squeamish girl, and he will be able to get around her with the fat-bonhomie he learned in Italian waiter school.

Stars and slights
Now here's a funny thing. In Britain, our opinion of American politicians has never been any lower. And yet we hold American comedians in incredibly high regard. If there really is a special relationship between Britain and the US, it's got nothing to do with politics, and everything to do with popular culture.

British Comedy Lives on in German Television
Millions will be tuning in tonight to watch a vintage sketch that is unknown in the country of its origin.

Don't Make Me Laugh
There is something depressing about the sight of a British Comedy Awards ceremony. It's like having British football awards, a kind of bleak but plucky way to get a pat on the back for a pursuit that the smallest amount of international comparison will reveal that we suck at.

The joke's on Goebbels - but can it be funny?
A film to be shown on German television tomorrow marks the end of a taboo that has held sway for more than half a century. The film deals with the Third Reich. And it is a comedy.

Beyond compere
Why has no one heard of Ian Cognito? Of course his stage name scarcely helps (talk about tempting fate) but for the best part of a decade, comedy insiders have been saying he's one of the most invigorating live stand-ups in the land - and yet TV still hasn't come calling.

In Dysfunctional Britain, the Office is Now Our Home
Our everyday insecurities are laid bare in TV's latest comedy hit. They are appalling men, each one appaling in his own excruciating way - yet somehow they keep on coming. British television has a knack for producing them at a rate of one or more a decade.

Show me the money
Richard Blackwood does not see himself as part of traditional British comedy - all that Oxbridge twittery and prep-school japes. His destiny lies in America where, he hopes, he will be more respected as a sussed-up raconteur of the street, maybe the next Eddie Murphy. But can his talent match his ambition?

Annalisa Barbieri: Don't make me laugh
The 56th Edinburgh fringe festival is under way, ripe with thousands of comedy acts. At this very thought I tense. Comedy acts, along with anybody saying "Let me tell you a joke", all elicit the exact opposite response to that intended. I do not laugh; I do not want to laugh. It's not that I don't find them funny, often I do.

Throwaway lines (cont)
How could poor Ann "Wacky" Winterton have known that her comedy material wouldn't play? I mean, those "throwing a fellow human being from a moving vehicle" jokes, they're like gold, a guaranteed thigh-slapper every time.