Why are comedians not funny anymore..?

Peter Kearney

When the likes of John Bishop can sell out the O2 with his unfunny observations about his kids watching TV or Alan Carr making a fortune for mincing across a stage and gurning his Ooh Matron face.

I despair for the art of Stand Up...

Links234

You're watching the wrong comedians so, there's plenty of great ones out there.

Peter Kearney

Links234 wrote: »

You're watching the wrong comedians so, there's plenty of great ones out there.

Probably right there.

cantdecide

You're getting old and out of touch.

Knex*

Stand up, quite probably, has never been as strong as it is now.

You're just watching all the wrong comedians.

To take three of the bigger names in comedy right now even, Bill Burr (who I saw last week in Vicar St, guy is a genius), Louis CK, and Jim Jefferies - go watch them and then come back to us and let us know if you still despair for the art.

Peter Kearney

Peter Kearney wrote: »

When the likes of John Bishop can sell out the O2 with his unfunny observations about his kids watching TV or Alan Carr making a fortune for mincing across a stage and gurning his Ooh Matron face.

I despair for the art of Stand Up...

There does seem to be a lull in quality at the moment.

Last few years were good though, with the likes of Dara O'Briain and Michael McIntyre having a great couple of years.

The time is right for a new superstar comedian - sorry but John Bishop and Micky Flanagan just don't do it for me.

Have recently discovered Louis CK who is a joy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-JFPePh6yM

homemadecider

You need Louis CK in your life.

Frosty McSnowballs

There's plenty on here

super_furry

Can someone please explain Michael McIntyre to me in terms I might understand?

Howard Juneau

Michael McIntyre & comedy should not be used in the same sentence

brevity

Can't get into Louis CK. Far too much shouting.

Howard Juneau

super_furry wrote: »

Can someone please explain Michael McIntyre to me in terms I might understand?

Hyperactive, unfunny, fat elf with delusions of adequacy

Links234

I'm just sorry I missed Steve Hughes the other week in Galway

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAYAcZUCwQk

GLaDOS

I continue my mild obsession with Dylan Moran no matter what anyone says.

sabat

brevity wrote: »

Can't get into Louis CK. Far too much shouting.

His stand-up has dipped a lot for me recently but his (new) show is the funniest thing on TV. Funniest people in the world currently IMO are him, Limmy, Stewart Lee, Stephen Colbert and Larry David.

Scouser

hilarity!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKIiUsbOO24

mosstin

super_furry wrote: »

Can someone please explain Michael McIntyre to me in terms I might understand?

Completely
Unfunny
No-mark
Talking.

Hope this helps.

brevity

brevity wrote: »

Can't get into Louis CK. Far too much shouting.

I used to feel the same way about Tommy Tiernan - could never like him.

Louis CK doesn't really shout that much

Daqster

Is this whole Louis CK a practical joke or something?

You can't buy a fcuking twix these days without someone asking you to watch some Louis CK.

He's rubbish. Did we really need another snarky comedian? Christ.

Dyr

Links234 wrote: »

I'm just sorry I missed Steve Hughes the other week in Galway

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAYAcZUCwQk

I was gonna say is he "the unfunny australian c**t who thinks he's lemmy" and then he comes out to ace of spades in the clip :P

Turns out he used to be in mortal sin, another reason not to like him

bobbygrant

Part of the problem is the proliferation of TV shows now with stand-up comedians, and a lot of them like John Bishop, Alan Carr and Sarah Millican given their own tv shows when they are one-trick ponies, they may have been not too bad as stand-up comedians originally but now are way over-exposed. I watched the last Dara O'Briain and Jimmy Carr DVDs recently and they were both awful.

fussyonion

I'm one of those people who loves comedy but rarely laughs out loud. It doesn't mean I don't enjoy it but it's rare for something to really make me howl.
There are only two people who can do that and that's Billy Connolly and Bill Bailey.

I saw Billy Connolly live in Dublin in 2008 and there were tears streaming down my face. Boyfriend kept looking at me to make sure I wasn't actually choking.
For me, Billy is that funny.
I have all his DVD's and they always make me laugh out loud.
Bill Bailey is another one; he's absolutely hilarious.

I do also like Jo Brand, Peter Kay and I'm a big fan of Steve Coogan.

You can stick your Michael McIntyre's, Sarah Millican's and your John Bishops up your you-know-what.
They're cheesy and as funny as a smack of a wet trout.

stefan idiot jones

Jack Dee. Superb even now.

Calvin and Hobbes

Still think Tommy Tiernan is still King

fussyonion

stefan idiot jones wrote: »

Jack Dee. Superb even now.

I like Jack Dee but I think the grumpy persona is old now.

hidinginthebush

John bishop really annoys me. Years back on the panel he was that scouse lad who's a b-rate comedian, that everyone gives polite laughs to. Now he's selling out the o2 and presents every fucking thing on English TV. Just don't get him..

Diabhal Beag

Bill Burr is a solid recommendation. Gutted I couldn't go to Vicar Street to see him.

Dyr

fussyonion wrote: »

I like Jack Dee but I think the grumpy persona is old now.

I remember way back when he first got a tv show, i thought he was hilarious but it got old very quick..

brevity

Links234 wrote: »

I'm just sorry I missed Steve Hughes the other week in Galway

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sAYAcZUCwQk

I saw him at the comedy lounge in cork a few years ago. He was hilarious.

Irish Guitarist

Jokes aren't popular anymore. Comedians are expected to talk about their lives. Their lives are often uninteresting and unfunny which comes across in their comedy or they make up a load of nonsense and come across as liars.

Then there are those 'zany', 'cutting edge' comedians who come out with a load of nonsensical gibberish, for instance Ross Noble.

I saw Rhod Gilbert on a couple of those comedy panel quizzes and thought he was really funny. I then watched his stand up show 'The Cat That Looked Like Nicholas Lyndhurst' and thought he was terrible. He was trying his best to seem angry and miserable but he didn't have much to be angry at. He ranted for ten minutes about duvets and how he didn't understand what a tog rating was.

One of the few stand up comedians I find funny is Dave Gorman. He puts a lot of thought into what he's doing and he sounds believable.

thecatspjs

Mitch Hedburg is still my favourite all time comedian, unfortunately he's not around anymore

Out of today's comedians, Dylan Moran is hilarious imo. David O' Doherty and Kevin Bridges too.

Can't stand Lee Evans, Michael McIntyre, Jo Brand, Sarah Millican. I have actually never found a female stand up comedian (comedienne?) funny.

J_E

Rarely find stand-up comedy funny to be honest, but I'm a huge fan of Brian Limond (look up Limmy Show on Youtube, brilliant sketch show)

That steve hughes clip is really funny

Paully D

Kevin Hart won't be to everyone's tastes (he's American, so a completely different style to the UK based lads) but he's very good if you're looking for something different. His two most popular stand up shows are available on YouTube.

Pat Mustard

Dave Chappelle. Genius.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLWlBgj0uOc

Googl

They definitely don't make 'em like they use to. One of the greatest of all time, Mr. Bernard Manning

DwightSchrute1

I can't understand how Jason Byrne seems to make a living from comedy. All he seems to do is put on stupid accents and make faces.

Galwayguy35

Harry Enfield I always found his sketches funny on the tele.

Never got the fascination with Tommy Tiernan, I wouldn't be shocked by anything he says or anything but no way would I even give a euro to go and see him.

Went to a B O Carroll show once, useless IMO, Brendon Grace was the same.

Jon Kenny was funny though.

stefan idiot jones

The biggest culprit is too much exposure.

Too many comedians on too many panel shows is watering down their act.

Instead of really looking forward to catching them every year or so, it's now FFS not that cnut again.

And no, comediennes are not funny. I don't know why, like female singers in metal bands, it just doesn't work. I think they try too hard at being a persona.

Alpha Papa, Alan Partridge's film proves that there are comic geniuses still performing.

Owen_S

To make it in the UK as a top comedian, you really need to make it at Edinburgh. Seems simple enough, right? Unfortunately, most aspiring comedians tend to lose a lot money from putting shows on at the festival, and need significant financial backing. This is why we are seeing so many mediocre upper-middle class comedians getting so much airtime on television. They have parents who will support them and bail them out if they fail.

greenflash

Stand up died and was buried with Mitch Hedberg.

scottmcb04

I can't understand how anybody could like Billy connolly, he's brutal I think!

Reginald d Hunter and the Canadian lad are the two best I can think of atm!

enfant terrible

That's what Dennis Pennis asked Steve Martin

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFi8NOqgRus

Muahahaha

Hard to beat Stewart Francis for the sharp one liners, his whole show consists of one after the other. Saw him at Vicar Street a couple of years back and reckon he churned out over 600 one liner jokes in under one and a half hours, unbelievable stuff, you laughed so hard at one of his jokes and then were still laughing when the next one hit, my ribs were in bits that night.

scottmcb04

Muahahaha wrote: »

Hard to beat Stewart Francis for the sharp one liners, his whole show consists of one after the other. Saw him at Vicar Street a couple of years back and reckon he churned out over 600 one liner jokes in under one and a half hours, unbelievable stuff, you laughed so hard at one of his jokes and then were still laughing when the next one hit, my ribs were in bits that night.

That's the Canadian fella I was thinking of!

Daqster

Links234 wrote: »

I'm just sorry I missed Steve Hughes the other week in Galway

Few of us went to see him last week and he never turned up.

Last time I'm paying attention to emails from comedy clubs.

SimonQuinlank

Plenty of good comedians knocking about,there's just a lack of diversity in the handful who command the mainstream media exposure these days.If panel shows,or that BBC comedy roadshow abomination are you're only source of comedy then you're going to get bored fairly quickly.

Doug Stanhope,Stewart Lee,Bill Burr,Louis CK and a Scottish lad named David Kay are well worth a look.

Shapey Fiend

The big media gatekeepers traditionally decided what was going to be popular. Now that model has broken down and nobody gets paid to be the filter we're increasing expected to sort through the chaff to find the good stuff. This is true of movies, music, TV shows, books, everything. There's more good stuff than ever before in the history of man but it's buried in a sea of mediocrity.

Muahahaha

scottmcb04 wrote: »

That's the Canadian fella I was thinking of!

Ah yeah, he's a legend

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWH5XubGKLA

Rud

Dave Chappelle and Jimmy Carr are the funniest fcukers on the planet.Nobody comes close to those two

Links234

stefan idiot jones wrote: »

And no, comediennes are not funny. I don't know why, like female singers in metal bands, it just doesn't work. I think they try too hard at being a persona.

Oh boo! :mad: Boo on both counts! There's plenty of great women in metal!