Comedians you have seen live

Richard Herring...?

What made you drop down the generations and risk such a whipper-snapper...?

Billy Connelly
Chubby Brown
Bernard Manning
Stan Boardman
Jim Davidson
Jasper Carrot

Jack Dee who was excellent.
Lee & Herring when they were a double act, who were fecking awful.
Tommy Cooper when I was about 12 - brilliant

Ken Dodd - loads of times. always went so long into the night & he was always superb

I've only seen Brian Conley. To be fair, he was very funny.

Seen Ross Noble a couple of times during the same tour and there was about 80% different material each time.  He was brilliant both times.

I imagine the old school comedians just used the same act year after year, with just a slight variation to insert a geograpical joke at the expense of the current audience's football rivals. 

I really should go and see more, as they have recently opened a civic centre five minutes walk from me, and it is on the UK tour for virtually every comedian going.

Jimmy Jones
Bill Hicks

billy hill • December 9, 2012 3:07 PM GMT
I imagine the old school comedians just used the same act year after year

Well it certainly applies to Ken Dodd but despite that he was always brilliant

have had a pint with jethro,
and with russ abbot justin dee and les dennis,
bella emberg was drinking buckets of vodka and we left when she started becoming violent.

Bernard Manning
Jim Davidson
Chubby Brown
David Lammy
Diane Abbott
Shammyleather Chukkerbutti

Jack Dee...Brilliant
Frank Skinner...Surprisingly even more brilliant.

eddie izzard-absolutely superb every time.

my sisters went last night to see rhod gilbert....i wouldn't cross the road personally

John Bishop before he'd been on telly and nobody had ever heard of him - bloody awful
Jack Dee - excellent
Bill Bailey at the Comedy Club before he'd hit the big time - excellent
Eddie Izzard - very clever, original and professional
Jim Davidson - better than I was expecting, not bad
Harry Hill - can't stand him on the telly, didn't want to go - very good tho
Lee Mack - Very funny, a good night.
Frank Skinner - the best of the lot. Very crude and blue but funny with it and plenty of original 'off the cuff' jokes with audience participation.

Jim Davidson - brilliant

KENN DODD ABOUT 8 TIMES
BERNARD MANNING ABOUT 12 TIMES
RUSS ABBOT
BILLY CONNOLLY
TOMMY COOPER
KEN GOODWIN
FREDDY STAR
STAN BOARDMAN
DUGGY BROWN
FRANK CARSON
JIMMY CRICKET
STU FRANCIS
MICK MILLER
GEORGE ROPER
ROY WALKER

I've seen most already mentioned but nobody has said Emo Phillips yet, I really enjoyed that gig.

Chubby Brown
Bob Downe
Ken Dodd
Jimmy tarbuck

Eddie Izzard loads of times

Bob Downe was becoming quite popular then he just dropped out of sight

Dave Allen
Charlie Williams
Les Dawson

Do wah Diddy     09 Dec 12 17:48 

STU FRANCIS

I saw Alexei Sayle a few weeks ago, you could tell he hadn't done stand up for a good few years, enjoyed it tho.
stewart Lee i find really funny but appreciate he divides opinion.
Saw Ted Chippington this year as well, but to be honest although he was brilliant years ago I kind of knew I was going out of respect rather than expectation he was going to be funny.
bernard Manning was genius , his insistence on telling unfunny racist jokes whilst trying to paint himself as a thoroughly decent family man sort of ruined the act tho.
Frank sidebottom actually made me cry with laughter.
Seen loads of acts at comedy clubs that are well known but none stand out,this lad was great....
Chris Turner, and re bernard Manning the vid contains a FUNNY racist joke.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ej8EaLF382c

seen bill hicks in edinburgh. only my own birth was better

Tommy Cooper is the only one that has stuck with me; never laughed so much at old rubbish in my life.

Jethro very good
Billy Connolly hilarious
Dara O'Brien very good very clever

GPT, I have to disagree with you re Dara O'Brien. I got dragged to his 'Craic Dealer' gig in Hammersmith a few weeks ago completely against my will I hasten to add and it was without doubt one of the worst evenings I've ever had. He was about as funny as a dose of gout.

I saw Bobby Davro,he was 3 in front of me at Toddington services in 1987.

He didnt have a clue how close he was to me.

I had the misfortune of watching Michael Mcintyre at the MEN last month he was absolute ****. I didnt even titter although some loons were pissing themselves, at what god knows.

i saw Bob monkhouse once

Really Slippy Craic dealer is what I saw thought it was brilliant.

Mark Thomas - Very Good
Harry Hill - OK
Omid Djalili - Rubbish

saw that geordie bird whose flavour of the month, sarah millican at leeds jongleurs about 4 yr ago , she was 1st on after the compere which is basically the support act - and was poor.Paul Tonkinson is one of the best ive seen, Johnnie Vegas in his early days when he did the clay potter thing was good.Ross Noble was excellant and i like Greg Davies the school teacher in Inbetweeners his Throwing Cheeseballs at a Dog tour was funny.

Milton Jones - pure filth

all the good comedians are dead only **** ones now they swear and people laugh what rubbish we have

Saw Milton Jones at the "We are most amused" Prince's Trust thing recently. He was very good as was Patrick Kielty actually. Not a lot else stood out that night although I liked the Rowan Atkinson/Tony Robinson new Blackadder sketch at the end which didn't appear to go down too well in general (it was banker-bashing in a predominantly banker-ish crowd!).

In the past, quite liked Newman and Baddiel many years ago. Al Murray's characters before the Pub Landlord were good, Pub Landlord just isn't that funny, not when you see his earlier stuff like the gun sketches.

Terry Alderton, Vic & Bob, Jack Dee, Norman Wisdom, Lee Evans, Stephen Amos, plus loads of Manchester-based ones whose names I can't remember (many of whom have had bit parts in Phoenix Nights). Usually depends on how p*ssed you are as to how funny they are, but I remember crying with laughter at both Alderton & Wisdom. 
FWIW, I think current flavour of the month John Bishop is abysmal. "Let... me... tell... you... ab...out... me... wife...... and... me... kids..."

(Paul Zenon was very funny too, although strictly speaking he's a 'magician')

Loads of stand up gigs - the Bearcat Club Twickenham from 1990 - 1996.

Best of them all was Rob Newman.

Jack Dee (excellent)
Eddie Izzard (over-rated)
Chubby Brown (meh!)
Alexie Sayle (trying too hard to be intellectual)
Harry Hill (surprisingly good)
Mark Thomas (very funny)
Ross Noble (great, but suspect he could be hit and miss. He's been 'hit' on the 4 occasions I've seen him)
Bill Bailey (good)
Jim Davidson (good)

Alex69 - did you used to go to the Frog and Bucket back in the day?

Sib - yes mate, probs three or four times, plus 'The Buzz' at the Southern in Chorlton - and of course the Comedy Store

I was a regular myself and did a bit on stage.  Johnny Vegas in those days was sensational.

Right, good stuff. Don't think I ever saw Vegas. One guy I remember being funny was from Oldham (I think) & part of his routine was going on about old people 'chewing' ie that thing they do involuntarily with their jaws when they get old. Harsh, but funny - no doubt I won't find it so funny when I'm older

Smug Roberts?

Going to see Paul Tonkinson again on weds night in Harrogate, always a good laugh, another one whose brilliant is a new zealander called Jarrod Christmas, anyone seen him ?

Seeing his father on the 25th.

Give my love to Mr Tomkinson Snr

Current favorites

Ian Cognito - TV wont have him
Mandy Knight - Funniest woman on the circuit by a country mile

Off to see Jerry Sadowitz on the 22nd

Chubby Brown (pony)
Reginald D Hunter (as above)
Carl Barron (v good)
Tim Vine (excellent)

Cant imagine having to endure John Bishop for a hour or more. Would rather be banged up in Guantanamo.

He'd have only 'reeled off' one sentence by that point, Magnus

I wouldn't see Michael McIntyre, John Bishop or Sarah Millican in you fed me Cristal champagne intravenously and served canapes stuck between a naked Anna Kournikova's thighs.

I think Lee Mack would be alright live, he's on the list.

His Daddy would certainly make you jump, Slippy

Lee and Herring back in the day, average.
Daniel Kitson... Brilliant.

Ian Cognito - TV wont have him
Mandy Knight - Funniest woman on the circuit by a country mile

Off to see Jerry Sadowitz on the 22nd

Ian Cognito still going is he? Bloody hell! He was good when I saw him

Mandy Knight - couldn't agree more. Donna McPhail was good once but Mandy Knight is the ONLY female comedian that's ever cut it for me.

Sadowitz - for about 20 minutes but then the abuse gets very samey and there's very little humour once you get past the shock

Ben Elton
Frank Skinner
League of Gentlemen (sketches not stand-up)
Probably some others too....

Steve Coogan - Brilliant (In Character as Partridge, Tony Ferino, The Calfs, Duncan Thickett). Ended the show as Partridge doing a 'Kate Bush medley'!
Jasper Carrot - Ok, fair few laughs.
Phil Cool - Had his moments, bit one dimensional
Mark Lamarr - Surprisingly good. Long time ago though, before he became so precious.
Bill Bailey - Very good
Mark Thomas - Good, different, although a bit right on.

Saw Jerry Sadowitz at the Reading Festival years ago, but I was a bit wasted and can only remember a lot of expletives.
Saw what must have been one of Michael McIntyres earliest performances in the opening slot a comedy club. Was ok, but still doing the same  "Hello - I'm posh" routine 5 years later.

Des O'connor once and Stan Boardman twice.

Des O'connor was very funny...Stan went on about the local chippy far too much

Tommy Cooper
Ken Dodd
Bernard Manning
Jackie Hamilton
Tony Kaye
Stevie Fay
Charie Williams
George Roper
Bert Cooke (the daddy of them all)
Eddie Flanagan
Colin Crompton
Mickey Finn
Ken Goodwin
Mike Reid

Nobody appears to have see Peter Kay live - not my cup of tea.











Bob Monkhouse

Frank Skinner (brilliant)
Lee Mack (ok)
Russell Howard (surprisingly very good)
Peter Kay (ok)
Micky Flanagan (brilliant)

alot over the years, but only been to 3 gigs in last 3 years, the best of those was tim minchin who is probably an acquired taste but i thought he was excellent

most disappointing of the recent ones was rich hall who i thought would be good and was actually pretty dull, stage act was old and had mostly been used on tv

fav of all time was steven wright when i was in the usa, just superb, worst was joan rivers who should be shot

always wanted to see frankie boyle, never have, surprised he hasn't been on peoples list of good or bad

Seen loads of comedians live. The best were Mike Reid and Bob Monkhouse. Worst by a country mile was Jim Davidson.
Wouldnt get outta bed to see the so called comedians of today.

Didn't know Des O'Connor was a comedian thought he was a singer.

I saw Margaret Thatcher from a distance, does she count

BERNARD MANNING ONCE LED THE COMMUNITY SINGING AT WEMMBLY THEN WENT HOME TO HIS OWN CLUB AND DID A STINT THERE