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21 top comedy gigs this month

Written by
Marissa Burgess
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It's that month where, at the end of it, you get your chance to dress up like an idiot and have a laugh. That said there's absolutely no reason why you can't do that for the rest of October too. Take in these lot while dressed as Herman Munster. Why the hell not. (well actually because you might get kicked out but still...)?

Comedy Sessions, HiFi Club, Sat Oct 3, £10-£12
Weekly comedy at the HiFi, this week sees a performance from the beguiling Canadian Pete Johansson who performs a great line in intriguingly honest stand up. Also on the bill are the idiosyncratic Benny Boot and seasoned pro Andre Vincent. Don't forget it's every Saturday throughout the month.

Sean Kelly, City Varieties, Mon Oct 5, £13.60-£18.60
Yes it is that guy off of 'Storage Hunters.' Like many a presenter Kelly came up through the comedy ranks. Not many stand ups can lay claim to a tour of army combat tour of Iraq and headlining the MGM Grand in Las Vegas though. Gotta be worth a look.

Comedy Cellar, Verve, Every Tuesday, Free
Weekly grass roots comedy as new comics begin to craft the skill of stand up. Get out there and lend them your support.

Patrick Kielty, City Varieties, Thu Oct 8, £16.60-£19.60
Another comedian who is probably better known these days as a presenter but back in the day the Northern Irish Kielty was one of the most fearless stand ups around. This show, 'Help' isn't on political form but it is nevertheless effortless in its demonstration on how to perform stand up.

Jenny Éclair, Carriageworks, Sat Oct 10, £17.50
For many years Éclair was the only solo female act to win the Perrier (now Foster's) Edinburgh Comedy Award. Thankfully that has changed but Éclair is still one of the cheekiest and filthiest performers around. Bowling through middle age with gusto, and a lot of wine and crisps, here's her guide on to how to do it gloriously disgracefully.

Jason Byrne, City Varieties, Sun Oct 11, £18.10-£21.10
Irishman Byrne is a natural comedian combining a pleasing physicality and a music hall sensibility with an absurd wit. Here he celebrates having been '20 Years a Clown.'

Stewart Francis, City Varieties, Wed Oct 14, £18-£21
Canadian Stu can't resist a pun, this, his latest show on the Pun Gent Tour (can't say I didn't warn you) will be no exception. Full of Francis one-liners of the like seen on 'Mock the Week', 'Live at the Apollo' and 'Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Roadshow'.

Sitting Room Comedy, Belgrave Music Hall and Canteen, Thu Oct 15, £10
Leeds' lovely Sitting Room comedy gig this month sees Bryan Lacey take the compering honours introducing St Helens' own rabble rousing mirth maker Ray Peacock, the name obsessed Tom Toal and the impish in looks but incisive of wit – Mae Martin.

Lucy Beaumont, Carriageworks, Sat Oct 17, £12
The Hull comedian and rising star with her début and Foster's Edinburgh Award newcomer nominated show 'We Can Twerk It Out'. Taking much inspiration from her salt of the earth, dockside home town.

Upfront Comedy, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Sat Oct 17, £12.50-£15
The black comedy promoters return to the Playhouse for the first time in five years. A fine line up, where the star of The Real McCoy Curtis Walker headlines this showcase of acts. Plus the sharp, intelligent humour of Shazia Mirza and - formerly seen on Corrie as cabbie Patrick – Trevor Dwyer Lynch.

Nick Helm, The Wardrobe, Sun Oct 18, £12.50
As seen in the dysfunctional 'Uncle' and equally dysfunctional 'Heavy Entertainment', unusually two TV vehicles that actually got it right in transferring a comic's live qualities to a flat glass screen. Helm is one of the most exciting comedians around at the moment to catch live, so see him on this mini tour before you have to peer at him through opera glasses from the back of an arena.

Rob Beckett, City Varieties, Sun Oct 18, £15.60
Much of Beckett's previous stand up has tackled the Londoner's working class roots. Here he returns with another show of stand up 'Mouth of the South' where he takes on the likes of flat bread and Kit Kats. Though not at the same time surely? A Kit Kat sandwich, eugh.

Chris Ramsey, City Varieties, Wed 21 & Thu 22 Oct, £18.20
The star of BBC's 'Hebburn' and all round genial Geordie with another show of solid gags. On this tour he debates getting older and whether he should finally grow up. Probably not we reckon. He's doing just fine as he is.

Fred MacAulay, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Mon Oct 26, £13-£15
After 18 years tucked into a room at BBC Radio Scotland with just a mic and a producer for company, MacAulay's now escaped and is back on tour with 'Twenty Fifteen'. He promises to take a look at family life, the future of his post referendum country and a bit of politics for good measure.

Kill for a Seat, Seven Arts, Wed Oct 28, £11/£9
The lovely Silky's equally lovely gig in Chapel Allerton. He will probably regale you with some of his witty musical comedy in between introducing the extremely erudite and thought provoking Nick Doody and the incredibly and hilariously bad mother Penella Mellor.

Nish Kumar, The Wardrobe, Wed Oct 28, £10
With funnies and thoughts flying out at a rate of knots you certainly get your money's worth with Kumar. The title of his latest show 'Long Word…Long Word… Blah Blah Blah… I'm So Clever' might be a self deprecating parody of that style but be assured it will be an intelligent and well thought out vehicle.

Clean As Possible Comedy, Carriageworks, Thu Oct 29, £5-£8
Is it possible to do the comedy without the swearies? Yes, apparently so. Run by Tony Vino, who also emcees and slaps wrists for naughty words, here introduces Tom Binns as spooky medium Iain D Montfort and the delightfully chaotic prop comic Wes Zaharuk.

Beardyman, The Wardrobe, Fri Oct 30, £16-£18
With 'One Album Per Hour,' Beardyman combines refined music production skills with a sharp wit to produce an amazing spectacle. Here, as the title suggests, he promises to produce an entire album based only on audience suggestion and his own sound skills.

House of Fun Comedy, The Original Oak, Fri Oct 30, £7-£8
Monthly antics at the popular Headingley comedy gig. This time around sees performances from Hebburn's own Jason Cook (rest assured he's bigger in real life than in those Jacob's ads), Aussie Mickey D and Ardal O'Hanlon look-a-like Andrew Ryan.

Ed Byrne, City Varieties, Fri Oct 30, £20.60
Hard to believe that it's almost 20 years since that defining Alanis Morissette routine. He may be married and mellowed now but he can still conjure up a solid stand up show of laughs, here's 'Outside Looking In'.

Festival of the Spoken Nerd, City Varieties, Sat Oct 31, 16.60
The science loving trio with their latest show 'Just for Graphs'. There are many comedians turning their interest in science into great entertainment, not least Robin Ince and his Monkey Cage shows, but if you haven't already seen these guys they are well worth checking out. Featuring numbers man Matt Parker, musical comedian and former physics student Helen Arney and fearless science experimenter Steve Mould.

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