Category Archives: Podcasts

Those of you who attended the YLG national conference in Manchester last month will remember the panel discussion about funny books for children and writing comedy. In response to an audience question about judging the quality of comedy, one of the panellists, Dave Shelton, recommended some podcasts about the mechanics of writing comedy. Afterwards I asked if he’d be able to share them for the blog and, after a gentle prod, he has!

Barry Cryer is fond of saying that analysing comedy is like dissecting a frog: nobody laughs, and the frog dies. And Barry Cryer has been extremely funny for about three centuries now, so he knows a thing or two. But personally, possibly because I don’t have funny bones like Mr Cryer’s, and because I’m naturally a bit nerdy, I quite enjoy taking a scalpel to a joke and figuring out how it works. I wouldn’t want to do it all the while: I’d hate to lose the pure joy of laughing at a great gag, or a sketch, or a bit of slapstick, and not worrying about the craft that went into it. But some of the writing I do is meant to be funny, and I want to be good at my job, so I do like sometimes (to switch metaphors) to open the bonnet and take a look at the engine. And happily, in the Age of the Internet, there are some pretty good comedy Haynes manuals available for those of us who take an interest in the mechanics. So here, for anyone similarly interested in poking about in the inner workings of all things funny, are my favourite podcasts on the subject.

The Comedian’s Comedian podcast, with Stuart Goldsmith

Stand up comedian Stuart Goldsmith interviews (mostly) other stand up comedians and nerdily analyse their craft. Goldsmith (not a comedian I was aware of previously) is a knowledgable, enthusiastic and thoughtful host and (at time of writing) there are 265 shows to choose from, including an excellent two-parter with the aforementioned Mr Cryer. Well worth a dig through his archives. http://www.comedianscomedian.com/podcasts/ 

The Adam Buxton Podcast

Adam Buxton (of former Adam and Joe fame) casts his net a little
wider, occasionally interviewing film directors, actors and other creative
types, but the majority of his interviews (or “ramblechats”) are with comedy
types (comedians, writers, comedic actors) and Buxton’s personable interviewing
style often takes an idiosyncratic approach that gains insights that a more
straightforward approach would fail to reveal, especially when the interviewee
already knows him (as is sometimes the case). Less analytical and technical
than Stuart Goldsmith’s show, but more likely to be funny in itself. http://www.adam-buxton.co.uk/podcasts 

Richard Herring’s Leicester Square Theatre Podcast (RHLSTP)

Another interview podcast (the guestlist of which overlaps
somewhat with that of Adam Buxton’s) in which Richard Herring (also formerly
half of a double act – Herring used to work with Stewart Lee in the ‘90s)
interviews mostly fellow comedians for about an hour in front of a live
audience at the Leicester Square Theatre (as you had perhaps already guessed
from the title). Gloriously wayward, sometimes gleefully childish, and
occasionally stomping over the boundaries of good taste, Herring won’t be to
everyone’s taste, but he knows his stuff and he’s an insightful interviewer,
especially when the chemistry really clicks with his interviewee. http://www.comedy.co.uk/podcasts/richard_herring_lst_podcast/ …

Sitcom Geeks

Hosts James Cary and Dave Cohen discuss the art of sitcom
writing for TV and Radio, either between themselves or with a guest. I
personally find this one a little more hit and miss than those above, but
there’s plenty of gold amongst their (so far) 90 episodes, not least the two
part interview with my particular current radio comedy writing hero, John
Finnemore. http://www.comedy.co.uk/podcasts/sitcom_geeks/ …

Rule of Three

I’ve saved the best till last: this one is the baby of these
choices, having only begun in April 2018, but it’s my particular favourite.
Hosts Joel Morris and Jason Hazeley (creators of those irritatingly successful
and hilarious spoof Ladybird books, and jobbing writers for all kinds of folk
across radio, TV and film) take a different, more focussed, approach to the
other four shows. To quote Joel’s introduction to the show: “We’re joined by
someone who makes comedy to talk about something funny that they love. By
taking it apart maybe we’ll learn something about how comedy works. Or we’ll
just quote bits from it and giggle till we’re finished. Both approaches are
valid.” Subjects chosen range from Armando Iannucci’s groundbreaking On the
Hour (the radio forerunner of The Day Today) to Father Ted, via a Monty Python
LP and cartoonist Leo Baxendale (creator of The Bash Street Kids). All great,
hugely entertaining, and deeply interesting. http://www.ruleofthreepod.com

Dave writes and illustrates books and comics, including the unsettling ‘Thirteen Chairs’, ‘Good Dog Bad Dog’, and contributing to The Phoenix. His latest offering, ‘The Book Case‘, is a gloriously madcap tale beginning the adventures of a trainee Assistant Assistant Librarian (there are more to come, hooray!). Honestly, one of my favourite books since ‘A Boy and a Bear in a Boat’.