“Thanks for laughing!”
Mrs Barbara Nice, everyone’s favourite mum and antidote to a ‘right shite’ day, is never one to just potter off stage after a gig. Her performances always takes us ‘higher and hiya’ but even we were surprised to witness just how agile she is for her age when she ended her headline set at Wednesday’s competition heat ‘luging’ down the spiral staircase at Manchester’s Frog and Bucket. Clearly not from the generation that respects health and safety regulations. Of course, this is what keeps comedy so fun and unpredictable, you can never be certain of what’s going to happen next, whether you’re a performer or a member of the audience.
Manchester’s The Frog and Bucket
Our contenders were faced with this very unpredictability on Wednesday in the form of a hen party. As we know, hen parties are synonymous the world over (or perhaps just Britain) with behaviour that’s far from genteel or ladylike. Perhaps not the most ideal punters for your competition heat set. However, that’s the real world – not least of comedy clubs – unpredictable and often unruly. The girls coped with it very professionally, particularly one comic who managed to plough through her set, undeterred by the bride-to-be getting up staggering about on crutches. For a second, I thought we’d landed upon the set of ‘Phoenix Nights.’
Number of entrants reaches record high
Founder of Funny Women Lynne Parker continues to be “blown away” by some of the talent Funny Women has seen in Birmingham and Manchester and is looking forward to Brighton’s heat this Sunday afternoon.
The number of entrants this year has reached a record-high, already exceeding last year’s number of 250. Lynne says: “It goes to show that there’s still a genuine need for a space for women to perform in, away from the pressures of the ‘boys’ brigade’. We create a friendly and supportive atmosphere, and one that’s nurturing and constructive, not gladiatorial..” She added: “We accept a huge variety of different acts and there’s never any pressure for them to be something they’re not.”
