does what it says on the tin, 23 Mar 2008
I found this book both informative and easy to read. The ideas were well presented and give you the meat and two veg of comedy. The more critical reviewers are looking for something else possibly a personal comedy writer this book will not deliver that; you still need to do the ground work your self. The one criticism I would have with this book would be the over use of play on words which never make great humour. But for the basics of humour writing it hits the spot.

Lessons in VERY Old School Comedy, 04 Oct 2007
Very disappointing. Despite quoting from a few modern American comedians in the book,the comedy being taught here is SO dated. The actual humour techniques described inside might've been useful if you were writing a routine for Bob Hope in the 1950's, but bear little relation to today's comedy. Try using and performing old techniques from this book in a stand-up act like puns,wordplay, malapropisms etc , and you won't get very far in today's market, or get many laughs in the process. Do any of today's most successful comedians like Eddie Izzard, Ricky Gervais,Chris Rock,Dane Cook etc use these ancient comedy methods? Of course not. I give the book 2 stars for one interesting chapter on writer's block and brainstorming ideas, but the rest is a let-down.

Wow!, 28 Mar 2007
I've just read the other reviews on here and I'm shocked.

This is an EXCELLENT book, a detailed read on why we laugh, what is funny and what is not - and why!

If your an aspiring comedian, or just want to develop your "sense of humour" this book is for you.

Five Stars. No Question.

Ignorant, vindictive and charmless., 14 Mar 2006
After the seventh page I found myself skipping the bits written by the author and jumping instead to the quotes. When I did force myself to read the (poor) prose between the quotes, I usually found the gist could be got from the first sentence with the rest of the paragraph mere padding.
Looking from the writing style to the theory and philosophy;
While I am undecided whether the author was the bully or the bullied, I am certain that he is familiar with bullying. In fact, his philosophy of comedy largely revolves around vindictiveness of one type or another and as such provides a charmless and cynical picture of humanity as a whole.
Moving from his philosophy to his theory of getting laughs; I found it distracting when the author used bad definitions of terms and then cited examples that failed to support even his own definition (eg: "malapropism" ... which uses a pun to introduce it in the book before mistakenly citing examples of verbal imbecility as malapropisms).
If you are interested in writing comedy, I strongly recommend against this book in favour of ... something else. For me, "Writing Television Sitcoms" (Evan S. Smith) is a much stronger book with more convincing (better written and informative) arguments and a much less misanthropic view of comedy.
Just my two cents.

Save your money, time, ..., 22 Feb 2006
It will be insufficient if I just say "very poor". Although interesting in the very beginning the book is shallow and is based on teaching tricks rather improving the "self". As far as the tricks are concerned you won’t get too much either - put it in this way it is like reading a newspaper and expecting to become a great politician. What you might get is few good jokes that are cited. I am not sure it worth reading few hundreds sides of garbage for the few jokes. The quality of the book as an object is such that it felt apart after 10-20 openings.

does what it says on the tin, 23 Mar 2008
I found this book both informative and easy to read. The ideas were well presented and give you the meat and two veg of comedy. The more critical reviewers are looking for something else possibly a personal comedy writer this book will not deliver that; you still need to do the ground work your self. The one criticism I would have with this book would be the over use of play on words which never make great humour. But for the basics of humour writing it hits the spot.

Lessons in VERY Old School Comedy, 04 Oct 2007
Very disappointing. Despite quoting from a few modern American comedians in the book,the comedy being taught here is SO dated. The actual humour techniques described inside might've been useful if you were writing a routine for Bob Hope in the 1950's, but bear little relation to today's comedy. Try using and performing old techniques from this book in a stand-up act like puns,wordplay, malapropisms etc , and you won't get very far in today's market, or get many laughs in the process. Do any of today's most successful comedians like Eddie Izzard, Ricky Gervais,Chris Rock,Dane Cook etc use these ancient comedy methods? Of course not. I give the book 2 stars for one interesting chapter on writer's block and brainstorming ideas, but the rest is a let-down.

Wow!, 28 Mar 2007
I've just read the other reviews on here and I'm shocked.

This is an EXCELLENT book, a detailed read on why we laugh, what is funny and what is not - and why!

If your an aspiring comedian, or just want to develop your "sense of humour" this book is for you.

Five Stars. No Question.

Ignorant, vindictive and charmless., 14 Mar 2006
After the seventh page I found myself skipping the bits written by the author and jumping instead to the quotes. When I did force myself to read the (poor) prose between the quotes, I usually found the gist could be got from the first sentence with the rest of the paragraph mere padding.
Looking from the writing style to the theory and philosophy;
While I am undecided whether the author was the bully or the bullied, I am certain that he is familiar with bullying. In fact, his philosophy of comedy largely revolves around vindictiveness of one type or another and as such provides a charmless and cynical picture of humanity as a whole.
Moving from his philosophy to his theory of getting laughs; I found it distracting when the author used bad definitions of terms and then cited examples that failed to support even his own definition (eg: "malapropism" ... which uses a pun to introduce it in the book before mistakenly citing examples of verbal imbecility as malapropisms).
If you are interested in writing comedy, I strongly recommend against this book in favour of ... something else. For me, "Writing Television Sitcoms" (Evan S. Smith) is a much stronger book with more convincing (better written and informative) arguments and a much less misanthropic view of comedy.
Just my two cents.

Save your money, time, ..., 22 Feb 2006
It will be insufficient if I just say "very poor". Although interesting in the very beginning the book is shallow and is based on teaching tricks rather improving the "self". As far as the tricks are concerned you won’t get too much either - put it in this way it is like reading a newspaper and expecting to become a great politician. What you might get is few good jokes that are cited. I am not sure it worth reading few hundreds sides of garbage for the few jokes. The quality of the book as an object is such that it felt apart after 10-20 openings.

Outstanding guide for stand-up performers, 21 Jun 2005
An outstanding book for anyone interested in transferring their comedy ideas into a practical stand-up routine:

- The book covers the following topics:
- The Secrets of Joke Structure
- Joke Writing
- What to write jokes about
- Improving your jokes
- Assembling a routine
- POV and narrative
- Rehearsing
- Mic technique
- Performance technique
- Developing experience

Through practical advice and a series of useful excersises Greg isolates the elements of comedy on an almost scientific linguistic level. Thereby allowing the writer/performer to explore, create and fine tune their original ideas without relying on cheap gimicks or plaguerising other performers. It has more in common with a NLP text or strategic business manual than some of the more anecdote based books available, although the book does contain several anecdotes when elaborating examples.

I purchased this book initially just to help with gag writing for screenplays but have become so confident through the process that I am now putting together actual routines for public performance.

Well worth it.

A Giant Step For Comic Mankind!, 04 Jan 2003
I have been doing stand-up for a few months now and wish I'd read this before I started. Lots of very essential advice. A must-read for any new comic. Some of the stuff on joke structures was a bit complicated, but maybe I'm just stupid! Otherwise very readable and totally invaluable.

a great great book for any aspiring stand up, 19 Dec 2000
I bought the Judy Carter book but this is far superior .Its full of tips and sensible advice from writing material to something as basic as mic technique .A great buy for any aspiring stand up

does what it says on the tin, 23 Mar 2008
I found this book both informative and easy to read. The ideas were well presented and give you the meat and two veg of comedy. The more critical reviewers are looking for something else possibly a personal comedy writer this book will not deliver that; you still need to do the ground work your self. The one criticism I would have with this book would be the over use of play on words which never make great humour. But for the basics of humour writing it hits the spot.

Lessons in VERY Old School Comedy, 04 Oct 2007
Very disappointing. Despite quoting from a few modern American comedians in the book,the comedy being taught here is SO dated. The actual humour techniques described inside might've been useful if you were writing a routine for Bob Hope in the 1950's, but bear little relation to today's comedy. Try using and performing old techniques from this book in a stand-up act like puns,wordplay, malapropisms etc , and you won't get very far in today's market, or get many laughs in the process. Do any of today's most successful comedians like Eddie Izzard, Ricky Gervais,Chris Rock,Dane Cook etc use these ancient comedy methods? Of course not. I give the book 2 stars for one interesting chapter on writer's block and brainstorming ideas, but the rest is a let-down.

Wow!, 28 Mar 2007
I've just read the other reviews on here and I'm shocked.

This is an EXCELLENT book, a detailed read on why we laugh, what is funny and what is not - and why!

If your an aspiring comedian, or just want to develop your "sense of humour" this book is for you.

Five Stars. No Question.

Ignorant, vindictive and charmless., 14 Mar 2006
After the seventh page I found myself skipping the bits written by the author and jumping instead to the quotes. When I did force myself to read the (poor) prose between the quotes, I usually found the gist could be got from the first sentence with the rest of the paragraph mere padding.
Looking from the writing style to the theory and philosophy;
While I am undecided whether the author was the bully or the bullied, I am certain that he is familiar with bullying. In fact, his philosophy of comedy largely revolves around vindictiveness of one type or another and as such provides a charmless and cynical picture of humanity as a whole.
Moving from his philosophy to his theory of getting laughs; I found it distracting when the author used bad definitions of terms and then cited examples that failed to support even his own definition (eg: "malapropism" ... which uses a pun to introduce it in the book before mistakenly citing examples of verbal imbecility as malapropisms).
If you are interested in writing comedy, I strongly recommend against this book in favour of ... something else. For me, "Writing Television Sitcoms" (Evan S. Smith) is a much stronger book with more convincing (better written and informative) arguments and a much less misanthropic view of comedy.
Just my two cents.

Save your money, time, ..., 22 Feb 2006
It will be insufficient if I just say "very poor". Although interesting in the very beginning the book is shallow and is based on teaching tricks rather improving the "self". As far as the tricks are concerned you won’t get too much either - put it in this way it is like reading a newspaper and expecting to become a great politician. What you might get is few good jokes that are cited. I am not sure it worth reading few hundreds sides of garbage for the few jokes. The quality of the book as an object is such that it felt apart after 10-20 openings.

Outstanding guide for stand-up performers, 21 Jun 2005
An outstanding book for anyone interested in transferring their comedy ideas into a practical stand-up routine:

- The book covers the following topics:
- The Secrets of Joke Structure
- Joke Writing
- What to write jokes about
- Improving your jokes
- Assembling a routine
- POV and narrative
- Rehearsing
- Mic technique
- Performance technique
- Developing experience

Through practical advice and a series of useful excersises Greg isolates the elements of comedy on an almost scientific linguistic level. Thereby allowing the writer/performer to explore, create and fine tune their original ideas without relying on cheap gimicks or plaguerising other performers. It has more in common with a NLP text or strategic business manual than some of the more anecdote based books available, although the book does contain several anecdotes when elaborating examples.

I purchased this book initially just to help with gag writing for screenplays but have become so confident through the process that I am now putting together actual routines for public performance.

Well worth it.

A Giant Step For Comic Mankind!, 04 Jan 2003
I have been doing stand-up for a few months now and wish I'd read this before I started. Lots of very essential advice. A must-read for any new comic. Some of the stuff on joke structures was a bit complicated, but maybe I'm just stupid! Otherwise very readable and totally invaluable.

a great great book for any aspiring stand up, 19 Dec 2000
I bought the Judy Carter book but this is far superior .Its full of tips and sensible advice from writing material to something as basic as mic technique .A great buy for any aspiring stand up

old dog - new tricks, 25 Jul 2007
First a confession: a few years ago I was subject to ritual humiliation in one of John Wright's workshops - each time I reluctantly clambered to my feet to engage with one of his exercises my efforts were greeted by a forest of hands telling me I was patently not interesting and certainly not amusing. (Read the book for reference to this exercise) I went away feeling bruised and somewhat resentful of those to whom clowning and buffoonery appeared to come easily. It was only later that I realised I had been taught an incredibly valuable lesson, and one that should have been obvious to a drama professional: always pay attention to your audience - they will let you know if they like what you are doing - and if they don't - try doing something else.

This book is a manual of useful exercises; a personal philosophy of performance; and a lifelong journey of discovery and exploration around the broad area of theatrical clowning and physical comedy. It is written in a jargon-free style, whose use of self-effacing anecdote made me laugh out loud on a number of occasions. The descriptions of the exercises are precise and detailed, enabling the experienced teacher to visualise and adapt easily. The book has a resemblance to Keith Johnstone's classic text 'Impro', in both its structural format and its very real enjoyment of and passionate engagement with its subject matter. In a time where educators are encouraged to 'facilitate' rather than teach, where the notion of 'failure' has been erased from the curriculum, John Wright teaches us the most valuable lesson of all - failure is fundamentally and absolutely how we learn - we just have to 'keep getting up', keep taking risks, and keep trying new things - and always, always, watch the audience.

Real work and highly recommended! , 29 Dec 2006
This book clearly lays out the fundamentals of John Wright's work. It breaks apart acting clichés and the far too frequent stuffiness of theater. It gives theater makers and performers tools and practical exercises that really work. And it will help you to make work! He draws on his vast experience and explorations with actors and other great master teachers and theater makers. His work is liberating and inspiring and this book reads that way. And it's about alot more than just comedy. It will make you want to go out and make a play right away. Your work will be better for it.

does what it says on the tin, 23 Mar 2008
I found this book both informative and easy to read. The ideas were well presented and give you the meat and two veg of comedy. The more critical reviewers are looking for something else possibly a personal comedy writer this book will not deliver that; you still need to do the ground work your self. The one criticism I would have with this book would be the over use of play on words which never make great humour. But for the basics of humour writing it hits the spot.

Lessons in VERY Old School Comedy, 04 Oct 2007
Very disappointing. Despite quoting from a few modern American comedians in the book,the comedy being taught here is SO dated. The actual humour techniques described inside might've been useful if you were writing a routine for Bob Hope in the 1950's, but bear little relation to today's comedy. Try using and performing old techniques from this book in a stand-up act like puns,wordplay, malapropisms etc , and you won't get very far in today's market, or get many laughs in the process. Do any of today's most successful comedians like Eddie Izzard, Ricky Gervais,Chris Rock,Dane Cook etc use these ancient comedy methods? Of course not. I give the book 2 stars for one interesting chapter on writer's block and brainstorming ideas, but the rest is a let-down.

Wow!, 28 Mar 2007
I've just read the other reviews on here and I'm shocked.

This is an EXCELLENT book, a detailed read on why we laugh, what is funny and what is not - and why!

If your an aspiring comedian, or just want to develop your "sense of humour" this book is for you.

Five Stars. No Question.

Ignorant, vindictive and charmless., 14 Mar 2006
After the seventh page I found myself skipping the bits written by the author and jumping instead to the quotes. When I did force myself to read the (poor) prose between the quotes, I usually found the gist could be got from the first sentence with the rest of the paragraph mere padding.
Looking from the writing style to the theory and philosophy;
While I am undecided whether the author was the bully or the bullied, I am certain that he is familiar with bullying. In fact, his philosophy of comedy largely revolves around vindictiveness of one type or another and as such provides a charmless and cynical picture of humanity as a whole.
Moving from his philosophy to his theory of getting laughs; I found it distracting when the author used bad definitions of terms and then cited examples that failed to support even his own definition (eg: "malapropism" ... which uses a pun to introduce it in the book before mistakenly citing examples of verbal imbecility as malapropisms).
If you are interested in writing comedy, I strongly recommend against this book in favour of ... something else. For me, "Writing Television Sitcoms" (Evan S. Smith) is a much stronger book with more convincing (better written and informative) arguments and a much less misanthropic view of comedy.
Just my two cents.

Save your money, time, ..., 22 Feb 2006
It will be insufficient if I just say "very poor". Although interesting in the very beginning the book is shallow and is based on teaching tricks rather improving the "self". As far as the tricks are concerned you won’t get too much either - put it in this way it is like reading a newspaper and expecting to become a great politician. What you might get is few good jokes that are cited. I am not sure it worth reading few hundreds sides of garbage for the few jokes. The quality of the book as an object is such that it felt apart after 10-20 openings.

Outstanding guide for stand-up performers, 21 Jun 2005
An outstanding book for anyone interested in transferring their comedy ideas into a practical stand-up routine:

- The book covers the following topics:
- The Secrets of Joke Structure
- Joke Writing
- What to write jokes about
- Improving your jokes
- Assembling a routine
- POV and narrative
- Rehearsing
- Mic technique
- Performance technique
- Developing experience

Through practical advice and a series of useful excersises Greg isolates the elements of comedy on an almost scientific linguistic level. Thereby allowing the writer/performer to explore, create and fine tune their original ideas without relying on cheap gimicks or plaguerising other performers. It has more in common with a NLP text or strategic business manual than some of the more anecdote based books available, although the book does contain several anecdotes when elaborating examples.

I purchased this book initially just to help with gag writing for screenplays but have become so confident through the process that I am now putting together actual routines for public performance.

Well worth it.

A Giant Step For Comic Mankind!, 04 Jan 2003
I have been doing stand-up for a few months now and wish I'd read this before I started. Lots of very essential advice. A must-read for any new comic. Some of the stuff on joke structures was a bit complicated, but maybe I'm just stupid! Otherwise very readable and totally invaluable.

a great great book for any aspiring stand up, 19 Dec 2000
I bought the Judy Carter book but this is far superior .Its full of tips and sensible advice from writing material to something as basic as mic technique .A great buy for any aspiring stand up

old dog - new tricks, 25 Jul 2007
First a confession: a few years ago I was subject to ritual humiliation in one of John Wright's workshops - each time I reluctantly clambered to my feet to engage with one of his exercises my efforts were greeted by a forest of hands telling me I was patently not interesting and certainly not amusing. (Read the book for reference to this exercise) I went away feeling bruised and somewhat resentful of those to whom clowning and buffoonery appeared to come easily. It was only later that I realised I had been taught an incredibly valuable lesson, and one that should have been obvious to a drama professional: always pay attention to your audience - they will let you know if they like what you are doing - and if they don't - try doing something else.

This book is a manual of useful exercises; a personal philosophy of performance; and a lifelong journey of discovery and exploration around the broad area of theatrical clowning and physical comedy. It is written in a jargon-free style, whose use of self-effacing anecdote made me laugh out loud on a number of occasions. The descriptions of the exercises are precise and detailed, enabling the experienced teacher to visualise and adapt easily. The book has a resemblance to Keith Johnstone's classic text 'Impro', in both its structural format and its very real enjoyment of and passionate engagement with its subject matter. In a time where educators are encouraged to 'facilitate' rather than teach, where the notion of 'failure' has been erased from the curriculum, John Wright teaches us the most valuable lesson of all - failure is fundamentally and absolutely how we learn - we just have to 'keep getting up', keep taking risks, and keep trying new things - and always, always, watch the audience.

Real work and highly recommended! , 29 Dec 2006
This book clearly lays out the fundamentals of John Wright's work. It breaks apart acting clichés and the far too frequent stuffiness of theater. It gives theater makers and performers tools and practical exercises that really work. And it will help you to make work! He draws on his vast experience and explorations with actors and other great master teachers and theater makers. His work is liberating and inspiring and this book reads that way. And it's about alot more than just comedy. It will make you want to go out and make a play right away. Your work will be better for it.

I laughed until I felt sick, 01 Aug 2000
Hilarious..... I can thoroughly recommend this to anybody who wants to read witty, imaginative writing by two slightly mad women - brilliant could not recommend it more if I tried.

Great. Really funny. Extremely entertaining., 21 Jul 2000
Really entertaining and humourous. Did not anticipate how much I would enjoy and welcome these two "Ladies". The writing is superb and the humour sharp and biting!

does what it says on the tin, 23 Mar 2008
I found this book both informative and easy to read. The ideas were well presented and give you the meat and two veg of comedy. The more critical reviewers are looking for something else possibly a personal comedy writer this book will not deliver that; you still need to do the ground work your self. The one criticism I would have with this book would be the over use of play on words which never make great humour. But for the basics of humour writing it hits the spot.

Lessons in VERY Old School Comedy, 04 Oct 2007
Very disappointing. Despite quoting from a few modern American comedians in the book,the comedy being taught here is SO dated. The actual humour techniques described inside might've been useful if you were writing a routine for Bob Hope in the 1950's, but bear little relation to today's comedy. Try using and performing old techniques from this book in a stand-up act like puns,wordplay, malapropisms etc , and you won't get very far in today's market, or get many laughs in the process. Do any of today's most successful comedians like Eddie Izzard, Ricky Gervais,Chris Rock,Dane Cook etc use these ancient comedy methods? Of course not. I give the book 2 stars for one interesting chapter on writer's block and brainstorming ideas, but the rest is a let-down.

Wow!, 28 Mar 2007
I've just read the other reviews on here and I'm shocked.

This is an EXCELLENT book, a detailed read on why we laugh, what is funny and what is not - and why!

If your an aspiring comedian, or just want to develop your "sense of humour" this book is for you.

Five Stars. No Question.

Ignorant, vindictive and charmless., 14 Mar 2006
After the seventh page I found myself skipping the bits written by the author and jumping instead to the quotes. When I did force myself to read the (poor) prose between the quotes, I usually found the gist could be got from the first sentence with the rest of the paragraph mere padding.
Looking from the writing style to the theory and philosophy;
While I am undecided whether the author was the bully or the bullied, I am certain that he is familiar with bullying. In fact, his philosophy of comedy largely revolves around vindictiveness of one type or another and as such provides a charmless and cynical picture of humanity as a whole.
Moving from his philosophy to his theory of getting laughs; I found it distracting when the author used bad definitions of terms and then cited examples that failed to support even his own definition (eg: "malapropism" ... which uses a pun to introduce it in the book before mistakenly citing examples of verbal imbecility as malapropisms).
If you are interested in writing comedy, I strongly recommend against this book in favour of ... something else. For me, "Writing Television Sitcoms" (Evan S. Smith) is a much stronger book with more convincing (better written and informative) arguments and a much less misanthropic view of comedy.
Just my two cents.

Save your money, time, ..., 22 Feb 2006
It will be insufficient if I just say "very poor". Although interesting in the very beginning the book is shallow and is based on teaching tricks rather improving the "self". As far as the tricks are concerned you won’t get too much either - put it in this way it is like reading a newspaper and expecting to become a great politician. What you might get is few good jokes that are cited. I am not sure it worth reading few hundreds sides of garbage for the few jokes. The quality of the book as an object is such that it felt apart after 10-20 openings.

Outstanding guide for stand-up performers, 21 Jun 2005
An outstanding book for anyone interested in transferring their comedy ideas into a practical stand-up routine:

- The book covers the following topics:
- The Secrets of Joke Structure
- Joke Writing
- What to write jokes about
- Improving your jokes
- Assembling a routine
- POV and narrative
- Rehearsing
- Mic technique
- Performance technique
- Developing experience

Through practical advice and a series of useful excersises Greg isolates the elements of comedy on an almost scientific linguistic level. Thereby allowing the writer/performer to explore, create and fine tune their original ideas without relying on cheap gimicks or plaguerising other performers. It has more in common with a NLP text or strategic business manual than some of the more anecdote based books available, although the book does contain several anecdotes when elaborating examples.

I purchased this book initially just to help with gag writing for screenplays but have become so confident through the process that I am now putting together actual routines for public performance.

Well worth it.

A Giant Step For Comic Mankind!, 04 Jan 2003
I have been doing stand-up for a few months now and wish I'd read this before I started. Lots of very essential advice. A must-read for any new comic. Some of the stuff on joke structures was a bit complicated, but maybe I'm just stupid! Otherwise very readable and totally invaluable.

a great great book for any aspiring stand up, 19 Dec 2000
I bought the Judy Carter book but this is far superior .Its full of tips and sensible advice from writing material to something as basic as mic technique .A great buy for any aspiring stand up

old dog - new tricks, 25 Jul 2007
First a confession: a few years ago I was subject to ritual humiliation in one of John Wright's workshops - each time I reluctantly clambered to my feet to engage with one of his exercises my efforts were greeted by a forest of hands telling me I was patently not interesting and certainly not amusing. (Read the book for reference to this exercise) I went away feeling bruised and somewhat resentful of those to whom clowning and buffoonery appeared to come easily. It was only later that I realised I had been taught an incredibly valuable lesson, and one that should have been obvious to a drama professional: always pay attention to your audience - they will let you know if they like what you are doing - and if they don't - try doing something else.

This book is a manual of useful exercises; a personal philosophy of performance; and a lifelong journey of discovery and exploration around the broad area of theatrical clowning and physical comedy. It is written in a jargon-free style, whose use of self-effacing anecdote made me laugh out loud on a number of occasions. The descriptions of the exercises are precise and detailed, enabling the experienced teacher to visualise and adapt easily. The book has a resemblance to Keith Johnstone's classic text 'Impro', in both its structural format and its very real enjoyment of and passionate engagement with its subject matter. In a time where educators are encouraged to 'facilitate' rather than teach, where the notion of 'failure' has been erased from the curriculum, John Wright teaches us the most valuable lesson of all - failure is fundamentally and absolutely how we learn - we just have to 'keep getting up', keep taking risks, and keep trying new things - and always, always, watch the audience.

Real work and highly recommended! , 29 Dec 2006
This book clearly lays out the fundamentals of John Wright's work. It breaks apart acting clichés and the far too frequent stuffiness of theater. It gives theater makers and performers tools and practical exercises that really work. And it will help you to make work! He draws on his vast experience and explorations with actors and other great master teachers and theater makers. His work is liberating and inspiring and this book reads that way. And it's about alot more than just comedy. It will make you want to go out and make a play right away. Your work will be better for it.

I laughed until I felt sick, 01 Aug 2000
Hilarious..... I can thoroughly recommend this to anybody who wants to read witty, imaginative writing by two slightly mad women - brilliant could not recommend it more if I tried.

Great. Really funny. Extremely entertaining., 21 Jul 2000
Really entertaining and humourous. Did not anticipate how much I would enjoy and welcome these two "Ladies". The writing is superb and the humour sharp and biting!

A goldmine for the beginner!, 14 Oct 2008
I'd done two open mic spots before getting this and let's just say they didn't go fantastically!
With the help of this book I have managed to write some fantastic new material. All of which I managed to mine out of my own head thanks to the techniques I picked up form this book. I would recommend this to anyone who has suffered with the dreaded writers block, as it offers all kinds of writing ideas that will get your creative juices flowing again.

While there are a lot of useful exercises for the individual working alone, there are twice as many for those working in groups (No use to me but great if you're working with other trainee comedians!). Even so, there's plenty for the lone writer to get stuck into, including a complete set building workshop.

This book follows the standard format of the Teach Yourself range which is easy to follow and packed with handy tips and words of wisdom from other comedians. Taking you from the history of stand-up through comedy theory, joke theory & routine building right up to stagecraft and the all important business side.

The best all-inclusive starter guide money can buy.., 13 Feb 2008
I say the best all-inclusive starter guide *money* can buy, having said that bartering or exchanging love or other goods might find you a better guide.

This is a fantastic book - giving you a good guide of basic how to do everything on stage - from mic usage to pausing and working the room - as well as excellent stuff on how to generate material and ways to come up with different ways of doing the joke. Oh, and afterthought everything.

I want my money back..., 13 Dec 2007
I did Logan's comedy course and died on stage... That I died on stage is no surprise but that I managed to get the bottle to do it at all is a testament to his great teaching skills. This book gets the message across well but there's nowt like giving it a go - highly recommend the Amused Moose courses...

Essential, 02 Nov 2007
As well as being a stand up himself Logan Murray has been running the Amused Moose beginners comedy course in London for some while. So walking newbies carefully through the minefield of comedy without the loss of comedy limbs is his speciality. I would thoroughly recommend the book for anyone toying with the idea of giving stand up a go or for beginners on the circuit looking to polish up their act.

does what it says on the tin, 23 Mar 2008
I found this book both informative and easy to read. The ideas were well presented and give you the meat and two veg of comedy. The more critical reviewers are looking for something else possibly a personal comedy writer this book will not deliver that; you still need to do the ground work your self. The one criticism I would have with this book would be the over use of play on words which never make great humour. But for the basics of humour writing it hits the spot.

Lessons in VERY Old School Comedy, 04 Oct 2007
Very disappointing. Despite quoting from a few modern American comedians in the book,the comedy being taught here is SO dated. The actual humour techniques described inside might've been useful if you were writing a routine for Bob Hope in the 1950's, but bear little relation to today's comedy. Try using and performing old techniques from this book in a stand-up act like puns,wordplay, malapropisms etc , and you won't get very far in today's market, or get many laughs in the process. Do any of today's most successful comedians like Eddie Izzard, Ricky Gervais,Chris Rock,Dane Cook etc use these ancient comedy methods? Of course not. I give the book 2 stars for one interesting chapter on writer's block and brainstorming ideas, but the rest is a let-down.

Wow!, 28 Mar 2007
I've just read the other reviews on here and I'm shocked.

This is an EXCELLENT book, a detailed read on why we laugh, what is funny and what is not - and why!

If your an aspiring comedian, or just want to develop your "sense of humour" this book is for you.

Five Stars. No Question.

Ignorant, vindictive and charmless., 14 Mar 2006
After the seventh page I found myself skipping the bits written by the author and jumping instead to the quotes. When I did force myself to read the (poor) prose between the quotes, I usually found the gist could be got from the first sentence with the rest of the paragraph mere padding.
Looking from the writing style to the theory and philosophy;
While I am undecided whether the author was the bully or the bullied, I am certain that he is familiar with bullying. In fact, his philosophy of comedy largely revolves around vindictiveness of one type or another and as such provides a charmless and cynical picture of humanity as a whole.
Moving from his philosophy to his theory of getting laughs; I found it distracting when the author used bad definitions of terms and then cited examples that failed to support even his own definition (eg: "malapropism" ... which uses a pun to introduce it in the book before mistakenly citing examples of verbal imbecility as malapropisms).
If you are interested in writing comedy, I strongly recommend against this book in favour of ... something else. For me, "Writing Television Sitcoms" (Evan S. Smith) is a much stronger book with more convincing (better written and informative) arguments and a much less misanthropic view of comedy.
Just my two cents.

Save your money, time, ..., 22 Feb 2006
It will be insufficient if I just say "very poor". Although interesting in the very beginning the book is shallow and is based on teaching tricks rather improving the "self". As far as the tricks are concerned you won’t get too much either - put it in this way it is like reading a newspaper and expecting to become a great politician. What you might get is few good jokes that are cited. I am not sure it worth reading few hundreds sides of garbage for the few jokes. The quality of the book as an object is such that it felt apart after 10-20 openings.

Outstanding guide for stand-up performers, 21 Jun 2005
An outstanding book for anyone interested in transferring their comedy ideas into a practical stand-up routine:

- The book covers the following topics:
- The Secrets of Joke Structure
- Joke Writing
- What to write jokes about
- Improving your jokes
- Assembling a routine
- POV and narrative
- Rehearsing
- Mic technique
- Performance technique
- Developing experience

Through practical advice and a series of useful excersises Greg isolates the elements of comedy on an almost scientific linguistic level. Thereby allowing the writer/performer to explore, create and fine tune their original ideas without relying on cheap gimicks or plaguerising other performers. It has more in common with a NLP text or strategic business manual than some of the more anecdote based books available, although the book does contain several anecdotes when elaborating examples.

I purchased this book initially just to help with gag writing for screenplays but have become so confident through the process that I am now putting together actual routines for public performance.

Well worth it.

A Giant Step For Comic Mankind!, 04 Jan 2003
I have been doing stand-up for a few months now and wish I'd read this before I started. Lots of very essential advice. A must-read for any new comic. Some of the stuff on joke structures was a bit complicated, but maybe I'm just stupid! Otherwise very readable and totally invaluable.

a great great book for any aspiring stand up, 19 Dec 2000
I bought the Judy Carter book but this is far superior .Its full of tips and sensible advice from writing material to something as basic as mic technique .A great buy for any aspiring stand up

old dog - new tricks, 25 Jul 2007
First a confession: a few years ago I was subject to ritual humiliation in one of John Wright's workshops - each time I reluctantly clambered to my feet to engage with one of his exercises my efforts were greeted by a forest of hands telling me I was patently not interesting and certainly not amusing. (Read the book for reference to this exercise) I went away feeling bruised and somewhat resentful of those to whom clowning and buffoonery appeared to come easily. It was only later that I realised I had been taught an incredibly valuable lesson, and one that should have been obvious to a drama professional: always pay attention to your audience - they will let you know if they like what you are doing - and if they don't - try doing something else.

This book is a manual of useful exercises; a personal philosophy of performance; and a lifelong journey of discovery and exploration around the broad area of theatrical clowning and physical comedy. It is written in a jargon-free style, whose use of self-effacing anecdote made me laugh out loud on a number of occasions. The descriptions of the exercises are precise and detailed, enabling the experienced teacher to visualise and adapt easily. The book has a resemblance to Keith Johnstone's classic text 'Impro', in both its structural format and its very real enjoyment of and passionate engagement with its subject matter. In a time where educators are encouraged to 'facilitate' rather than teach, where the notion of 'failure' has been erased from the curriculum, John Wright teaches us the most valuable lesson of all - failure is fundamentally and absolutely how we learn - we just have to 'keep getting up', keep taking risks, and keep trying new things - and always, always, watch the audience.

Real work and highly recommended! , 29 Dec 2006
This book clearly lays out the fundamentals of John Wright's work. It breaks apart acting clichés and the far too frequent stuffiness of theater. It gives theater makers and performers tools and practical exercises that really work. And it will help you to make work! He draws on his vast experience and explorations with actors and other great master teachers and theater makers. His work is liberating and inspiring and this book reads that way. And it's about alot more than just comedy. It will make you want to go out and make a play right away. Your work will be better for it.

I laughed until I felt sick, 01 Aug 2000
Hilarious..... I can thoroughly recommend this to anybody who wants to read witty, imaginative writing by two slightly mad women - brilliant could not recommend it more if I tried.

Great. Really funny. Extremely entertaining., 21 Jul 2000
Really entertaining and humourous. Did not anticipate how much I would enjoy and welcome these two "Ladies". The writing is superb and the humour sharp and biting!

A goldmine for the beginner!, 14 Oct 2008
I'd done two open mic spots before getting this and let's just say they didn't go fantastically!
With the help of this book I have managed to write some fantastic new material. All of which I managed to mine out of my own head thanks to the techniques I picked up form this book. I would recommend this to anyone who has suffered with the dreaded writers block, as it offers all kinds of writing ideas that will get your creative juices flowing again.

While there are a lot of useful exercises for the individual working alone, there are twice as many for those working in groups (No use to me but great if you're working with other trainee comedians!). Even so, there's plenty for the lone writer to get stuck into, including a complete set building workshop.

This book follows the standard format of the Teach Yourself range which is easy to follow and packed with handy tips and words of wisdom from other comedians. Taking you from the history of stand-up through comedy theory, joke theory & routine building right up to stagecraft and the all important business side.

The best all-inclusive starter guide money can buy.., 13 Feb 2008
I say the best all-inclusive starter guide *money* can buy, having said that bartering or exchanging love or other goods might find you a better guide.

This is a fantastic book - giving you a good guide of basic how to do everything on stage - from mic usage to pausing and working the room - as well as excellent stuff on how to generate material and ways to come up with different ways of doing the joke. Oh, and afterthought everything.

I want my money back..., 13 Dec 2007
I did Logan's comedy course and died on stage... That I died on stage is no surprise but that I managed to get the bottle to do it at all is a testament to his great teaching skills. This book gets the message across well but there's nowt like giving it a go - highly recommend the Amused Moose courses...

Essential, 02 Nov 2007
As well as being a stand up himself Logan Murray has been running the Amused Moose beginners comedy course in London for some while. So walking newbies carefully through the minefield of comedy without the loss of comedy limbs is his speciality. I would thoroughly recommend the book for anyone toying with the idea of giving stand up a go or for beginners on the circuit looking to polish up their act.

A Stand-up Comedy Bible, 09 Nov 2002
I picked up "Comic Insights" because they're aren't any good books on comedy by British authors and I was a fan of Jerry Seinfeld, Roseanne, Chris Rock, Garry Shandling, and Ellen DeGeneres--the only American comedians in the book I knew. Comic Insights is clearly aimed as a manual for the aspiring stand-up, and the aspiring American stand-up at that. Given the indefinable nature of comedy, Ajaye sensibly steers well clear of providing advice on how to be funny, concentrating instead on how to be more funny.

It's a book of three unequal thirds, starting with a definitive 'how to' guide for the would-be stand-up. This section is jam-packed with invaluable pearls of wisdom about the mechanics of the craft. These basic tips are often common sense, and are generally regarded as universal truths among performers, but they do need to be said, especially for the rookie.

Mostly, the key is self-awareness: knowing what makes your voice and persona uniquely funny; knowing how your delivery, stage presence and timing went,; and knowing how that affected the laughs you get.

Sensibly, Ajaye recommends aspiring stand-ups study their comedy idols to find out what makes them funny (though definitely not trying to blindly emulate them) and suggests you always record your faltering efforts on stage to analyse what went wrong - or right.

The book's crammed full of such fundamental tips, which no rookie should take to the stage without knowing.

Occasionally the language veers into the unfortunate buzzwords of the training industry, but there's no diluting the rock-solid advice at the heart of it.

The book is very incisive and has a wealth of good information that can help anybody starting out as a comic now matter what country they live in. The experiences and the insights on performing by all the comics in the book were extremely valuable, and their philosophies about comedy and life were interesting and very revealing. I found myself just as interested in the comics I didn't know as well as those I did. I heartily recommend this book to anyone who is thinking about being a comedian. You can't go wrong.

does what it says on the tin, 23 Mar 2008
I found this book both informative and easy to read. The ideas were well presented and give you the meat and two veg of comedy. The more critical reviewers are looking for something else possibly a personal comedy writer this book will not deliver that; you still need to do the ground work your self. The one criticism I would have with this book would be the over use of play on words which never make great humour. But for the basics of humour writing it hits the spot.

Lessons in VERY Old School Comedy, 04 Oct 2007
Very disappointing. Despite quoting from a few modern American comedians in the book,the comedy being taught here is SO dated. The actual humour techniques described inside might've been useful if you were writing a routine for Bob Hope in the 1950's, but bear little relation to today's comedy. Try using and performing old techniques from this book in a stand-up act like puns,wordplay, malapropisms etc , and you won't get very far in today's market, or get many laughs in the process. Do any of today's most successful comedians like Eddie Izzard, Ricky Gervais,Chris Rock,Dane Cook etc use these ancient comedy methods? Of course not. I give the book 2 stars for one interesting chapter on writer's block and brainstorming ideas, but the rest is a let-down.

Wow!, 28 Mar 2007
I've just read the other reviews on here and I'm shocked.

This is an EXCELLENT book, a detailed read on why we laugh, what is funny and what is not - and why!

If your an aspiring comedian, or just want to develop your "sense of humour" this book is for you.

Five Stars. No Question.

Ignorant, vindictive and charmless., 14 Mar 2006
After the seventh page I found myself skipping the bits written by the author and jumping instead to the quotes. When I did force myself to read the (poor) prose between the quotes, I usually found the gist could be got from the first sentence with the rest of the paragraph mere padding.
Looking from the writing style to the theory and philosophy;
While I am undecided whether the author was the bully or the bullied, I am certain that he is familiar with bullying. In fact, his philosophy of comedy largely revolves around vindictiveness of one type or another and as such provides a charmless and cynical picture of humanity as a whole.
Moving from his philosophy to his theory of getting laughs; I found it distracting when the author used bad definitions of terms and then cited examples that failed to support even his own definition (eg: "malapropism" ... which uses a pun to introduce it in the book before mistakenly citing examples of verbal imbecility as malapropisms).
If you are interested in writing comedy, I strongly recommend against this book in favour of ... something else. For me, "Writing Television Sitcoms" (Evan S. Smith) is a much stronger book with more convincing (better written and informative) arguments and a much less misanthropic view of comedy.
Just my two cents.

Save your money, time, ..., 22 Feb 2006
It will be insufficient if I just say "very poor". Although interesting in the very beginning the book is shallow and is based on teaching tricks rather improving the "self". As far as the tricks are concerned you won’t get too much either - put it in this way it is like reading a newspaper and expecting to become a great politician. What you might get is few good jokes that are cited. I am not sure it worth reading few hundreds sides of garbage for the few jokes. The quality of the book as an object is such that it felt apart after 10-20 openings.

Outstanding guide for stand-up performers, 21 Jun 2005
An outstanding book for anyone interested in transferring their comedy ideas into a practical stand-up routine:

- The book covers the following topics:
- The Secrets of Joke Structure
- Joke Writing
- What to write jokes about
- Improving your jokes
- Assembling a routine
- POV and narrative
- Rehearsing
- Mic technique
- Performance technique
- Developing experience

Through practical advice and a series of useful excersises Greg isolates the elements of comedy on an almost scientific linguistic level. Thereby allowing the writer/performer to explore, create and fine tune their original ideas without relying on cheap gimicks or plaguerising other performers. It has more in common with a NLP text or strategic business manual than some of the more anecdote based books available, although the book does contain several anecdotes when elaborating examples.

I purchased this book initially just to help with gag writing for screenplays but have become so confident through the process that I am now putting together actual routines for public performance.

Well worth it.

A Giant Step For Comic Mankind!, 04 Jan 2003
I have been doing stand-up for a few months now and wish I'd read this before I started. Lots of very essential advice. A must-read for any new comic. Some of the stuff on joke structures was a bit complicated, but maybe I'm just stupid! Otherwise very readable and totally invaluable.

a great great book for any aspiring stand up, 19 Dec 2000
I bought the Judy Carter book but this is far superior .Its full of tips and sensible advice from writing material to something as basic as mic technique .A great buy for any aspiring stand up

old dog - new tricks, 25 Jul 2007
First a confession: a few years ago I was subject to ritual humiliation in one of John Wright's workshops - each time I reluctantly clambered to my feet to engage with one of his exercises my efforts were greeted by a forest of hands telling me I was patently not interesting and certainly not amusing. (Read the book for reference to this exercise) I went away feeling bruised and somewhat resentful of those to whom clowning and buffoonery appeared to come easily. It was only later that I realised I had been taught an incredibly valuable lesson, and one that should have been obvious to a drama professional: always pay attention to your audience - they will let you know if they like what you are doing - and if they don't - try doing something else.

This book is a manual of useful exercises; a personal philosophy of performance; and a lifelong journey of discovery and exploration around the broad area of theatrical clowning and physical comedy. It is written in a jargon-free style, whose use of self-effacing anecdote made me laugh out loud on a number of occasions. The descriptions of the exercises are precise and detailed, enabling the experienced teacher to visualise and adapt easily. The book has a resemblance to Keith Johnstone's classic text 'Impro', in both its structural format and its very real enjoyment of and passionate engagement with its subject matter. In a time where educators are encouraged to 'facilitate' rather than teach, where the notion of 'failure' has been erased from the curriculum, John Wright teaches us the most valuable lesson of all - failure is fundamentally and absolutely how we learn - we just have to 'keep getting up', keep taking risks, and keep trying new things - and always, always, watch the audience.

Real work and highly recommended! , 29 Dec 2006
This book clearly lays out the fundamentals of John Wright's work. It breaks apart acting clichés and the far too frequent stuffiness of theater. It gives theater makers and performers tools and practical exercises that really work. And it will help you to make work! He draws on his vast experience and explorations with actors and other great master teachers and theater makers. His work is liberating and inspiring and this book reads that way. And it's about alot more than just comedy. It will make you want to go out and make a play right away. Your work will be better for it.

I laughed until I felt sick, 01 Aug 2000
Hilarious..... I can thoroughly recommend this to anybody who wants to read witty, imaginative writing by two slightly mad women - brilliant could not recommend it more if I tried.

Great. Really funny. Extremely entertaining., 21 Jul 2000
Really entertaining and humourous. Did not anticipate how much I would enjoy and welcome these two "Ladies". The writing is superb and the humour sharp and biting!

A goldmine for the beginner!, 14 Oct 2008
I'd done two open mic spots before getting this and let's just say they didn't go fantastically!
With the help of this book I have managed to write some fantastic new material. All of which I managed to mine out of my own head thanks to the techniques I picked up form this book. I would recommend this to anyone who has suffered with the dreaded writers block, as it offers all kinds of writing ideas that will get your creative juices flowing again.

While there are a lot of useful exercises for the individual working alone, there are twice as many for those working in groups (No use to me but great if you're working with other trainee comedians!). Even so, there's plenty for the lone writer to get stuck into, including a complete set building workshop.

This book follows the standard format of the Teach Yourself range which is easy to follow and packed with handy tips and words of wisdom from other comedians. Taking you from the history of stand-up through comedy theory, joke theory & routine building right up to stagecraft and the all important business side.

The best all-inclusive starter guide money can buy.., 13 Feb 2008
I say the best all-inclusive starter guide *money* can buy, having said that bartering or exchanging love or other goods might find you a better guide.

This is a fantastic book - giving you a good guide of basic how to do everything on stage - from mic usage to pausing and working the room - as well as excellent stuff on how to generate material and ways to come up with different ways of doing the joke. Oh, and afterthought everything.

I want my money back..., 13 Dec 2007
I did Logan's comedy course and died on stage... That I died on stage is no surprise but that I managed to get the bottle to do it at all is a testament to his great teaching skills. This book gets the message across well but there's nowt like giving it a go - highly recommend the Amused Moose courses...

Essential, 02 Nov 2007
As well as being a stand up himself Logan Murray has been running the Amused Moose beginners comedy course in London for some while. So walking newbies carefully through the minefield of comedy without the loss of comedy limbs is his speciality. I would thoroughly recommend the book for anyone toying with the idea of giving stand up a go or for beginners on the circuit looking to polish up their act.

A Stand-up Comedy Bible, 09 Nov 2002
I picked up "Comic Insights" because they're aren't any good books on comedy by British authors and I was a fan of Jerry Seinfeld, Roseanne, Chris Rock, Garry Shandling, and Ellen DeGeneres--the only American comedians in the book I knew. Comic Insights is clearly aimed as a manual for the aspiring stand-up, and the aspiring American stand-up at that. Given the indefinable nature of comedy, Ajaye sensibly steers well clear of providing advice on how to be funny, concentrating instead on how to be more funny.

It's a book of three unequal thirds, starting with a definitive 'how to' guide for the would-be stand-up. This section is jam-packed with invaluable pearls of wisdom about the mechanics of the craft. These basic tips are often common sense, and are generally regarded as universal truths among performers, but they do need to be said, especially for the rookie.

Mostly, the key is self-awareness: knowing what makes your voice and persona uniquely funny; knowing how your delivery, stage presence and timing went,; and knowing how that affected the laughs you get.

Sensibly, Ajaye recommends aspiring stand-ups study their comedy idols to find out what makes them funny (though definitely not trying to blindly emulate them) and suggests you always record your faltering efforts on stage to analyse what went wrong - or right.

The book's crammed full of such fundamental tips, which no rookie should take to the stage without knowing.

Occasionally the language veers into the unfortunate buzzwords of the training industry, but there's no diluting the rock-solid advice at the heart of it.

The book is very incisive and has a wealth of good information that can help anybody starting out as a comic now matter what country they live in. The experiences and the insights on performing by all the comics in the book were extremely valuable, and their philosophies about comedy and life were interesting and very revealing. I found myself just as interested in the comics I didn't know as well as those I did. I heartily recommend this book to anyone who is thinking about being a comedian. You can't go wrong.

Brilliant!, 05 Dec 2006
An incisive and well researched guide, suitable for both the hardened expert and the complete novice. Everything you could ever possibly want to know about british comedy is covered. And lots more you never knew you wanted to know. Buy it now or regret it!

Ooh! you are (far from) awful!, 21 Nov 2006
A truly informative guide; what Mr Hall doesn't know about British cult comedy could be written on a very small postage stamp. Very authorititative and written in a clear, honest style, the book does well not to fall into the trap of parodying its own subject matter. And like the best of books, I found myself chortling to myself at some of the passages.

One small criticism - why oh why is there no entry for Rod Hull and Emu, quite possibly the best post-modern bird-man routine the world has ever known? That shocking omission has cost Mr Hall a star.

Laughing matters, 13 Nov 2006
This is a template for everything a good guide should be. It is an excellent starting point for comedy virgins at the same time as being a great reference source for the initiated. The Rough Guide to British Cult Comedy is an invaluable aid for anyone who is thinking of venturing into, regularly attends or lives in a UK comedy club. It's a pretty comprehensive guide to the very best of television comedy too


A cult book about cult comedy!, 13 Nov 2006
I have always followed comedy and love nothing else than going to my local comedy club on a Saturday night...but i realised my knowledge of classic cult British comedy was severly lacking when i read this book!

It's incredibly well written, well thought out and informative...and i've learnt loads of interesting facts and info on some of my favourite British comedians! Eddie Izzard being mine and my boyfriends favourite stand-up.

The perfect stocking filler! I couldn't recommend it highly enough!

compact, informative and funny book, 08 Nov 2006
"I think that the most important thing about this book is that it bigs up some of the unsung heroes of the comedy circuit and not just the well-known names. I really enjoyed the anecdotes in the book and I only wish there were more!"

does what it says on the tin, 23 Mar 2008
I found this book both informative and easy to read. The ideas were well presented and give you the meat and two veg of comedy. The more critical reviewers are looking for something else possibly a personal comedy writer this book will not deliver that; you still need to do the ground work your self. The one criticism I would have with this book would be the over use of play on words which never make great humour. But for the basics of humour writing it hits the spot.

Lessons in VERY Old School Comedy, 04 Oct 2007
Very disappointing. Despite quoting from a few modern American comedians in the book,the comedy being taught here is SO dated. The actual humour techniques described inside might've been useful if you were writing a routine for Bob Hope in the 1950's, but bear little relation to today's comedy. Try using and performing old techniques from this book in a stand-up act like puns,wordplay, malapropisms etc , and you won't get very far in today's market, or get many laughs in the process. Do any of today's most successful comedians like Eddie Izzard, Ricky Gervais,Chris Rock,Dane Cook etc use these ancient comedy methods? Of course not. I give the book 2 stars for one interesting chapter on writer's block and brainstorming ideas, but the rest is a let-down.

Wow!, 28 Mar 2007
I've just read the other reviews on here and I'm shocked.

This is an EXCELLENT book, a detailed read on why we laugh, what is funny and what is not - and why!

If your an aspiring comedian, or just want to develop your "sense of humour" this book is for you.

Five Stars. No Question.

Ignorant, vindictive and charmless., 14 Mar 2006
After the seventh page I found myself skipping the bits written by the author and jumping instead to the quotes. When I did force myself to read the (poor) prose between the quotes, I usually found the gist could be got from the first sentence with the rest of the paragraph mere padding.
Looking from the writing style to the theory and philosophy;
While I am undecided whether the author was the bully or the bullied, I am certain that he is familiar with bullying. In fact, his philosophy of comedy largely revolves around vindictiveness of one type or another and as such provides a charmless and cynical picture of humanity as a whole.
Moving from his philosophy to his theory of getting laughs; I found it distracting when the author used bad definitions of terms and then cited examples that failed to support even his own definition (eg: "malapropism" ... which uses a pun to introduce it in the book before mistakenly citing examples of verbal imbecility as malapropisms).
If you are interested in writing comedy, I strongly recommend against this book in favour of ... something else. For me, "Writing Television Sitcoms" (Evan S. Smith) is a much stronger book with more convincing (better written and informative) arguments and a much less misanthropic view of comedy.
Just my two cents.

Save your money, time, ..., 22 Feb 2006
It will be insufficient if I just say "very poor". Although interesting in the very beginning the book is shallow and is based on teaching tricks rather improving the "self". As far as the tricks are concerned you won’t get too much either - put it in this way it is like reading a newspaper and expecting to become a great politician. What you might get is few good jokes that are cited. I am not sure it worth reading few hundreds sides of garbage for the few jokes. The quality of the book as an object is such that it felt apart after 10-20 openings.

Outstanding guide for stand-up performers, 21 Jun 2005
An outstanding book for anyone interested in transferring their comedy ideas into a practical stand-up routine:

- The book covers the following topics:
- The Secrets of Joke Structure
- Joke Writing
- What to write jokes about
- Improving your jokes
- Assembling a routine
- POV and narrative
- Rehearsing
- Mic technique
- Performance technique
- Developing experience

Through practical advice and a series of useful excersises Greg isolates the elements of comedy on an almost scientific linguistic level. Thereby allowing the writer/performer to explore, create and fine tune their original ideas without relying on cheap gimicks or plaguerising other performers. It has more in common with a NLP text or strategic business manual than some of the more anecdote based books available, although the book does contain several anecdotes when elaborating examples.

I purchased this book initially just to help with gag writing for screenplays but have become so confident through the process that I am now putting together actual routines for public performance.

Well worth it.

A Giant Step For Comic Mankind!, 04 Jan 2003
I have been doing stand-up for a few months now and wish I'd read this before I started. Lots of very essential advice. A must-read for any new comic. Some of the stuff on joke structures was a bit complicated, but maybe I'm just stupid! Otherwise very readable and totally invaluable.

a great great book for any aspiring stand up, 19 Dec 2000
I bought the Judy Carter book but this is far superior .Its full of tips and sensible advice from writing material to something as basic as mic technique .A great buy for any aspiring stand up

old dog - new tricks, 25 Jul 2007
First a confession: a few years ago I was subject to ritual humiliation in one of John Wright's workshops - each time I reluctantly clambered to my feet to engage with one of his exercises my efforts were greeted by a forest of hands telling me I was patently not interesting and certainly not amusing. (Read the book for reference to this exercise) I went away feeling bruised and somewhat resentful of those to whom clowning and buffoonery appeared to come easily. It was only later that I realised I had been taught an incredibly valuable lesson, and one that should have been obvious to a drama professional: always pay attention to your audience - they will let you know if they like what you are doing - and if they don't - try doing something else.

This book is a manual of useful exercises; a personal philosophy of performance; and a lifelong journey of discovery and exploration around the broad area of theatrical clowning and physical comedy. It is written in a jargon-free style, whose use of self-effacing anecdote made me laugh out loud on a number of occasions. The descriptions of the exercises are precise and detailed, enabling the experienced teacher to visualise and adapt easily. The book has a resemblance to Keith Johnstone's classic text 'Impro', in both its structural format and its very real enjoyment of and passionate engagement with its subject matter. In a time where educators are encouraged to 'facilitate' rather than teach, where the notion of 'failure' has been erased from the curriculum, John Wright teaches us the most valuable lesson of all - failure is fundamentally and absolutely how we learn - we just have to 'keep getting up', keep taking risks, and keep trying new things - and always, always, watch the audience.

Real work and highly recommended! , 29 Dec 2006
This book clearly lays out the fundamentals of John Wright's work. It breaks apart acting clichés and the far too frequent stuffiness of theater. It gives theater makers and performers tools and practical exercises that really work. And it will help you to make work! He draws on his vast experience and explorations with actors and other great master teachers and theater makers. His work is liberating and inspiring and this book reads that way. And it's about alot more than just comedy. It will make you want to go out and make a play right away. Your work will be better for it.

I laughed until I felt sick, 01 Aug 2000
Hilarious..... I can thoroughly recommend this to anybody who wants to read witty, imaginative writing by two slightly mad women - brilliant could not recommend it more if I tried.

Great. Really funny. Extremely entertaining., 21 Jul 2000
Really entertaining and humourous. Did not anticipate how much I would enjoy and welcome these two "Ladies". The writing is superb and the humour sharp and biting!

A goldmine for the beginner!, 14 Oct 2008
I'd done two open mic spots before getting this and let's just say they didn't go fantastically!
With the help of this book I have managed to write some fantastic new material. All of which I managed to mine out of my own head thanks to the techniques I picked up form this book. I would recommend this to anyone who has suffered with the dreaded writers block, as it offers all kinds of writing ideas that will get your creative juices flowing again.

While there are a lot of useful exercises for the individual working alone, there are twice as many for those working in groups (No use to me but great if you're working with other trainee comedians!). Even so, there's plenty for the lone writer to get stuck into, including a complete set building workshop.

This book follows the standard format of the Teach Yourself range which is easy to follow and packed with handy tips and words of wisdom from other comedians. Taking you from the history of stand-up through comedy theory, joke theory & routine building right up to stagecraft and the all important business side.

The best all-inclusive starter guide money can buy.., 13 Feb 2008
I say the best all-inclusive starter guide *money* can buy, having said that bartering or exchanging love or other goods might find you a better guide.

This is a fantastic book - giving you a good guide of basic how to do everything on stage - from mic usage to pausing and working the room - as well as excellent stuff on how to generate material and ways to come up with different ways of doing the joke. Oh, and afterthought everything.

I want my money back..., 13 Dec 2007
I did Logan's comedy course and died on stage... That I died on stage is no surprise but that I managed to get the bottle to do it at all is a testament to his great teaching skills. This book gets the message across well but there's nowt like giving it a go - highly recommend the Amused Moose courses...

Essential, 02 Nov 2007
As well as being a stand up himself Logan Murray has been running the Amused Moose beginners comedy course in London for some while. So walking newbies carefully through the minefield of comedy without the loss of comedy limbs is his speciality. I would thoroughly recommend the book for anyone toying with the idea of giving stand up a go or for beginners on the circuit looking to polish up their act.

A Stand-up Comedy Bible, 09 Nov 2002
I picked up "Comic Insights" because they're aren't any good books on comedy by British authors and I was a fan of Jerry Seinfeld, Roseanne, Chris Rock, Garry Shandling, and Ellen DeGeneres--the only American comedians in the book I knew. Comic Insights is clearly aimed as a manual for the aspiring stand-up, and the aspiring American stand-up at that. Given the indefinable nature of comedy, Ajaye sensibly steers well clear of providing advice on how to be funny, concentrating instead on how to be more funny.

It's a book of three unequal thirds, starting with a definitive 'how to' guide for the would-be stand-up. This section is jam-packed with invaluable pearls of wisdom about the mechanics of the craft. These basic tips are often common sense, and are generally regarded as universal truths among performers, but they do need to be said, especially for the rookie.

Mostly, the key is self-awareness: knowing what makes your voice and persona uniquely funny; knowing how your delivery, stage presence and timing went,; and knowing how that affected the laughs you get.

Sensibly, Ajaye recommends aspiring stand-ups study their comedy idols to find out what makes them funny (though definitely not trying to blindly emulate them) and suggests you always record your faltering efforts on stage to analyse what went wrong - or right.

The book's crammed full of such fundamental tips, which no rookie should take to the stage without knowing.

Occasionally the language veers into the unfortunate buzzwords of the training industry, but there's no diluting the rock-solid advice at the heart of it.

The book is very incisive and has a wealth of good information that can help anybody starting out as a comic now matter what country they live in. The experiences and the insights on performing by all the comics in the book were extremely valuable, and their philosophies about comedy and life were interesting and very revealing. I found myself just as interested in the comics I didn't know as well as those I did. I heartily recommend this book to anyone who is thinking about being a comedian. You can't go wrong.

Brilliant!, 05 Dec 2006
An incisive and well researched guide, suitable for both the hardened expert and the complete novice. Everything you could ever possibly want to know about british comedy is covered. And lots more you never knew you wanted to know. Buy it now or regret it!

Ooh! you are (far from) awful!, 21 Nov 2006
A truly informative guide; what Mr Hall doesn't know about British cult comedy could be written on a very small postage stamp. Very authorititative and written in a clear, honest style, the book does well not to fall into the trap of parodying its own subject matter. And like the best of books, I found myself chortling to myself at some of the passages.

One small criticism - why oh why is there no entry for Rod Hull and Emu, quite possibly the best post-modern bird-man routine the world has ever known? That shocking omission has cost Mr Hall a star.

Laughing matters, 13 Nov 2006
This is a template for everything a good guide should be. It is an excellent starting point for comedy virgins at the same time as being a great reference source for the initiated. The Rough Guide to British Cult Comedy is an invaluable aid for anyone who is thinking of venturing into, regularly attends or lives in a UK comedy club. It's a pretty comprehensive guide to the very best of television comedy too


A cult book about cult comedy!, 13 Nov 2006
I have always followed comedy and love nothing else than going to my local comedy club on a Saturday night...but i realised my knowledge of classic cult British comedy was severly lacking when i read this book!

It's incredibly well written, well thought out and informative...and i've learnt loads of interesting facts and info on some of my favourite British comedians! Eddie Izzard being mine and my boyfriends favourite stand-up.

The perfect stocking filler! I couldn't recommend it highly enough!

compact, informative and funny book, 08 Nov 2006
"I think that the most important thing about this book is that it bigs up some of the unsung heroes of the comedy circuit and not just the well-known names. I really enjoyed the anecdotes in the book and I only wish there were more!"


The Way of Improv, 13 Mar 2002
Longform improv is a bit like a spiritual practice. It's a very subtle and Zen-like process, it's so highly intuitive that it often seems psychic, it involves peak experiences of expanded awareness, and so on. It's the closest thing there is to magic (short of putting together flat-packed furniture).

This book is the only one which teaches you how to do it, because all the others are about short-form improv games. It's written by the people who created longform improv as we know it (including Del Close, who is commonly regarded as something of a Yoda in the improv world). The book oozes wisdom.

And it's not just one of the best improv manuals around, although there are some mighty fine ones (like Johnstone's Impro and Impro For Storytellers, and Viola Spolin's books). It's also a fabulous book for writing plays, sitcoms, sketches, all sorts.

Sadly, it lacks a chapter on flat-pack furniture assembly. But I did finally manage to put a chair together today. Hooray!

(Creak...)

It's comfy, too.

(Creeeak...)

A manual for a new American artform!, 02 Jul 1998
Truth in Comedy is, in someways, a companion piece to the Chicago-based school operated by two of the book's authors. The book conveys the sense of joy and wonder that comes from creating comic genius and order from audience chaos. Charna Halpern and Del Close both still teach "The Harold" at the ImprovOlympic school/theater and the book (if you're planning to read the book while taking a "Harold" class, add TWO more stars!) Instead of quick comedic games designed for one-liners and "jokey" schtick, Truth In Comedy teaches a form that strives for art. Based on a single audience suggestion a team of improvisers follows the outline of The Harold to create a play with interweaving plotlines and characters for intelligent and hilarious comedy (think of a completely improvised Seinfeld epsidoe, or Pulp Fiction.)

Just one more thing: The photos in the book picture some veterans of the ImprovOlympic who are now somewhat famous in Comedy. Keep a look out for Andy Ricter (Late Night With Conan O'Brien), Adam McKay (Head Writer for Saturday Night Live), Miles Stroh (creator of 'Miles to Go'), and lots of others!

The improv manual you're looking for, 18 Feb 1997
Folks, there are two kinds of improv - the annoying kind and the enjoyable kind. This book is the only description of the enjoyable kind now in print. It's simple, straightforward and funny, and may change the whole way you think about comedy and theatrical presentations. The bad kind of improv, that is, the short, "we're under great pressure to be funny here" kind that leads to some clever punch-line on which lights are blacked out, is described in numerous books. The Harold, or long-form, is where it's at, as anyone who's seen both kinds of improv will tell you. (It's a shame the form is rarely practiced outside of Chicago.) Watching it is pure pleasure, because you're seeing players who support each other perform at the top of their intelligence and creativity. And doing it, well, there's nothing like it. This book will get you started.