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Read SSP's Live Editor, Henry Barnes' response
More Twee Vicar?
The ever-cheery Josh Widdicombe tells us why he rather be given a badge than an insult
Isn't everything just terrible? This morning I couldn't find my trainers for ages; then I got an email from someone trying to make me go to karaoke; and now I get home to find someone has eaten all my cheese. What a trial.
I am happy to admit that, compared to Richard Pryor or Lenny Bruce, my problems are a little trivial (though I do really hate karaoke). And I suppose that's why I never really bought into these angry US comedians that rant about subjects that - as hard as I try and as many Public Enemy albums I buy (one) - I just can't identify with. I don't want to know if Richard Pryor's mum was a hooker unless he has some good material on it, and to be honest, he hasn't. To quote Morrissey, a man far more amusing than these misanthropes, "it says nothing to me about my life".
It seems to me that a lot of these 'comedians' are offering us absolutely nothing new. You don't like rednecks? Daring. You think drugs should be legalised? You rebel. You like to say fuck? Oh my ears. And what is worse is that below this deluge of soft targets and needless shouting you will not find one good joke or clever insight. Bill Hicks' lazy pro-smoking rants may be angry but surely they cannot raise a laugh out of the even the most ardent fan.
Call me old-fashioned, but I like comedy that makes me laugh. What comedy can do better than any other art form is give you that feeling of recognition, of seeing oneself in a comic's observations. It may sound selfish, but a lot of us spend our time thinking about the little things in life. We care far more about Boggle than Blair, and that is why comedians like Josie Long, Russell Howard or Daniel Kitson appeal to us. They are excited about the same things that we are, and it's refreshing to see.
It is little more than traditional observational humour done with a smile. While Jerry Seinfeld helped us recognise our neuroses, these comedians are helping us recognise our passions.
People will say it is escapist comedy, but this is absurd. It's more of an intellectual workout to consider our own characteristics and foibles than to watch someone rant at us. In the end, good comedians who can make people laugh will, and should always rise to the top whatever their subject matter. I don't need to know that someone has been through hell to make me laugh, in fact it would be rather nice to think that this person entertaining me is having a rather nice time themselves.
Read SSP's Live Editor, Henry Barnes' response
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