Comedy news: Friends' news

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The tall one from the Penny Dreadfuls; the posh one from the Penny Dreadfuls; the Penny Dreadful who won last year's Edinburgh Fringe best show prize. Humphrey Ker is many things to many different people, but what's roundly agreed is that Dymock Watson: Nazi Smasher, which is passing through London on Monday and is doing one week at Edinburgh this summer before being retired, is a wonderful show. Indeed, so much e-ink has been spilt on the subject that when we spoke with Ker yesterday, we decided to eschew most of the regular questions in favour of finding out which comedians he thinks he can have in a fight.

(An aside: amazingly, he was free for an interview yesterday as filming was cancelled on CBBC's upcoming series, Fit. No word on whether the casting director was the same person who keeps writing fan fiction about him, more on which you'll find below and over here in our BONUS FEATURE quiz.)

Dymock Watson has been going for a bit. It's based on actual exploits of your grandad: why did you think this was good comedy material?

I was brought up like so many kids by the TV and movies, and all the movies I was obsessed with were war movies, plus I was going to join the army, although I didn't in the end. They say write what you know. And what I know is duff old sixties war movies.

Is Dymock Watson actually your grandad's name? What does it mean?

Yeah. Well, we don't really know. His dad was a Scottish architect, and he lived and grew up in Wales. I don't know what it means, it's just one of those cool, old school names.

Is he still around to have a reaction to the show?

No, sadly he died in 1989. The four people I was worried about the reaction was my mum, her two sisters and her brother. I was hoping they wouldn't get too bummed out, as the kids say.

What was the reaction?

They were really supportive – my mum's seen it about six times, because she's a really supportive parents. One aunt hasn't seen it as she lives in the States, but my other aunt and uncle both saw it and gave it the thumbs up, luckily. It's a big dumb comedy show, but it's underpinned by me having a monster respect for what those guys did. It's never too rude about SOE operatives or my grandfather. Basically, the Nazis get given a pretty bad ride.

Picking on the easy targets...

It's really cheap stuff, I'm just going after the soft targets...

When you're writing about your grandad, how much do you have in the back of your mind not to put in a romantic subplot or make a dick move?

Well, it goes far away from what my grandad did and at the end sort of comes back. Very loosely he went to Romania to blow up an oil refinery but was betrayed, and only just escaped with his life. Much the same thing happens in the show, but otherwise it's all different characters. There's one real character who actually was an SOE, but I just used his name, and then completely changed his age, character, where he's from, all that kind of thing. Actually, that character's grandkids came and saw the show, but they enjoyed it. Luckily I've got away without offending anyone too much, although maybe on Monday I'll get picketed by the Veteran's Association.

It is interesting material for a show, as in this point in your career you should be doing stuff on men and women, or turning thirty. It's tough nut stuff. Do you ever think about which comedians you could have in a fight?

I tell you who I wouldn't take on in a fight, who I reckon I lot of people think would be a soft touch: Daniel Kitson. I think he's harder than he looks. If you surprised him and he let his animal instincts out, he'd be tough.

I've just called him up on Google Images; he does have meaty hands.

He's burlier than you think. He's got good core strength, I play football against him quite regularly.

Greg Davies?

No way.

Sticking with the tall theme: Gareth Kane?

Okay, yeah. I can't say no to everyone.

Someone with a lot of aggression to get out: Phil Kay?

I wouldn't want to even try. It's not always the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog. And he's an angry dog.

Thom Tuck and David Reed?

At the same time? I'd throw sand in Dave's face, and then I'd manoeuvre Thom so Dave would be flailing around wildly, and I'd manoeuvre Thom into Dave's fists.

Max and Ivan?

Max is another secret dynamo, although it's his natural instincts not to land punches so that would count against him. And he's got a broken ankle, so I'd just stamp on that and then, frankly, Ivan can take care of himself, if you know what I mean.

Back to the show: if you've done this show on your grandad, do you have other family tales that are ripe for a show?

Yeah, my great, great, great-grandfather played within the winning team for the first three or four FA Cup finals, but for different sides. It could be fun to do a story about him being an early football legend.

Essential Penny Dreadfuls question: is there anything on the horizon for reforming?

Well, basically we're really keen, and Radio 4 seem interested in doing some more plays of ours. We've pitched them ideas, one about Hitler's brother, and the other one is an expose about the Battle of Hastings and what really happened. Our understanding is based on what the Normans said, and our idea was doing the Anglo-Saxons point of view.

Where is that at?

They're saying they're interested and are looking at when to do it, but until they pay the £7.50 they pay to do work it's not technically actually happening.

On to fan fiction: do you know who's writing it?

Well, no. The whole thing was one inglorious day of complete horror when we found the website. But whoever it is had some weirdly accurate knowledge about (a) Thom being flexible, and (b) that Thom speaks Spanish, so it's someone close, a mole.

When it happened did you find it hard to look each other in the eye afterwards?

We weren't together when it happened, and we didn't see each other for a while. We didn't have to go through that collectively. It's weird: I find it very funny overall, but there are other stories where I was in a couple with Milton Jones or Matt Crosby. That wasn't nearly as weird, but as me and David and Thom are like brothers it was like incest. Although I was secretly thrilled that someone cared that much that they sat down and tapped out a story where we do, um...what we did.

You and Matt Crosby, the height differential wouldn't work.

I think I would be the daddy. You know what I mean.

Have Dave and Thom cropped up in a sex dream since then?

Gosh, no, fortunately not.

It's not long til Sketchorama starts on Radio 4. There's good people in there, who's your favourite?

Well, the problem is I'm grotesquely biased, because my all-time favourite sketch show slash bestest buddies, Pappy's, are on there. This is only going to fan the flames of the online forums but I have a massive crush – comedy crush – on those guys. Everything they do makes me laugh like a drain.

It's good Radio 4 have done this as there's so many sketch groups that are hot. Is it weird to have just left sketch when it's becoming a hot property?

Well, we did five years together and had a wonderful time, and it did great things for our careers. I wouldn't have done the show I did this year and wouldn't have the skills to pay the bills if I didn't do the time with Dave and Thom. These things are cyclical, but there should have been a show like this  ages ago. It's nuts it's taken so long for there to be one. But surviving in a sketch group is really hard. There aren't enough sketch nights in London that pay money. You can be a subsistence stand-up much easier than you can be a subsistence sketch group, that's for sure. Those nights that do pay we had to break it up between the three of us. It wasn't financially viable unless you get your own show, or getting writing jobs for other people. It's very hard to make a living from. I miss Dave and Thom and it's really fun, that team mentality, but I love the way my career's going. I've definitely seen an upturn in my fortunes in the last year, and so have Thom and Dave. 

TV questions: Live at the Electric on BBC Three, has that filmed? How did it come up?

That's in the can. They did a pilot ages ago that was very good, with Russell Kane hosting, Nick Helm in the studio and Joe Wilkinson doing sketches, and Lady Garden and Jigsaw. For the series they also have WitTank and me. Dan Atkinson, one of the producers, was in Edinburgh and he kindly fought my corner and got me involved. We filmed sketches back in April, and the first show is on air in May 31. 

Fast and Loose, is that officially now not coming back?

Not officially. Every now and then I bump into Dan Patterson, the producer. Here's a fascinating piece of TV trivia: one of the ways you get an early inclination a show is cancelled, is the BBC says, we're not going to pay to keep your set in storage. The BBC are still paying for the set to be stored. But no official decision has been made.

It's so weird: the BBC is so short of comedy, it's odd to keep it in stasis.

I know. And the show is what it is: it's not the greatest show of all time, but it was only the first series. Few are incredible the first time. If we went again, whatever we made would be better than the first series. The first series did well, and the viewing figures were fine. So I think if it went again, it would do pretty well. 

And your guest spot on Have I Got News For You in April, how did that go?

That was really fun and a pleasure to do. I loved every minute of it. Everyone was very nice and I had an enjoyable time. People said nice things afterwards, which is basically what I do this for. The whole thing was a pleasure. Hopefully I didn't disgrace myself too much.

Lastly, if this is the end of the line for Dymock Watson, what's next?

I'm pitching to Radio 4 for a Dymock Watson series. Even if that were to be turned down, I think there were still media I could do more Dymock Watson stuff regardless of the radio. And I'm writing a new stage play, with the plan for me to be in it, although ludicrously it depends if I'm available.

Tickets for Monday's show at the Fortune Theatre are available here. And don't forget our BONUS FEATURE QUIZ, Ker or Fnarr, over here.

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Up-and-coming female talent is being prioritised by Channel 4's comedy department in an effort to balance out the male-skewed genre, Broadcast is reporting.

Roisin Conaty, who has built on her Edinburgh Fringe newcomer win in 2010 with TV panel appearances, is among the talent working on a script.

PhoneShop and Ideal's Emma Fryer and the Inbetweeners' Movie star and Lady Garden founder member Jessica Knappett also have scripts in development.

They will then seek out indies to attach the projects to in the commissioning process.

Nerys Evans, Channel 4's comedy controller, told the magazine: “Nine out of 10 things that are pitched to us are aimed at men.”

It follows a revival of the debate on why there aren't more women in comedy in recent months, spurred on by the success of BBC stars Miranda Hart and Sarah Millican. 

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Eddie Izzard's attempt to run 27 marathons in 27 days across South Africa has been picked up by Sky 1.

Eddie Izzard's Mandela Marathons will see the comedian also tell Mandela's and South Africa's story, as he retraces the life of the 93-year-old former president.

Eddie Izzard said: “Starting on Tuesday 15th May 2012, I will attempt to run 27 marathons in 27 days, as a small tribute to Nelson Mandela and 27 years he spent in prison.   The marathons will be run all over South Africa in areas that resonate with his life including: Mvezo, Qunu, Fort Hare,  Cape Town and Robben Island where he was imprisoned for 18 of the 27 years, Johannesburg, Soweto, Rivonia, and Pretoria.”

The show will be produced by Lion TV.

Its managing director Nick Catliff said: “This is very much for real. Nothing is guaranteed. Eddie will be running for 700 miles through open country, across mountain ranges, through cities and in townships. If he gets there in one piece it will be a very personal tribute to Nelson Mandela as well as a triumph for Eddie’s bloody minded courage and determination… and he will have very sore feet.”

The show is from Sky's factual team rather than the comedy team that has won a series of big names for the broadcaster in the last year, but can be expected to build on the stellar success of travelogue An Idiot Abroad. It will be shown later in the year.

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Submissions for Manchester-based Cofilmic's second short film competition have opened.

The competition is accepting submissions for short comedy films, sketches and sitcoms or web series pilots, all of which have to be under five minutes.

From the films featured in last year's inaugural awards, one sitcom pilot submission is currently in development for a web series.

Judges for the awards include Bafta award-winning producers Charlie Hanson and Leslee Udwin and BBC comedy commissioning editor Kristian Smith.

The best of last year's films were then shown at the Cofilmic festival in late October, after the end of the Manchester Comedy Festival.

Submissions close at midday on August 14. 

Full details over at the Cofilmic website.

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Tony Robinson has helped put a smile on faces of commuters between London and Birmingham by recording his own announcements. 

The Blackadder and Timeteam star has worked with Green Wing writer Richard Preddy to pen a series of comical announcements for staff of Chiltern Railways to use when travelling between the two cities

Speaking about the project Robinson said: "It was fascinating to meet the Chiltern staff and a wonderful, if challenging, project to work on.

"We have all waited for a train or a bus into work as the rain pours down and bustled our way to a seat, and I think comedy can help to alleviate that stress.

"Everyone we met was so enthusiastic and the feedback so far has been fantastic.

"It's important to note that we aren't trying to turn everyone into a comedian. Rather we are hoping to bring out a little more of the staff's personality and humour via their day-to-day announcements and help cheer up the commuters along the way."

Among the announcements include one which asks passengers with noisy iPods to get a better taste in music, and racing tube trains.

The announcements idea was developed by Chiltern Trains in partnership with comedy channel UKTV Gold.

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Jim Jefferies is heading back to the UK later this year with an Edinburgh Fringe run and a 15-date tour of the country.

Jefferies is set to head to Dunfermline on August 31 for the fist show of the tour, which also stops at Newcastle, Glasgow, Nantwich, Manchester, Stoke-on-Trent, Middlesbrough, Liverpool, Leeds, York, Wolverhampton, Bournemouth, Bergen in Norway and Dublin before finishing the tour in London on September 17th 

The acerbic Australian comic, who has enjoyed huge success in the U.S. since his Alcoholocaust tour in 2010, is returning with his new show ‘Fully Functional’. 

Jefferies new show sees the comedian challenge our beliefs and routine behaviour, from a threesome he had in Montreal, to God at a party and meeting Neil Finn at a Q Magazine Awards (So much like a normal Jefferies show then).

Jefferies has recently performed alongside Eddie Izzard and Larry King at LA’s Gibson Theatre and closed the Global Atheist’s convention in Melbourne.

For more information visit Get Comedy's website for full tour details.

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IT Crowd star Katherine Parkinson is set to play the main role in new pilot sitcom for Radio 2.

Parkinson has been cast as Katrina Lyons in The Resistance, a show which revolves around an alien invasion in the middle of the English village of Cresdon Green.

Parkinson soon finds herself organising a resistance movement against the alien invaders, who have surrounded the village with an impenetrable heat wave.

The show will also star Gavin and Stacey’s Alison Steadman and Peter Davison as Parkinson’s parents and will be recorded at the BBC Radio Theatre on Wednesday 13th June.

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Simon Pegg, Nick Frost and Edgar Wright are set to return to their horror-comedy roots the new film The World’s End.

The final part of what has been described as both the ‘Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy’ and ‘The Blood and Icecream trilogy’ has been eagerly awaited by fans of Shaun Of The Dead and Hot Fuzz.

The new film, which is named after a pub, has been slated for release in September 2013 and will focus on childhood friends who reunite after 20 years. 

The plot will see Frost and Pegg join their fellow friends in recreating an epic pub crawl (to The World’s End pub) which was originally undertaken over 20 years ago. 

However as they try and repeat the feat darker forces are at work, and a simple pub crawl turns into a battle with ramifications for the future of mankind itself.

The final film in the loose trilogy will see Frost, Pegg and Wright reunite after Pegg’s rise through Hollywood to star in blockbuster films such as Mission Impossible and Star Trek.

The cornetto of choice for The World’s End has been rumoured to be mint chocolate chip. The icecream references are a tribute to Krzysztof Kieślowski's Three Colours film trilogy, with a main character in each of the two previous films seen buying a Cornetto of the appropriate flavour.#

Pegg and Wright will pen the script for the The World’s End, with Wright also directing the film.

And yes, we’re excited too.

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Channel 4 has ordered a full series of Ricky Gervais’s show Derek after the pilot show attracted an audience of 3.2 million.

Derek, which stars Gervais as the lead character Derek Noakes, was the highest rating scripted comedy show the channel has produced in two years and received a large amount of media interest prior to the show’s launch.

Described by Gervais as a 'a bitter sweet comedy drama about a group of outsiders living on society's margins' Derek is focused on the life of the autograph hunting care home worker.

The show sees the creator of The Office return to the style of show he pioneered, with a fake documentary look, and stars Karl Pilkington and Kerry Godliman. 

Speaking about the show Gervais said: "David Brent was an egotistical, failed musician and the most annoying man in the world. Derek is a 50-year-old man with bad hair and clothes, whose best friend is a whingeing bald Manc twonk. Where do I get my ideas from?"

Shane Allen, the Channel 4 head of comedy who commissioned the show, said: "Ricky is a leading voice in British comedy and through Derek he captures and reflects something of the spirit of modern society.

"A kind-hearted character in a world which TV normally shies away from, it feels like a perfect new direction for Ricky. The pilot triggered an amazing response and Derek's story had only just begun so it's brilliant that we can explore this world and its beautifully drawn characters across a series."

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Comedian Leigh Francis has been heavily criticised after his TV alter-ego Keith Lemon gave away a puppy as a prize on his TV show.

The comedian was given his barking orders by users of social networking site Twitter when a girl called Kasey was presented with a pug puppy by singer Peter Andre after winning a challenge on his ITV show Lemonaid.

The challenge, which involved three adults fishing bones out of an inflatable pool dressed as dogs, was meant to be a light-hearted jest however animal campaigners have branded the game ‘disgusting’.

One twitterer @SixtiesDancer said: 'Please tell me you didn’t give a dog away as a prize. If you did you’ve gone way down In my estimation.'

Another viewer called Charlotte91xx tweeted: 'Disgusted at @LeighFrancis show giving away a puppy how they did last night. Fine line between funny and stupid #wontbewatchingagain'

Lemon, who initially tried to defend the contest on Twitter later hinted that he may quit the site due to the swathe of criticism. He tweeted “They (viewers) always giving me a hard time.

'Twitter is turning into a horrible waste of time. Good bye twitter people x.”

According to production company Talkback, each family was visited by a qualified vet before the show to make sure they were suitable to own a dog.