Unfunny comedians

[Gilliver's Travels]

Marcus Brigstocke is brilliant - with his rants on religion particularly wonderful; how he's managed to avoid slaughter by fatwa is a mystery. No doubt someone here thinks he's utter toilet.

Quick mention for Addy van der Borgh (seen at Ropetackle a while back) - a naturally laugh-out-loud genius of the surreal. Presumably others will disagree.

 

[Scratch_Porkings]

Most in your top tier would send me to sleep, think Bremner and Dara O'brien are funny and Izzard was great in Day of the triffids although his comedy skills are lacking.

Very good shout on Danny Baker, he's funnier than 90% of so called comediennes listed here.

I think you can only judge how funny someone really is when they are in a pseudo non-scripted situation - the only 2 we regularly watch are QI and Would I Lie To You.

From this I would rank them as follows:

Very sharp and naturally funny:

David Mitchell
Sandi Toksvig
Bill Bailey
Alan Davies
Bob Mortimer
Vic Reeves
Rich Hall
Ross Noble
Andy Hamilton
Danny Baker (not really a comedian though)
Barry Cryer

Quite sharp and reasonably naturally amusing:

Rob Bryden
Lee Mack
Jack Whitehall
Rhod Gilbert
Kevin Bridges
Greg Davies
Jo Brand
Sean Lock
Jack Dee
Johnny Vegas
Clive Anderson
Sarah Millican
Julian Clary
Ronny Ancona

Not naturally funny and desperately need a script:

Jimmy Carr
Phil Jupitus
Dara O'Briein
Jason Manford
Sue Perkins
Shappi Khorsandi
Eddie Izzard
Rory Bremner

Yes, I am VERY bored.

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

Shappi Khorsandi - it's as if she's daring us to be politically incorrect by not liking someone female and of Iranian background. Well, I dare.

Sandi Toksvig. Okay, she's small, Danish and gay, but none of those things make her funny. I preferred the News Quiz when Simon Hoggart chaired it because he let the funny people get a word in.

 

[grumpyoldgit]

Cannot believe no one has mentioned that absolute bellend Russell Brand, or maybe they have and i,ve missed it.

 

[topbanana36]

Cannot believe no one has mentioned that absolute bellend Russell Brand, or maybe they have and i,ve missed it.

In absolute agreement with you, I think Alan Carr is just as nauseating.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Nowt so smug as a stand-up comedian who has blagged a slot on a sit-down telly panel show

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

Cannot believe no one has mentioned that absolute bellend Russell Brand, or maybe they have and i,ve missed it.

Wait, he's a comedian??

 

[Mowgli37]

The thing about Stewart Lee is that he refuses to do all the TV panel shows, unlike all the familiar dross who sell their souls appearing on them.

How is it selling their souls? With the right combination of comedians, host and format, panel shows have produced some excellent comedy.

As for the thread's topic, Sarah Millican makes me want to put my foot through the telly, Russell Howard is an ingratiating little turd and Stewart Lee is funny for about five minutes until you realise he's going to spend his entire set rambling in exactly the same manner ad infinitum.

Am I the only one to think Lee Mack is excellent?

 

[Diablo]

Detest Jimmy Carr...his stupid laugh..

 

[Bombadier Botty]

How is it selling their souls? With the right combination of comedians, host and format, panel shows have produced some excellent comedy.

See Tom Hark's post above. Imho it's an insipid, contrived medium appealing to the lowest common denominator stocked with middle of the road 'TV-friendly' comedians, most of them quite irritating. Anyone who can sit through somthing like Eight out of Ten Cats or Eight out of Ten Cats Does Countdown without wanting to obliterate their TV with a sledgehammer should be awarded an MBE poste haste. It's everything The Young Ones and Bill Hicks railed against.

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

How is it selling their souls? With the right combination of comedians, host and format, panel shows have produced some excellent comedy.

As for the thread's topic, Sarah Millican makes me want to put my foot through the telly, Russell Howard is an ingratiating little turd and Stewart Lee is funny for about five minutes until you realise he's going to spend his entire set rambling in exactly the same manner ad infinitum.

Am I the only one to think Lee Mack is excellent?

Stewart Lee admits that his comedy is based on repetition (check the Shilbottle routine available on YouTube) but I'd take five minutes of him over an hour of almost anyone else.

 

[Mowgli37]

See Tom Hark's post above. Imho it's an insipid, contrived medium appealing to the lowest common denominator stocked with middle of the road 'TV-friendly' comedians, most of them quite irritating. Anyone who can sit through somthing like Eight out of Ten Cats or Eight out of Ten Cats Does Countdown without wanting to obliterate their TV with a sledgehammer should be awarded an MBE poste haste. It's everything The Young Ones and Bill Hicks railed against.

I'll agree with you that EOOTC is utter w*nk but 'Have I got News for You?' and QI are both excellent and fall into the panel show bracket.

 

[Barry M]

Lee Evans. Used to find him funny 10 years ago but it's the same stuff presented in a different way every show!

 

[Stoaty Ferret]

Ross Noble - just cannot understand the appeal. Not a big fan of Seann Walsh either - nasally drone.

Good female comedians - Issy Sutie, Josie Long, Lucy Porter, Nina Conti.....

 

[maltaseagull]

Think you may have misinterpreted his post. He was just saying women comedians are not funny.

But there are some very funny female comedians. So perhaps he has some issues with women?

 

[maltaseagull]

Jimmy Carr is absolute rubbish!

 

[Prince Monolulu]

Good female comedians.......Nina Conti.....

Funny, fit and love that scary monkey

 

[Stat Brother]

I'd put Mark Thomas in the category of funny comedians. (if only positive threads were cool)

His politics are far to far out there for me, but there's no denying his talent.

He in turn reminds me of Mark Steel.
He usually gets a laugh from me on The News Quiz, but his 'Comes to Town' series is superb.

 

[Dorset Seagull]

Joe Brand , anyone

I saw her at the recording of Live at the Apollo and she was absolute rubbish. However when they aired the show they had cut so much out that the few half decent things she said made it look ok

 

[Barry Izbak]

Russell Howard and Johnny Vegas, although I accept he may not be classed as a comdeian