The way comedians banter on panel shows is not massively dissimilar to the way friends banter with each other more generally, I think as well. Obviously it's a bit more on point. But that kind of ongoing contest to make the group laugh, and the slightly jousty nature of it, where everyone's just taking the piss out of each other, or one-upping each other is very familiar, I think. He does a great job of replicating that atmosphere in his stand-up, which is no mean feat.

I know, and it's such a shame that we can't seem to get it right. We had Politically Incorrect, and then... Oh fuck, what was that show with Colin Quinn... But in both cases the comedians kept slipping into obviously prepared bits. In the end PI switched to more serious guests and debate, and Colin Quinn got cancelled. Paul Provenza's Green Room comes closer, but it's more often about industry nostalgia.

Actually, now that I think about it, what we've really done is relegated that kind of genuine interaction to the realm of the podcast. We have shit tons of comedian podcasts that have exactly the feeling we're talking about, but for some reason we can't successfully transition them to the screen.

@ Midnight is a pretty decent attempt. No surprise though that many of the guests are from exactly that comedy podcast/stand-up community.

I think that's one reason that the panel shows work so well over here. We have a lot of stand-up comedy and there is a sense of a comedy scene which plays out through clubs and touring as well as radio and tv (and in some cases podcasts). Individual states in the US might well have such a community, but it doesn't translate to a national level in the same way it does here. A question of scale and distance I suspect.

"Tough Crowd" with Colin Quinn, really enjoyed that back in the day.

What I enjoy, in this category, is comedy podcasts. Some comedy podcasters have other comics on and they will jostle. Also sometimes on these podcasts, comics will wind up in live shows on stage with each other and that can be great.

Yeah, a few of them have started doing the podcasts in front of a small audience, a concept that I think The View paved the way for, even though they're obviously a very different genre. "Baby Talk" is one that I've been enjoying, they did them first as a live show but with the knowledge that they'd eventually release the back episodes on YouTube. But still, fucking YouTube. I mean, Drunk History made the jump to real TV, so it's possible, but it still feels very much like a college kid's pipe dream instead of a legitimate step in the right direction.

Thank you sooo much for Baby Talk! Very entertaining.

As an amateur stand-up I think you'd enjoy The Comedian's Comedian podcast, if you haven't already hear of it. I was thinking about that the last time I listened to it and meant to bob on and post something but then forgot to do it.

http://www.comedianscomedian.com/

There are some really interesting interviews. It's a pretty wide range of comic too, some Brits you may not have encountered and some US comics I had never heard of before listening to his show. The host is a comedy fan as well as a stand-up himself. Very much focused on their process and how they make comedy.

I came in here to post this:

Oh yes, I know Comedian's Comedian. Some really good stuff. I've had a hard time getting into a regular listening pattern with any podcasts, unfortunately, because I just haven't figured out a way to fit them into my routine. Mostly it's just a reluctance to change my habits; I certainly could listen to things instead of watching things while I cook. There's just too much good content out there right now.

Does exposure to so many comedians make it hard to come up with original material?

I know you're asking Clod, but I wouldn't have thought it would have that effect. You might find a starting point, a structural idea, or a stylistic flourish that you then exploreand make your own ...I'd have thought.

The times I can't think of a way to approach a subject are the times when I haven't done much reading of secondary materials. Other historians expressing concepts give me ideas about how to express the concepts I want to express, and a sense of that way of thinking and layering of ideas. Similarly,I find it much easier to think in lyric or poetic terms if I've been exposing myself* to songs and poetry. It puts your brain into that kind of space.



*fnarr fnarr

Yes, I was wondering if comedians feel every idea has been done so they just try to give it a unique delivery?

I personally think the social commentary material is overdone, yeah. Oh, you're an artistic performer in Los Angeles who's against homophobia? Duh. But it doesn't constrict material so much for me, because as a general rule I tell stories. There might be a couple one-liners thrown in there referencing sexism, racism, whathaveyou, but for the most part I do real events made into hyperbole. Which works only with the right audience, granted, but you can't pick who's in front of you. (By way of apology I often warn them "I'm like a cross between Mike Birbiglia and manic depressive. I'm kidding, I'm not actually--medicated for that.")

I've never seen this guy before - he popped up on the youtube links to another standup I was watching. Very funny. Bit of a slow burn, but worth it.

That was terrible

I thought he was brilliant.