Talking Telly: Stand Up For the Week

Hi guys! Long time no see. I would like to say that I’ve been scarce because I got a UK work visa, moved to London and have been busily working on ITV’s website or researching a new series of Newswipe. However, that would be a lie (not to mention I’ve heard nothing about a new series of Newswipe, sadly.) I actually got a pay downsizing at my last job, moved to the Midwest and have been busily redesigning websites at the TV station I now work for. But one can dream…

In any case, last Friday night was the debut of Stand Up For the Week, a new weekly standup show on C4 hosted by Patrick Kielty. The whole idea is supposed to be a throwback to the late, great 11 O’Clock Show (launching ground for Ricky Gervais and Sasha Baron Cohen) and will feature regular standup routines by Rich Hall, Jack Whitehall, Andi Osho and Kevin Bridges. Which, considering how many times I’ve seen those faces on panel shows, feels more like an all-standup version of Mock The Week.

The show was pretty good. It surely will need a few weeks to get its initial footing, because at times the comics didn’t seem to be certain of what they could say and do without getting into massive trouble. Particularly because of the unfortunate coincidence that Whitehall, who the British tabs have dubbed “the new Russell Brand”, was caught by News of the World indulging in cocaine the week before. I know, a young British comedian seen taking drugs? Shocking!

But Whitehall, whom I have quite liked on Mock The Week and Would I Lie To You? because he’s quite intelligent and not focusing his talent on boasting about how many girls he’s pulling, had to address the issue, as did Kielty at the beginning of the show by saying Whitehall had spent the week “on the naughty step.” Whitehall spent a lot of his routine talking about how his parents had expected a paparazzi swarm but only encountered one guy who might have actually been a Japanese tourist. It was a graceful way to address it without addressing it (i.e. apologizing), but it was obviously a distraction.

Another highlight of the show was Osho, who did her routine about things that have been posted online in the last week. It was a nice mix of, well, another Mock The Week segment with true standup, but it worked and it was genuinely funny. She’s apparently going to do the same thing every week, so it’s worth watching just for that.

However, the best part of the show was “The Chair”, where a celebrity has to sit in it and basically endure a minute of roasting (okay, that’s the American definition of “roasting”, which involves ruthlessly making fun of them, not the much less family-friendly English definition.) This week’s participant was former LibDem MP and Cheeky Girl shagger Lembit Opik, who I must confess to find oddly entertaining. He endured a truly painful minute on “The Chair” and in exchange got 30 seconds to plug whatever he wanted. Apparently Opik is about to start his own standup comedy career. This might be taken as either an FYI or a warning.

In any case, I kinda can’t wait to see whom they get in “The Chair” each week. I wonder if it’ll generally be a comedian or if there’s the opportunity to get someone we’d all love to see get a royal telling-off. Could I nominate John Terry for one week?

Finally, the show ended with Brendan Burns, whom apparently made his first appearance on British telly in several years after being banned for bad behavior. His routine started with him discussing being sent to rehab for, amongst other things, sex addiction, and then consisted of him describing activities with his wife that illustrated why he probably ended up there. So if C4 is looking for that line of what they can get away with, Burns probably drew it.

In all, it was a good show, and definitely one to check out if you get a chance. I suspect this next week will be excellent, because Bridges is the show’s “sports reporter” and if there’s anything that England needs to find humour in right now, it’s the state of the football side.