Mr Burns meets Mr Simpson ... and Mr Gittins

March 19th was a night of fluctuating moods. Firstly there was the disappointment that Jon Richardson was unwell. Then came the news that his replacement would be the international comedy powerhouse that is Brendon Burns. Then came the low turnout. But the evening's performances left me with an inane grin that took some time to wipe off.

Lessons learnt from the night are mostly to do with promotion of the comedy club, and there is an intense effort going on to ensure we have as near a full house as possible from here on in!
So, a review of the night is in order I suppose:

First out of the stalls was our MC for the night, making his first appearance since last November, Alan Seaman. Cool and suave as ever, the winner of the Leicester Comedy Festival's lifetime achievement award 2008 proved that life goes on after a lifetime of achievement! He also proved that it's no good trying to hide on the second row of seats.

Brendan Burns then took to the "stage". After a little chat with him before the show (during which he referred to a famous US comedienne, it seemed that this was a man with a talent for the (potentially) offensive. However, the only offensive things in his act were the things that he railed against - vigorously! Common sense and the courage to speak your mind very rarely come together these days in one person. If everyone was as open and honest as Brendan, the tabloids, the Daily Mail and the Daily Express would sell very few papers.
All that makes him sound like he's not funny though. Nothing could be further from the truth. It's little wonder that he's very much in demand, or that he won the Edinburgh Fringe best act in 2007. He's possibly not to everyone's taste, but he certainly got the audience well and truly going for the rest of the night.

After a brief interlude, during which I managed to rustle up some extra audience members, Alan whisked us into the 2nd section, and introduced Dan Spinks.

21 year-old Dan wasn't on the posters, but was the spicy little side dish the curry house throws in for good customers. Part of the LCF Awards Nominated "Unidentified Flying Improv" team, Dan is a former DMU student (just like all the best people, ahem!) with a tremendously deadpan presentation of some well-written, and original, material. He certainly wasn't out of place in amongst the professionals and held his own very well. Definitely has the potential, and personality, to get on.

Next was Junior Simpson. Junior has been doing this for some time now, and has his act off to a T. Possibly a little too mainstream for hardcore fans of offbeat comedy, but his act is polished, professional and very funny...which is what it's all about really. Some of his material might not be as topical as some other comedian's, but he is such a great performer that that doesn't matter. Certainly, the feedback from the audience was that he was top-class.

Then we took another break, and increased the audience size again, ready for Alan to do his third shmooze of the evening, leading into a rapturous welcome for headliner, Brian Gittins.

When he eventually reached the front of the stage, Brian showed us what the owner of a roadside café in Pyecombe can achieve in the world of stand-up comedy. One gentleman in front of me (you know who you are) was wheezing with laughter before Brian had even spoken... And when he did speak - well, I wouldn't like to spoil anything for you if you haven't seen him before.
I would implore anyone to go and watch Brian at the soonest possible opportunity, before he gets too big. This really is a character worth watching, and I would imagine there is considerable scope for a huge repertoire. You can almost hear the cogs clunking as Brian tries to work out how to be funny and/or entertaining. I've never seen anything like it, and I doubt if many people have, to be honest. I'll never hear the hokey cokey again without a smile. Or Spandau Ballet for that matter.

That rounded off an excellent night that over-ran till 11.15...again!

Next month (see below) promises to be an absolute belter, and I can confirm that the rumoured extra act is definitely coming. So that makes an MC, a headliner, and 4 supporting comedians - all for £8. You don't get value like that every day.

April 9th Line-up

This line-up has remained static for about 4 weeks now, so it should go ahead as planned, I reckon!

• Matt Hollins - The night's headliner, as former winner of the Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year (2004), a title that has also been awarded to the likes of Johnny Vegas, Mitch Benn, Jason Manford and Rhod Gilbert. Matt's style has been described as mixing a range of original subject, off the wall stories and puns. I met him a couple of weeks ago, and he's a very nice chap too.
• Okse - Our MC for the evening runs, and hosts, a comedy club in Leamington. Loads of experience with over 5 years of stand-up work, with a reputation fro being a likeable and popular guy. A fantastic storyteller with a world of imagination and humour and, of course, a great MC!
• Rob Gee - Some of you will recognise Rob as the tall half of Rob & SKatz, who headlined here back in January. His solo work is driven by his phenomenal ability as a performance poet ("but don't worry, he's not sh*t", said Jimmy Carr). Definitely one to look forward to for something rather special, and a little different I would imagine.
• Ben Davids - Ben has been on the comedy scene for several years, and has an incredibly well-written blog at http://therealbendavids.blogspot.com/. His stand-up work is of an equally high standard, delivered in a laid-back style.
• Johnny Sorrow - What can be said of Johnny "Showaddywaddy" Sorrow. According to his facebook page, "Depending on who you ask Johnny "Showaddywaddy" Sorrow is possibly the Greatest or Worst comic turn you`ve never seen! " A Black Country legend in the making, whose career has been blighted by misfortune. As Johnny himself says, "It's not all about laughter".

Rumour has it that there may be an extra act on the night, of top-drawer quality, but that's not quite 100% confirmed as yet, so just come along and see for yourselves. Only £8 for 5 (possibly 6) comedians...2.5 hours of laughter...one night of delicious comedy...only a fool (or a black horse) would miss it!

March 19th - Update

Following intense negotiations, this is the line-up for March 19th 2009

• Jon Richardson - Winner of the 2008 Chortle Breakthrough Act Award and one of the most in-demand young artists on the comedy circuit, Jon has supported Alan Carr on his national tour. You may also recognise him from his BBC 6 Music show every Sunday morning.
• Junior Simpson - Since appearing on the comedy scene, Luton’s lapsed choirboy Junior Simpson quickly established himself as a true “tour de force” as a live performer as well as a highly sought after and regular face on television having performed all over the world, including Australia, the Far East, Canada and Europe.
• Brian Gittins - Brian, 42, is a roadside café owner from Pyecombe. A couple of the café's regulars have said he's 'quite funny', so he's been attempting to make it in the world of comedy for a while now. His quirky, awkward, but painfully entertaining style has recently seen him support Ricky Gervais in London.

Here's what others have said about them:

• Brian Gittins: "a true original, and breathtakingly funny with it" - The Guardian
• Brian Gittins: "Brilliantly funny" - Ricky Gervais
• Junior Simpson: "is funny" - Lenny Henry
• Junior Simpson: "energetic and hilarious" - Listed Magazine
• Jon Richardson: "terrific" - The Scotsman
• Jon Richardon: "I'll smack his arse if he gets any funnier. More than talented" - Jim Bowen

In addition to the refulgent main line-up, the MC for the night will be Leicestershire's own Alan Seaman, known to many as the host of Leicester's "Ship of Fools" comedy club.