COMEDY LISTINGS - June/July 2013 Bumper Summer Edition!

Whether you like it or not, summer's here, and that means it's Edinburgh preview season here in Leicester. Bottle Rocket are putting on the usual fine selection of previews at Firebug, which include Nick Helm, Pat Cahill, Chris Stokes and a DLCF2013 Winners' Special featuring Romesh Ranganathan (Best Show) and Brett Goldstein (Best New Show). The Cookie Jar also hosts a strong selection of preview shows from the likes of Andrew Lawrence, Paul Foot, Paul Chowdry and Seann Walsh.

COMEDY LISTINGS - MAY 2013

It's May! The sun is out and there's a distinct whiff of summer in the air, but for how long??? The answer - I DON'T CARE - this isn't a blog about the fricking weather, you know. It's about comedy and there's positively oodles of it coming up this month, as the new season really kicks into gear and we start to edge towards Edinburgh preview territory.

Andrew Lawrence is Coming to Get You. Yes, you.

So you've got your telly faves Andy Parsons, Micky Flanagan and Julian Clary at De Mont, but the ones I'm really looking forward to this month are Andrew Lawrence on the 5th and the awesome line-up for Set List on the 14th (both at JTT), as well as Scott Bennett and Anthony King at the Looking Glass, and another cracking line-up from Bottle Rocket on the 18th. Always worth seeing the circuit's only occultist metal transvestite comic Andrew O'Neill too. Don't forget Handmade Festival at the end of the month, which features some top comedians as well as lots of music, film and art across several venues.
Anyhoo, that's just my baboon-headed opinion - take a look at the full line-up for yourselves...

COMEDY LISTINGS - APRIL 2013

Hello there you lot. Hope you all had a good March - and by 'good' I mean I hope you didn't actually freeze to death. I admit I didn't go to see much comedy last month (with the exception of the last ever Lions Eat Ice Cream, during which I made my performance debut as the chief baker at 'Leicester Comedy Scone'). This 'month off' has given my sense of humour a much-needed break after the festival and also allowed me to sorting my work/life balance out, meaning I should now be able to devote more time to watching and writing about comedy - hurray!

So let's start with April's listings, which include solo shows from cheeky Londoner Micky Flanagan, one-of-a-kind mime/prop man The Boy With Tape On His Face and everyone's favourite grumpy American Rich Hall. Adam Buxton returns with his music/video/comedy show 'Bug' and The Criterion hosts the first outing of brand new improv group The Same Faces. Also, don't forget there's still time to enter our awesome three-in-one ticket competition, in which you can win tickets for Zoe Lyons etc on the 6th, Barbara Nice/Mae Martin on the 9th and four tickets to any Fri/Sat show in April at Just the Tonic, with free booze thrown in for good measure! The closing date is midday on Wednesday 3rd, so don't delay - click here to enter today!

Thu 4th - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic
Fri 5th - Steve Royle, Chris Mayo, Mark Maier, Pierre Hollins @ Loughborough Town Hall
Fri 5th / Sat 6th - Mark Maier, Pierre Hollins, Debra-Jane Appelby, Ben Van Der Velde @ Just the Tonic
Sat 6th - Zoe Lyons, Ed Gamble, Paul McCaffrey, Ian Smith @ The Y
Mon 8th - Al Murray @ Loughborough Town Hall

Tue 9th - Barbara Nice, Mae Martin, Maureen Younger @ Duffy's Bar
Tue 9th - Adam Buxton: BUG @ Phoenix Square

Tue 9th - The Reduced Shakespeare Company @ Loughborough Town HallThu 11th - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic
Fri 12th - Markus Birdman, Mandy Muden, Ben Schofield, Spiky Mike @Market Harborough RUFCFri 12th / Sat 13th -  Johnny Candon, Andrew Bird, Liam Mullone, Matt Richardson @ Just the Tonic
Wed 18th - Nibbles with Giggles @ Entropy
Thu 18th - The Boy With Tape On His Face @ Just the Tonic
Fri 19th / Sat 20th - John Robins, Will Franken, Geoff Norcott, Romesh Ranganathan @ Just the Tonic
Sat 20th - Rob Rouse, Tony Jameson, Nick Doody, Rhys Matthewson @ The Y
Sat 20th - UFI: Unidentified Flying Improv @ The Looking Glass
Sat 20th - Maff Brown, Martin Beaumont, Joe Rowntree @ Lutterworth Piano RoomSun 21st - Micky Flanagan @ De Montfort Hall
Sun 21st - Should I Stay or Should I Go? @ Kayal
Wed 24th - Antony King - Not Normal @ The Guildhall
Thu 25th - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic
Thu 25th - Rich Hall @ De Montfort Hall
Fri 26th - Ivan Brackenbury, Dylan Rhymer, Ian D Montford, Darrell Martin @ Just the Tonic
Sat 27th - Hormonal Housewives @ De Montfort Hall
Sat 27th - The Same Faces @ The Criterion
Sat 27th - Ivan Brackenbury, Dylan Rhymer, Marlon Davis, Darrell Martin @ Just the Tonic
Mon 29th - The Raymond & Mr Timpkins Revue, Romesh Ranganathan, Anthony King, Dave Twentyman @ Sileby Conservative Club

As usual, let me know if you want to add anything to the list, by email, on the facebook page or on twitter.
Toodle-pip!

WIN TWO TICKETS to see RUSSELL KANE at De Montfort Hall

Okeydokey, we've got another fantastic ticket competition for you comedy-lovin' folk, and it's a biggie!

Russell Kane, the strutting, metrosexual star of Britain Unzipped and Live at The Electric, is coming to De Montfort Hall on 20th February as part of Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival, and Leicester Comedy Scene has two tickets to give away courtesy of the kind folks at Avalon Entertainment Ltd!

Of his latest live show, entitled Posturing Delivery, Russell says: "What if I’m one of the guys who never has a baby? Why is this not a 'male subject'? I plan to give birth, live on stage, then raise it - in front of you. Come along!"

WIN TWO TICKETS TO THE OFFICIAL FESTIVAL PREVIEW SHOW!!

I told you I had free stuff to give away!

Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival is now only 34 days away from exploding into life, but before that we are being treated to the tantalising aperitif that is the official Festival Preview Show at De Montfort Hall next Friday. And because they love you so much, YES YOU, the festival bigwigs have kindly allowed me to give away a pair of tickets to this fantastic event, which features snippets of all kinds of shows from next month's festival, and is generally regarded as one of the year's best nights out in Leicester - Damn you're lucky!

JANUARY COMEDY LISTINGS

So the world didn't end. Did you seriously think it would? Come on...
No, I'm afraid we've got to do it all over again. Another January back to work, still hung over from New Year's Eve, still skint from Christmas with about four hundred weeks to go 'til next payday. Or maybe that's just me. Anyway, don't mind me - I'm just a little grumpy due to lack of nicotine. Thankfully there is a bright side to all this 'inevitable march of time' business, for a new year means a new month, and that means a brand spanking new set of comedy listings for you to peruse - hurray!

The big event this month has to be the festival preview show at De Montfort Hall on Friday 11th, hosted by Phoenix Nights' Dave Spikey, with acts Piff the Magic Dragon, Pat Cahill and Suzi Ruffell confirmed so far, with the Other Preview Show happening on the same night night over at Chutney Ivy, hosted by Ed Gamble with Gareth Richards, Angela Barnes and Joel Dommett with more to be confirmed. And keep your eyes peeled on Facebook and Twitter over the next few days and weeks, because I've got some FREE TICKETS to give away!!!

Tue 8th - Laughing Calves feat Maureen Younger @ The Red Tent

Fri 11th  - Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival Preview Show @ De Montfort Hall

Fri 11th - The Other Preview Show @ Chutney Ivy

Fri 11th/Sat 12th - Roger Monkhouse, Junior Simpson, Julian Deane @ Just the Tonic

Tue 15th - Lions Eat Ice Cream: Dr Ettrick-Hogg Takeover @ Looking Glass

Tue 15th - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic

Wed 16th - Nibbles with Giggles feat Ben Hustwayte and Hannah Silvester @ Entropy

Fri 18th / Sat 19th - Phil Kay, Gordon Southern, Jen Brister, Darrell Martin @ Just the Tonic

Mon 21st - The Mitford Sisters @ The Cookie Jar

Tue 22nd - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic

Thu 24th - Unidentified Flying Improv @ Just the Tonic

Thu 24th - Should I Stay Or Should I Go? @ Kayal

Fri 25th / Sat 26th - Dave Johns, Pat Burtscher, Mandy Knight @ Just the Tonic

Tue 29th - Lions Eat Ice Cream: Festival Sampler @ Looking Glass

Tue 29th - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic

There you have it - email, tweet, prod, shout or throw things at me if I've missed anything off. Christ knows what I'm going to do for listings next month - there's over 500 shows on! Tell you what - pick yourself up a festival brochure now, they're all over the city and county, then switch the telly off for half an hour and have a damn good look through it, picking out some shows you'd like to see...  YES THAT'S RIGHT - YOU DO SOME OF THE WORK FOR A CHANGE!! Meanwhile, like the jolly good Samaritan I am, I'll be posting during this month with some of my picks of the festival line-up, and if I'm feeling generous I might even break them down into categories to help you narrow down the somewhat elephantine choice of shows on offer.

Deal?

Good. And keep an eye out for the FREE TICKETS coming very soon!!

Cheers,

Paul.

Keep Giggling 'Til the Weekend - four shows in the next 2 days

Okay so we're all buzzing about the comedy festival, but remember that's over two months away, so for the meantime, what's on in the next few days to keep us giggling?

Well, plenty, actually. Tonight at De Montfort Hall, Fascinating Aida perform their unique and highly successful brand of comedy cabaret, described as "Absolutely Fabulous meets Noel Coward, as sung by the Andrews Sisters".
http://www.demontforthall.co.uk/events/events.php/2012/878/fascinating-aida/

Then there's more futuristic tangential tales, atmospheric music and abstract performance posturing from Richard Peel's Megaworld on Thursday at the Crumblin' Cookie, this time joined by comedy-magic mentalist Steven P Travis. http://www.richardpeel.com/megaworld/index.html

Also on Thursday, Just the Tonic plays host to circuit mainstay Junior Simpson, Norway's finest dry wit Daniel Simonsen, former Chortle newcomer award winner Diane Spencer and compere Darrell Martin. http://www.justthetonic.com/Leicester-Comedy/shows/thursday-29-nov-2012/914/

And if neither of those float your boat, Thursday also sees a real variety show going on at The Y Theatre in the form of Emergency! Hosted by local comic Tom Young, it features an eclectic mix of theatre, dance, performance poetry, short film, music and comedy. Highlights this time round include a short mockumentary about Blake Incarcerated - Cleethorpes' finest spirit medium (pictured above), who is the creation of the excellent character comic Ian Hall.
http://www.leicesterymca.co.uk/y-theatre-whats-on-details.php?listing=1159

That should see you through to the weekend, December listings coming soon...

Seconds out, it's Mainstream vs Alternative on Thursday night!

Two great, but very contrasting, shows come to Leicester on Thursday evening. In the mainstream corner, the tall guy from the Inbetweeners who looks like Rik Mayall was swallowed by a fairy-tale giant, and in the alternative corner, the self styled 'King of the Chavs' and his heavy-drinking manager. Seconds out - it's Greg Davies vs Devvo & Bob Slayer!

TV comedy mainstay and lofty Leicester resident Greg Davies brings his tour show 'The Back of My Mum's Head' to De Montfort Hall. You can expect more of the sort of well-told tales, recounting all kinds of eccentric behaviour and real-life slapstick, that made his last tour 'Firing Cheeseballs at a Dog' a huge success.
Chortle describes the show as "an uproarious night of anecdotes, told by a real pro, who rather than resting on his TV laurels is cementing his position of one of Britain’s finest storytelling comedians", and Thursday's show is close to selling out, so get your tickets here: http://www.demontforthall.co.uk/events/events.php/2012/881/greg-davies/

Meanwhile over at Just the Tonic, an altogether different evening awaits, as 'the internet's funniest chav' Devvo and pint-swilling alternative hero Bob Slayer take to the stage.
None of your mainstream, TV-friendly anecdotes here. Devvo is a working class wastrel and wannabe MC, the scarily-convincing comic creation of Salad Fingers writer David Firth. Forget Lee Nelson's heavily-scripted 'White Ali G' act, Devvo's online antics are so close to the mark it's difficult for viewers to tell whether or not this is a real person.
Also appearing is former rock'n'roll tour manager and cult favourite Bob Slayer, whose act often consists of downing many pints of lager onstage and just seeing what happens... a tactic which famously ended in him crowd-surfing in a wheelie bin and breaking his neck at this year's Download festival.
To join in the mayhem, get your tickets here: http://www.justthetonic.com/Leicester-Comedy/shows/thursday-8-nov-2012/903/

NOVEMBER COMEDY LISTINGS

November. Month of moustaches, fireworks and the gradual, inevitable encroaching of Christmas into every sphere of your life. My solution? Don't watch TV - it's amazing how much more pleasant life becomes when you ears are not constantly bombarded with smug voices announcing "This Christmas, blah-blah blah-blah blaaaah...", four hundred times a day over several months.

And without a telly to keep you indoors and fearful of the outside world, you're free to go out and watch lots of comedy. Good job too, coz there's LOADS on this month, from telly regulars Kevin Bridges and Greg Davies (pictured, with the back of his mum's head), circuit favourites Tom Wrigglesworth, Andrew Bird and Tony Law, and alternative heroes Paul Foot, Doc Brown and Josie Long. The entire spectrum of comedy is represented here in the city - musical cabaret from Fascinating Aida, animated comedy in the form of Little Howard, and improv from UFI, not to mention those shining beacons of wrongness Devvo and Bob Slayer. Anyway, what am I telling you all this for? Read it for yourself...

OCTOBER COMEDY LISTINGS FOR LEICESTER

It's October - the month that makes everybody habitually spout such waffle as "Oooh I can't believe it's October already", "Where did the summer go?" and "Oooh isn't it getting dark early", as if none of us had ever experienced the changing of the seasons before. Jolly lucky that there are plenty of funny folk out there to offer us an amusing and inventive alternative to the barrage of moronic truisms we're subjected to during the day. And here they are in full:

Tue 2nd - The Comedy Occurence @ Just the Tonic
Wed 3rd - Writers Stand Up @ Exchange Bar
Thu 4th - Chris Martin, Angela Barnes @ Just the Tonic
Thu 4th - Ross Noble @ De Montfort Hall
Fri 5th / Sat 6th - Tiffany Stevenson, Chris Martin, John Mann, Johnny Candon @ Just the Tonic
Sat 6th - What's The Story? (Comedy storytelling workshop) @ Y Theatre
Tue 9th - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic
Wed 10th - Ben Clark, Antony King, James Hately, Firm Handshakers, Lindsey Warnes-Carroll @ Looking Glass
Thu 11th - Bob Slayer, Martin Soan, Special Mystery Guest  @ Just the Tonic
Thu 11th - Stewart Francis @ De Montfort Hall
Fri 12th / Sat 13th -  Paul McCaffrey, John Robins, Dana Alexander, Eric Lampaert  @ Just the Tonic
Fri 12th - Live at The Barley Mow @ Barley Mow
Fri 12th - Unidentified Flying Improv @ Manhattan34
Tue 16th - Lions Eat Ice Cream @ Looking Glass
Tue 16th - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic
Thu 18th - Open Mic nite @ Just the Tonic
Fri 19th - Jason John Whitehead, Keith Carter,Angela Barnes, Romesh Ranganathan @ Just the Tonic
Sun 21st - Should I Stay or Should I Go? @ Kayal
Tue 23th - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic
Thu 25th - Robin Ince @ Cookie Jar
Thu 25th - Barbara Nice, Chris Martin @ Just the Tonic
Fri 26th / Sat 27th - Phil Nichol, Susan Murray, Daliso Chaponda, Darrell Martin @ Just the Tonic
Sat 27th - Chris Ramsey @ Y Theatre
Sat 28th - Gary Delaney, Sarah Kendall, Lloyd Griffith, Mark Simmons @ Y Theatre
Mon 29th - Clever Peter @ Just the Tonic
Tue 30th - Lions Eat Ice Cream @ Looking Glass
Tue 30th - Big Value Comedy Auditions @ Just the Tonic
Wed 31st - Richard Peel presents Monsterdrome @ The Cookie Jar
Wed 31st - Mark Thomas @ The Y Theatre

As usual, send me any of your additions to the list via email, the facebook page or tweet @leiccomedyscene

Tonight is Mock the Week night in Leicester - 4 gigs to choose from!

For some unknown reason, tonight is the busiest night in Leicester's comedy calendar since the last Comedy Festival, with four cracking nights to choose from, and there's a distinctly 'Mock the Week' flavour to proceedings...

Mock the Week presenter and all-round fast-talking master of wit Dara O'Briain plays De Montfort Hall as part of his 'Craic Dealer' tour. He appears tonight and tomorrow, tickets are £20 from here: http://www.demontforthall.co.uk/events/events.php/2012/922/dara-o-briain/

Meanwhile at the Y Theatre, fellow Week-Mocker and everyone's favourite bespectacled Bristolian Mark Watson performs his show 'The Information'. According to his press release, the show "may contain optional audience interaction, games, improvisation and unaggressive banter". Tickets are £15 from hither: http://brcomedy.com/events/

And as if that wasn't enough, Just the Tonic also boasts a full line-up of quality stand-ups tonight, also featuring Mock the Week stars Zoe Lyons, Gary Delaney and Ben Norris with compere Darrell Martin. Entry is £8 or £4 with NUS. Get your tickets right here: http://www.justthetonic.com/Leicester-Comedy/shows/thursday-27-sep-2012/892/

And last but not least, The Crumblin Cookie plays host once again to Richard Peel's Megaworld. This is the ideal gig for people who don't wish to pay money to see people they already watch regularly on the telly, as entry is free and to the best of my knowledge Richard isn't a regular on Mock the Week. Expect the silly, the surreal, the musical and the whimsical. There's more info at http://www.richardpeel.com/megaworld/index.html

So there you have it - with four cracking nights to choose from, THERE IS NO EXCUSE TO STAY AT HOME TONIGHT!!

...and we're back! SEPTEMBER COMEDY LISTINGS

Hello there comedy fans! Long time no see. Well, August is over, and as well as meaning that Autumn is knocking on the door like an insistent religious nutter, it also means Edinburgh is finished for another year and as a result we have a full programme of comedy shenanigans in the city once again - hurrah!
And what a bumper month it is, with big names like Pat Monahan, Mark Watson, Jack Dee and Dara O'Briain gracing us with their presence, as well as plenty of quality line-ups in a plethora of venues across the city to keep you amused as the nights start to draw in.

Sat 1st - Philberto, Joe Lycett, Anthony King, Eric Lampaert @ Just the Tonic
Sat 1st - Sit Down, Stand Up (6 acts) @ Upper Brown Street
Sun 2nd - Should I Stay or Should I Go? (comedy gong show) @ Kayal
Wed 5th - Patrick Monahan, Antony King, Ian Crawford, Alan Seaman @ Looking Glass
Fri 7th - Kojo, Kevin J @ Just the Tonic
Sat 8th - Adam Bloom, Julian Deane, Jonathan Elston, Craig Murray @ The Y Theatre
Sat 8th - The Noise Next Door, Danny McLoughlin, Shazia Mirza @ Just the Tonic
Wed 12th - Nibbles with Giggles @ Entropy
Thu 13th - Jason Byrne @ De Montfort Hall
Fri 14th - Sandi Toksvig @ De Montfort Hall
Fri 14th - Live at the Barley Mow (free comedy night) @ the Barley Mow
Sat 15th - Jeff Innocent, Bobby Mair, John Robins @ Just the Tonic
Mon 17th - Fear of a Brown Planet @ The Cookie Jar
Tue 18th - Lions Eat Ice Cream (open mic night) @ Looking Glass
Thu 20th - Jack Dee @ De Montfort Hall
Fri 21st - Junior Simpson, Rob Beckett, David Hadingham @ Just the Tonic
Sat 22nd - Ian D Montfort, Tiffany Stevenson, Bobby Mair, Ben van der Valde @ The Y Theatre
Sat 22nd - Junior Simpson, Rob Beckett, David Hadingham @ Just the Tonic
Thu 27th - Richard Peel presents Megaworld @ Crumblin Cookie
Thu 27th - Mark Watson @ Y Theatre
Thu 27th/Fri 28th - Dara O'Briain @ De Montfort Hall
Thu 27th - Zoe Lyons, Gary Delaney, Junior Simpson, Darrell Martin @ Just the Tonic
Fri 28th - Mark Cram, Ian Hall, Francis Jenking, Leanne Mckie, Richard Peel, Barnaby J Thompson (Dolly Rockit Rollers Fundraiser) @ Firebug
Fri 28th/Sat 29th - Addy Borgh, Dr George Ryegold, Ian Cognito @ Just the Tonic

As always if you have anything to add, email me, tweet @LeicComedyScene or post on  the facebook page.

REVIEW: Murray... present. Comedy dancing... present. Laughs....present?

Best known for his portrayal of hapless band manager Murray Hewitt in Flight of the Conchords, kiwi funnyman Rhys Darby brought his one-man show to De Montfort Hall last night to show that there's more to the man than the Murray.
And this he did with some style - his show was littered with various ways to show off his versatility as a performer, as if to form some sort of professional showreel of his numerous talents. There was character comedy, sound effects, plenty of movement and comedy dancing, funny stories, a little banter and a few impressions. This eclectic show was all held together by a slightly flimsy pretext wherein he has been saved from the end of the world and whisked off on a spaceship to continue the human race, and is prompted by an alien voice (provided on tape by Jemaine Clement doing his much-loved robot voice) to reflect on his life in order to figure out why he has been saved.
And thus, 'Rhysie' takes us on a journey through his life from his mischievous schooldays in the 'Dicks' gang, through his disco-dancing adolescence to his adult life with wife and kids. The material was part anecdotal, part observational, but always presented with warmth and humility, with the afforementioned sound effects and frequent mime and movement bringing each story to life and adding an extra dimension to the humour.
Despite his humble demeanour, Darby is a confident showman, and his one-man show proves that he is a highly versatile comic performer who has plenty more to offer in the future (although as a big Conchords fan I still can't help hoping to see him reprise his role as Murray at some point).

'Comedy for Rich and Poor' Round 2: Conchords vs Lions

Once again it's Rich vs Poor in the comedy stakes tonight - those with a bit of moolah floating around will be heading to De Montfort Hall to catch Rhys Darby (aka inept band manager Murray Hewitt from the awesome Flight of the Conchords) performing his solo show 'This Way to Spaceship'. Tickets and info be here: http://www.demontforthall.co.uk/events/events.php/2012/858/rhys-darby/

Meanwhile, for the financially challenged (and there are plenty of you out there), Hub's free open mic night 'Lions Eat Ice Cream' is back with another line-up of new acts and more established acts trying new material. See tonight's eclectic line-up on the facebook page https://www.facebook.com/events/380885968642744/ and then go and see them in the flesh for free!

JULY COMEDY LISTINGS

It's another cracking month of comedy in this fine city of ours, with plenty more Edinburgh preview shows to choose from, some big-name telly favourites such as Frankie Boyle, Richard Herring, Johnny Vegas, Andi Osho and Rhys Darby. Also there's the premiere screening of Lucy Peel's 'Doc:Comedy' documentary focusing on comedy in the city, as well as a special treat for proud Leicesterites - the 2-night resurrection of Leicester-centric comedy festival hit 'What have you done with Denise's 30p?'. Enjoy...

Wednesday 11th - Anthony King @Looking Glass
Wednesday 11th - Nibbles with Giggles @Entropy
Thursday 12th - Phil Kay, John Robins @Just the Tonic
Thursday 12th/Friday 13th - What have you done with Denise's 30p? @Crumblin Cookie
Saturday 14th - Philberto, Carl Hutchinson, George Egg, Romesh Ranganathan @Just the Tonic
Saturday 14th - Hal Cruttenden, Lucy Porter @Y Theatre
Sunday 15th - Frankie Boyle @De Montfort Hall
Sunday 15th - Gareth Richards, Chris Stokes, Matt Richardson, Chris Henry, Philberto @Cookie Jar
Sunday 15th - Ideal night feat Johnny Vegas @Just the Tonic
Tuesday 17th - Rhys Darby @De Montfort Hall
Tuesday 17th - Lions Eat Ice Cream (open mic night) @Hub
Thursday 19th - Richard Herring, Pete Firman @Firebug
Saturday 21st - Adam Bloom, The Raymond & Mr Timpkins Revue, Chris Stokes, Ian Smith @Just the Tonic
Sunday 22nd - Russell Howard, John Robins, Mark Olver @Just the Tonic
Sunday 22nd - Abandoman, Peacock & Gamble @Firebug
Thursday 26th - Andi Osho, Charlie Baker @Y Theatre
Saturday 28th - Justin Moorhouse, Romesh Ranganathan, Roisin Conaty, Chris Mayo @Just the Tonic
Saturday 28th - Doc:Comedy premiere @Cookie Jar

Comedy for rich and poor alike this weekend

The ever-increasing divide between rich and poor will be in sharp focus this weekend in Leicester, with gravelly-voiced Welsh superstar Rhod Gilbert performing two nights at DeMontfort Hall (Friday and Saturday). Tickets are predictably not cheap at 25 quid, but if you're one of the lucky few with any wages left this month, tickets are available here: http://www.demontforthall.co.uk/events/events.php/2012/841/rhod-gilbert/

For those with a slightly more modest budget, Friday night sees the return of Five Pound Friday at Just The Tonic. This week's budget bonanza features Ivan Brackenbury, the inept and inappropriate hospital radio DJ, with support from bogus clairvoyant Ian D Montford, deadpan Canadian import Jason John Whitehead and regular compere Romesh Ranganathan. To get tickets for just five of your actual British pounds, go here http://www.justthetonic.com/Leicester-comedy/shows/friday-22-jun-2012/713/ and enter the promo code FIVERFRIDAY. If you can't make it, the same line-up appears again on Saturday, but not for five quid.

JUNE COMEDY LISTINGS

It's June! Yes, already! Don't tell me you weren't expecting it, given that it's been May for basically a whole month now... Anyway there's loads going on this month now that we're into Edinburgh Preview season, and here I punctually present your complete listings for the month, so you can't blame me if you miss out on something:

1st/2nd - Daniel Sloss, Dana Alexander, David Whitney, Ian Cognito @ Just the Tonic
3rd - Deborah Jane Appleby, Ola, Ben Hustwayte @ Just the Tonic
6th - Ship of Fools Comedy Club @The Looking Glass
7th - Tom Deacon, Jigsaw @ Just the Tonic
8th/9th - Keith Farnan, Jojo Smith, Bobby Mair, Eric Lampaert @ Just the Tonic
10th - Schadenfreude (new act night) @ The Soundhouse
10th - Romesh Ranganathan, Bryan Lacey, Adam Staunton, Bobby Mair @ Just the Tonic
14th - Pete Firman, Roisin Conaty @ Just the Tonic
16th - Phil Nichol, Ray Peacock, James Acaster, Andrew Ryan @ The Y Theatre
16th - Jeff Innocent, Pierre Hollins, David Morgan, Mike Wilkinson @ Just the Tonic
17th - Alan Anderson, Peter McCole, Fin Taylor @ Just the Tonic
21st - Laurence Clark @ Embrace Arts
22nd/23rd - Rhod Gilbert @ DeMontfort Hall
22nd/23rd - Ivan Brackenbury, Ian D Montford, Jason John Whitehead, Romesh Ranganathan @ Just the Tonic
24th - Jonathan Elston, Andrea Hubert, Ben Van De Velde @ Just the Tonic
29th - Michael Winslow @ DeMontfort Hall
30th - Rob Rouse, Patrick Monahan, Matt Richardson, David Morgan @ The Y Theatre
30th - Ken Dodd @ DeMontfort Hall
29th/30th - Alun Cochrane, Diane Spencer, Dave Johns, Darrell Martin/Chris Mayo @ Just the Tonic

As per usual - if you know of any other gigs going on, email me on this address or post on the facebook page or tweet @LeicComedyScene and I'll update this list, I may even give you a wee write-up if you bribe me heavily enough ;)

APRIL LISTINGS - all the live comedy coming up this month

Okay - it's all very well previewing and reviewing comedy gigs, but sometimes we just need the simple facts - what's on, where, and when?
So here goes with my first monthly round up of what's coming up this month in our fine city:

APRIL
6/7th - Tom Stade, Jason John Whitehead, Bryan Lacey, Romesh Ranganathan - Just the Tonic
10th - Paul Merton - DeMontfort Hall
13th/14th - Ardal O'Hanlon, Simon Bligh, Carey Marx, Darrell Martin - Just the Tonic
14th - Terry Alderton, Nick Helm, Ed Gamble, Roisin Conaty, Tom Rosenthal - Y Theatre
14th - Stewart Francis - Loughborough Town Hall
15th - Magners Funhouse Comedy presents Should I Stay or Should I Go? - Kayal
19th - New Act night - Cookie Jar
20th - Gary Delaney, Chris Martin, Adam Staunton, Darrell Martin - Just the Tonic
21st - Gary Delaney, Chris Martin, Adam Staunton, Jim Smallman - Just the Tonic
21st - Andrew Lawrence - Embrace Arts
27th - Russell Kane, Steve Royal, Darrell Martin - Just the Tonic
28th - Chris Stokes, Jarred Christmas, Fergus Craig, Vikki Stone - Y Theatre
28th - Danny McLoughlin, Matt Forde, Steve Royal, John Robins - Just the Tonic

I'm all excited now - seeing it all laid out like that makes you realise what a truly great city this is for comedy! If anyone knows of anything I've missed out or any changes to the line-ups, let me know either on Twitter @banxii or via email leicestercomedyscene@gmail.com and I'll update the listings. Or if you have a gmail account you can comment below (I think!)

Stewart Lee at DMH - Mercury review

Here's my official Leicester Mercury review of Stewart Lee's show at DeMontfort Hall last Thursday (the review appeared in yesterday's paper):
http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/Lee-relishing-time-spotlight/story-15557963-detail/story.html

Big shows this year at DeMontfort Hall

And straight away, as if to prove that I'm not working for JtT, here's a link to the upcoming comedy shows at DeMontfort Hall 
http://www.demontforthall.co.uk/events/index.php?cat_id=10&level=1

Big names include... deep breath... the legendary Paul Merton, the grumpy Rhod Gilbert, the noisy Michael Winslow (again!), the mighty Ken Dodd, the unflinching Frankie Boyle, the gargantuan Greg Davies, the Thunderbird-faced Jimmy Carr, the Irish-faced Jason Byrne, the surreal Ross Noble, the ubiquitous Kevin Bridges and the 'not-the-host-of-Crackerjack' Stewart Francis... gasp for air... but the one I'm looking forward to the most is Rhys Darby, aka hapless manager Murray from the sublime Flight of the Conchords.