Comedy

It’s Wednesday night in the pretty French ski resort of Meribel. Strands of fairy lights twinkle on wooden chocolate-box houses and, despite being well into March, there’s plenty of snow in the village. Over at Jack’s, it’s standing room only for the sold-out comedy night. Normally when it comes to an evening’s entertainment in the mountains, cheesy covers bands, tacky magicians and gut-seizing raclette pretty much exhaust a skier’s options. Not so in Meribel, a village now famed for its stand-up shows and soon to host the Altitude Festival, the very first comedy festival in the Alps.

‘People over 30 shouldn’t stay up all night drinking shots,’ says Richard Lette, an expat businessman who has lived in Meribel for 15 years. ‘Why? Because you can end up agreeing to put on a 15-day comedy festival at the end of it. Stay sober and have a salad instead.’
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Lette has been running Taking The Piste tours, bringing over mostly UK stand-ups since 2002 with his business partner Christian Lyons and British comedian Marcus Brigstocke. Three comics come out for five days, do several gigs and get to spend time on the most extensive ski area in the Alps. On the night Time Out paid a visit to the club, Barry Castagnola, Carey Marx and Marty McLean were on the bill.

Despite having spent seven days boarding, the comedians step up – albeit gingerly. Castagnola bashes into a small table as he rushes on to compere – and receives a roaring response. The venue is crowded and noisy. It’s a great show.

There are plenty of music festivals in the Alps, but a comedy festival? ‘All the best comedians now ski,’ says Marx over lunch on the mountain the next day.

‘In fact, we’re putting together a winter-sports team,’ says Castagnola.

‘We now say to comedy clubs: “If they can’t ski, don’t book ’em",’ responds Marx, who was on the very first tour.

‘You don’t get the conservative comedy audiences. Your older skiing crowd stays at home and eats fondue,’ says Castagnola. ‘It’s great for us. These gigs are the perks. Doing this makes up for all the one-nighters in Grimsby.’

‘I’ll take those gigs. I’ll fill in for you. Those are my people,’ says McLean.

‘I had been skiing before,’ says Marx. Where? ‘Milton Keynes.’

‘We should do a comedy festival there,’ says McLean.

‘It could be a beginners’ festival,’ quips Marx. ‘Before they come here.’

‘I think it should stay elitist,’ says Castagnola. ‘I’ve managed to drag myself out of the gutter, I don’t want to be surrounded by the people I managed to escape from.’

The Altitude Festival will feature 25 comedians, including Ed Byrne, Brigstocke, Castagnola and Marx. The 100-odd shows aren’t just comedy, though (although Craig Campbell will play the world’s highest stand-up gig at 2,800m. They plan to blow the world record for the biggest snowball fight to smithereens, and Andrew Maxwell is leading an invasion of Courchevel while wearing masks and capes. There’s a border-crossing event in 1970s and ’80s fancy dress. There’s a (heated) pool party with comedians in bikinis. Music fans will love the Dub Pistols, Norman Jay and countless other DJs and bands.

The festival will finish on the final day of the season, a hedonistic event even without the Altitude Festival.

‘It’s a massive first,’ says Marx, ‘with all of us out here there will be clubs struggling to find comedians in the UK. Twenty-five comics is a lot at one time to be out of the country. I’d love for just one club in England to close and put a sign up: Sorry – gone skiing.’

The Altitude Festival is April 5-20. See www.altitudefestival.com.