Comedy news: First night: The Roffle Club, Camden, with Frisky and Mannish, Max and Ivan, Clever Peter, Marcel Lucont Delete the BanjaX

Roffle. It sounds suspiciously like a new Cadbury’s bar designed by Kraft to subdue us into thinking the that the confectionary mega-monster is a ‘friendly giant’. Luckily for us all the Roffle Club is actually a comedy new night hosted by stand-up / sketch duo Max and Ivan.

Based in Camden’s Proud Galleries – the most tenuous link to an actual gallery space I’ve ever seen – the is a new night aims to give the audience a smorgasboard of quality acts from across the comedy spectrum.

Over the course of 2010 The Roffle Club is poised to bring some of the finest cabaret, musical, and straight stand-up comedy acts to London’s premier alternative music spot and on first look the opening bill is of exceptional quality.

Headlined by pop duo Frisky And Mannish and including up-and-coming sketch troupes Clever Peter and Delete The BanjaX as well as French comedian Marcel Lucont, Roffle Club it certainly had an astutely eclectic feel to it. The mix of different styles also worked well in a room which you wouldn’t usually think could host comedy.

Highlights included an excellent skit about the Mario Bros from Max and Ivan as well as host of well thought out pieces from Delete the BanjaX, who are possibly the ones to watch on the comedy sketch circuit. The night belonged to Frisky and Mannish however, who managed to close with some new songs and some material from their School of Pop fringe show.

Of course for a first night not everything went to plan and, as the audience filed out to dash for the last tube there was a feeling that the night went on only slightly too long, but if The Roffle Club can keep up the same kind of tempo then it is certain to establish itself as a firm favourite on the London comedy circuit for both audience and acts alike.

SSP dusted off it’s SLR and headed down to capture some live shots of the night. See the gallery on Alex Brenner’s profile here: http://www.suchsmallportions.com/pg/photos/album/1653/the-roffle-club-proud-camden-jan-2010-12