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The best of 2011: comedy shows

Time Out's comedy editor picks his favourite comedy moments of 2011... and one turkey

The best of 2011 in London

The Time Out editors have all picked their favourite events and moments of 2011. See if you agree with them.

See all of our best of 2011 lists

London's best comedy

As 2010 drew to a close we thought comedy’s popularity could grow no larger. My have the past twelve months proved us wrong. 2011 turned out to be a mightily busy (and profitable) year for stand-up with countless comics embarking on theatre tours and a total  of 33 arena comedy gigs performed across London’s two enormodomes, compared to just 18 the previous year. However, there has also been a much needed surge in comedic creativity with many shows – including Adam Riches and Nick Helm’s immersive hours – being designed for intimate, inclusive venues; quite the opposite to stadium-gigs. Mainstream observationalists may be more popular than ever, but alternative comedy is still very much alive.


The best of 2011...

  • 1
    Jerry Seinfeld Jerry Seinfeld

    Jerry Seinfeld

    The O2 Arena

    The excitement surrounding the announcement of Jerry Seinfeld’s first UK show in more than a decade was almost immediately diminished by one major factor: a ridiculous ticket price. It’s debatable whether the one-off O2 Arena gig was worth the £100 entry (is any show worth that much?) but there’s no doubt that the star of the world’s most successful sitcom put on a hell of a show. Seinfeld proved why he’s the supreme master of observational comedy performing 90 minutes of super-slick, masterfully crafted material on life’s exasperating quirks to a 12,000-strong audience. But the real excitement was to be found at the Comedy Store a few days earlier when the man himself performed two unannounced warm-ups to a few hundred lucky Londoners. That sort of atmosphere could never be replicated in an arena.

  • 2
    Tim Key Tim Key - © Rob Greig
    Read our Tim Key interview

    Tim Key – Masterslut

    Soho Theatre / Edinburgh Fringe

    As the winner of the 2009 Edinburgh Comedy Award, expectations for Tim Key’s follow-up show were, understandably, sky high. But the savant comedian exceeded them with this adventurous, bizarrely beautiful bath-obsessed hour. Like the award-winning ‘Slutcracker’, the new show features collections of pithy poems and short stories and some gorgeously shot films. But ‘Masterslut’ is a more ambitious, inventive hour than his previous offerings – it’s subtle, shambolic, occasionally moving and gloriously funny.

  • 3
    Adam Riches Adam Riches - © Graeme Copper
    Read our Adam Riches interview

    Adam Riches – Bring Me the Head of Adam Riches

    The 2011 shortlist for the Edinburgh Comedy Award was particularly strong. Ultimately, the gong went to character comic Adam Riches for his irresistibly silly, gloriously mischievous show ‘Bring Me the Head of Adam Riches’. Audience participation is key in this hour. Punters are plucked from the crowd to join in with wild games and absurd tasks. But rather than being ridiculed and embarrassed, Riches’s targets are heroes of the show and are cheered on by the audience. It’s a whole heap of fun and unlike anything else on the comedy circuit.

...and the worst of 2011

  • Tim & Eric Tim & Eric

    Tim & Eric – Awesome Tour, Great Job!

    There was a buzz surrounding this American duo’s UK debut, with shows quickly selling out and extra dates being added. Their TV series, ‘Tim & Eric – Awesome Show, Great Job!’, is a huge cult hit and has attracted guest stars including Will Ferrell and Jeff Goldblum. On screen, their bizarre, silly, occasionally disgusting sketches are genuinely hysterical. I’m a big fan, which made this live show even more disappointing. The snappy sketches work tremendously on the box, where the deliberately dodgy editing and low-fi special effects add to their ridiculousness. But on stage each idea is just repeated to death, and there is no new material: it’s simply the TV sketches performed in a medium that doesn’t suit them. Stick to the telly, boys, this was a bad job.

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