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Stephen Bailey

Is Comedy a Londoner’s Game?

September 18, 2018 by Becca Moody Leave a Comment

Anyone who knows me knows that I love comedy. I’ve been to countless stand-up shows in Birmingham over the years and a fair few in Cardiff too since starting my degree. But one thing I have never done is see any form of live comedy at a venue in our country’s capital: London. No tour shows, no club nights, no previews in the back of a pub. Zilch. I could give you a whole bunch of reasons, from money considerations to the fact it’s just easier to wait for the comedians to come to me than to scout them out in London. I’ve always intended, one day, to go and experience London’s comedy scene first-hand. But why do I have this intention? What is it that makes the London comedy scene so unlike Birmingham, or Cardiff, and why do I feel like I need to go and experience it?

Suppose it’s a Friday night. You want to see some live comedy in central London, but where to go and who to see? A quick internet search provides a whole host of interesting events. On the night I’m looking at, Stewart Lee is performing his Content Provider show at the Leicester Square Theatre, and Geordie comedian Lauren Pattison is performing Lady Muck at the Soho Theatre (a show which saw her nominated for Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards in 2017). Both shows have completely sold out. There are also comedy club nights happening all over this part of the city, from the Comedy Store in Soho, to the 99 Club in Covent Garden. Some comics’ names are even appearing two or three times, as they perform a set at one club, then move straight on to the next (and sometimes the next). There are also shows that start as late as 10-11pm; closer to the finishing time of most comedy gigs across the country than the start.

Lauren Pattison © Andy Hollingworth

There’s clearly a lot of comedy to cram in over the weekend, and certainly high demand for it too. London has a population of almost 9 million people, whereas Birmingham (my home city) comes in lower at around 1.1 million. Cardiff, at the other end of the scale, is home to just under 500,000. So we might assume that the demand for comedy is much lower in Cardiff than in London, but is this all there is to it? Are these comedians flocking in their hundreds just to perform to bigger, more frequent audiences? It may be true that other cities in the UK just don’t have the same demand for stand-up comedy, but I’m curious to find out if this is the main attraction for stand-up comics, or whether there are other factors that make this city such an appealing place to work.

Now, I’ve made it pretty clear that my knowledge of London’s comedy scene is limited. However, I have interviewed countless comedians about their theatre runs, new material nights and club nights in the city. And, after all, writing an article about stand-up comedians working in London, without speaking to any stand-up comedians who have worked in London, is about as useful as writing a dissertation on the social behaviours of ants but spending the whole time only speaking to toddlers about their verdicts on such ant behaviours. I need to ask some comedians first-hand about why they feel drawn to London’s comedy scene, because surely it can’t just be the size of the crowds.

Lauren Pattison moved to London in September 2016. She confided in me at the time: ‘I’m worried moving to London was the wrong thing to do; I’m worried that I’m never going to be in a position financially to leave my day job and just be a comedian.’ (See: ‘Seven Questions With Lauren Pattison’). But since this conversation, Lauren has skyrocketed into the public consciousness. She regularly performs as tour support for the quick-witted Katherine Ryan, and is currently touring her acclaimed show Lady Muck across Australia and New Zealand. It hasn’t been an easy ride, with financial worries understandably playing a big part in the comedian’s struggles to properly settle in London, but her success appears to be increasing by the day. I’m intrigued to know how Lauren is managing to make her move to London financially and creatively viable, so I started by asking her why she moved to London in the first place.

‘I moved to London because I felt a bit stuck in Newcastle,’ Lauren tells me, ‘I was doing alright for myself up North but felt like I didn’t really play anywhere down South – partly because I wasn’t known and partly because the expense of travelling and staying down there for a gig was so high that it would cost a week’s wage for me to go and do an unpaid gig. I had nothing to lose by moving to London (aside from my hopes and dreams).’ It seems that moving somewhere more central, like London, is a way of opening up other parts of the country for Britain’s commuting comics. ‘A lot of places seem to be a bit easier to get to from down here! Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle and Birmingham are all relatively easy to get to via train and being based down here means it’s much easier and cheaper to get to gigs down South.’

Stephen Bailey © Comedy Central

Stephen Bailey (a stand-up comedian from Manchester who also regularly supports Katherine Ryan on tour, it seems she has good taste) lives and works in London too: ‘I was living in London anyway because of my day job. Then, when I was in a position to leave the office, I kind of just stayed. For me, just breaking into TV, I feel like I need to be here for the meetings, the auditions, the showcases – as it would cost an arm and a leg for me to go back and forth to Manchester as a non-driver.’

Both Stephen and Lauren agree that London is a great place to develop yourself as a comic and potentially get noticed by important industry people. ‘The good thing,’ Stephen tells me, ‘is that you can perform several times, every night of the week, which can arguably help you get better. On the flip side, it’s so oversaturated… you could just be playing to other comics if you don’t know where to look.’ Lauren’s comments back this up: ‘Comics can literally do something every night of the week without having to leave London. It helps you hone your act and you can notch up a lot of gigs in a short space of time, but I think what made me the comic I am is by not just gigging in one place but gigging in different rooms, in different cities with different audiences.’ But just because there might be more opportunities in our capital for hopeful stand-ups, you can’t just move there and expect a career handed to you on a plate. The sheer number of comedians working in London goes to show how much effort needs to be put in to make sure you stand out from the crowd. Not only do you need a clear, original and genuine comic voice, but you need to be savvy about where and when you perform, otherwise you can find yourself out of pocket and performing to smaller crowds than you’d like.

Lauren confirms my suspicions: ‘People tell you, “you can gig every night of the week!”. You soon find out that you can, but none of those gigs are paid and you’re on with twenty other comics and there’s no progression and you’re lucky to have an audience. For me it was about not just saying yes to everything (which is what I usually do) but sussing out which gigs were worth my time and effort. Focusing my energy on the gigs I knew would get me places or swing a tenner my way so I could cover my tube fare soon made me much happier.’

Money is, and I expect always will be, a massive obstacle for comedians working in London. Starting out in comedy is an expensive game anyway, with many continuing to work different jobs in the day and gigging during the evening. The financial aspect was an issue for Lauren (she continued to work as a waitress when she first moved to London), and I suspect she is just one of countless creatives who struggle to make living and working in London financially possible for themselves. ‘I was burning the candle at both ends, working a day job and going straight to a gig after. Yet at the end of the month I was still broke. All my wages were being pumped into affording travel to gigs and trying to cobble together rent.’

And it doesn’t help that some comedy clubs seem to be in no rush to pay comedians for their work. Lauren fills me in: ‘I’ve had nightmares before where I’ve had to chase promoters for months for £50 and you’ve got bills to pay and food to buy and travel to cover to get to another gig. If any other job didn’t pay on time you’d be straight to HR but there isn’t really an HR department in comedy and it’s not unusual to wait nearly two months to be paid.’ Stephen tells a similar story: ‘Good acts that are working the circuit have to quit because they can’t get their payments off promoters. You have to be good at budgeting as most places just pay you as and when they feel like it. I am owed money from December, I’m always chasing payments. The longest I ever had to wait was a year. Jongleurs didn’t pay for ages, kept booking in more gigs then went bust so most comics lost dollar for work done. Not cool.’

Jongleurs announced on the 17th of October 2017 that they were closing down. In a statement, the company said: ‘Every possible effort has been made to keep the company viable, including cash injections of over £200,000 from the director and shareholders since late 2014. Unfortunately there are now no more funds available to inject into the company.’ The closure left many comedians unpaid; some had even racked up a whole year’s worth of gigs that they hadn’t been paid for.

So maybe working in London as a stand-up comic isn’t a plausible reality for many comedians working today. But while working in London can help get you noticed by industry professionals and punters, and will thus inevitably help you to establish yourself as a comedian, it surely isn’t the be all and end all. There are other big cities with a large variety of people making up their comedy audiences. I asked Lauren what she thinks about this prospect, and she felt a similar way: ‘I don’t think London is necessarily the best place to be working as a stand-up comedian for everyone. I think it’s not necessary to move – for example, if I lived Manchester or Birmingham and could drive, I wouldn’t move. Everything would be more accessible via car and living costs would be lower.’ If you want to access areas aside from London, then any city that is relatively central could be a good place to set up camp, opening up cities in the North and the South, whilst avoiding the living costs of the capital.

© Birmingham Glee Club

You may have noticed whilst reading this article that Birmingham is where my heart lies. It’s where I’m from, where I spend the majority of my time, and my favourite city to go and see live comedy in. One quick search of comedy events next Friday night flags up lots of results. Though admittedly not as many as my search of London venues, I still find that Patrick Monahan is performing his show Rewind Selector 90s at Birmingham Glee Club, there’s a Machynlleth Comedy Festival Showcase at the MAC (Midlands Arts Centre), and Dane Baptiste is performing G.O.D. (Gold. Oil. Drugs.) not too far outside of Birmingham at the Leamington Spa Royal Spa Centre, plus more. 

If you want to take advantage of the vast range of opportunities that working as a stand-up in London can bring, are prepared for the potential financial struggles and willing to put the work in, then I’m sure that London can be a wonderful, vibrant place to live and work. One final thing that Lauren says sticks with me, and proves to me once and for all why she has found such great success in recent years: ‘I am beyond pleased I gritted my teeth, kept my head down and ploughed on. Yeah, it can feel harder for sure if you’re less privileged, but rather than sulk about it I’ve always tried to find a way to still make it happen – even if it takes a bit longer and I have to eat noodles for weeks.’ This sums everything up for me: you can make your way in comedy, wherever you’re working, if you have passion and grit (and perhaps a day job on the side). Yes, being based in London can help you to reach more audiences in a shorter time frame, but if you’re not financially able to live in the capital, that’s not the end of your chances of making it big time. London is a place where comedians can gig as much as they like and develop their material and comic voice, but, at the end of the day, there are audiences in every town and city if you’re prepared to root them out. Comedians, the world is your oyster.

This article was originally published in Issue #167 of Quench Magazine, in March 2018.

Posted in: Comedians Tagged: British Comedy, Comedy, Katherine Ryan, Lauren Pattison, London, Stand Up, Stephen Bailey

Stephen Bailey: The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

July 3, 2018 by Becca Moody Leave a Comment

© Duncan Elliott

Who? Stephen Bailey
What? Our Kid
Where? Laughing Horse @ The Free Sisters (venue 272)
When? 17:15

Are you prepared for what this year’s Edinburgh Fringe has in store for you? 

I’m never quite prepared for anything. I’m a big, fat, anxious mess but I’ve decided that it means I care. This year, as well as working hard, my plan is to find a Scottish Prince. Scots are really sexy and I’m going to focus on that… And my bucket of dick jokes.

What is the premise of your Edinburgh show this year?

It is changing every two minutes. My rule at the moment is funny first. But this year, I have had moments in my life that have changed who I am in a good way. I’ve just got back from filming something and it taught me about how important the simple things are in life. Growing up in a very low income household made life feel hard and so I’ve worked hard to get to a place to be comfortable in life but now I’ve started to appreciate all the small things in life. Like where our food comes from, our supplies, the importance of local business! I’ve honestly gone a bit hippy dippy but I think it’s important. I still love dick jokes and men though. 

What was the biggest obstacle you face(d) while putting this show together?

Being completely honest and not forcing myself to write “an Edinburgh show!

Who would most enjoy your show?

Anyone with a sense of humour and the need to take an hour off the world.

Do you have any other Edinburgh show recommendations?

If there’s something that you wouldn’t think would be to your taste, or it looks ridiculous or the posters bad, or you’ve not seen billboards for it – SEE IT. The show’s not bad, it’s the budget. And some people don’t have it. 

What is your favourite thing about Edinburgh as a city?

The scenery. We get so caught up in the shows we forget how much of Edinburgh is beautiful. Take a day off shows and go for a walk

What are your plans for after the festival?

To smile everyday.

GET YOUR TICKETS FOR STEPHEN BAILEY: ‘OUR KID’ HERE

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2018

Posted in: Comedians, Edinburgh, Interviews Tagged: Edinburgh Festival, Our Kid, Stephen Bailey, The Edinburgh Interviews, The Edinburgh Interviews 2018

The Edinburgh Interviews 2017: Stephen Bailey

August 12, 2017 by Becca Moody Leave a Comment

© Steve Ullathorne

Everyone’s favourite sharp-tongued, loveable gossip returns to the Edinburgh Festival this year with his new show Can’t Think Straight. Stephen Bailey will be performing at the Laughing Horse @ The Free Sisters throughout August.

1) What excites you most about the Edinburgh Festival?

I feel like the Fringe is the end of year disco. And then September you get to start a fresh and I love it.

2) What was your first Edinburgh show about?

My first Edinburgh show was about how a boy broke my heart and broke me down. Woe is me. This new one is about finding the self confidence to be comfortable in my own skin again

3) Does your comedy attract a certain type of audience?

I have a surprisingly mainstream audience. Everyone comes – male, female, young, old (71-year-old Bob in Southend is obsessed with me), straight, gay. I love it.

4) What is the worst experience you’ve had with Edinburgh accommodation?

When a toilet exploded into the carpet and human faeces leaked into said carpet and the landlord wouldn’t do anything until we left at the end of August.

5) What is your most treasured memory of your comedy career so far?

Finally feeling like I was being taken seriously as a comedian and I must say that came from Katherine Ryan very generously taking me on tour with her when no one else would have me.

6) What show will you definitely be seeing at the festival this year?

Eggs Collective, Evelyn Mok, Ellie Taylor, Grainne Maguire, Jayde Adams, Charlotte Church and just when you think I only love women, I’m going to see the pro that is Rich Wilson.

7) What do you hope to gain from the Edinburgh Festival this year?

I’d really like just to keep building that audience. I’d also like to eat a lot of takeaways with my roomie Jayde Adams. Just have a laugh. It’s a comedy festival.

8) What do you imagine your last ever show will be about?

I hope it never ends. But I’d love to be doing a show one day where we’re laughing back at how stupid we used to be at voting #Brexit #Trump.

BOOK TICKETS FOR STEPHEN BAILEY: CAN’T THINK STRAIGHT, AT THE EDINBURGH FESTIVAL

THE EDINBURGH INTERVIEWS 2017

Posted in: Comedians, Edinburgh, Interviews Tagged: Edinburgh Festival, Interview, Stephen Bailey, The Edinburgh Interviews, The Edinburgh Interviews 2017

The Edinburgh Interviews: Seven Questions With… Stephen Bailey

August 1, 2016 by Becca Moody Leave a Comment
stephenbailey

© Steve Ullathorne

Stephen Bailey has been busy lately, especially given his recent support slot on Katherine Ryan’s latest tour. This comedian is cheeky, flamboyant and a prime example of someone who is destined to perform in some medium or other; his recent successes on the live stand up circuit prove this to be the case. Stephen is taking his latest solo hour, Nation’s Sweetheart, to this year’s Edinburgh Festival.
I asked Stephen these seven questions to learn a little more about him…

[Read more…]

Posted in: Comedians, Edinburgh, Seven Questions With... Tagged: British Comedy, Comedy, Edinburgh Festival, Interview, Seven Questions With, Stephen Bailey, The Edinburgh Interviews

Review: Katherine Ryan – Kathbum

June 8, 2016 by Becca Moody 1 Comment

Perhaps a bit late to the party, as her DVD record at the Eventim Apollo is due to take place the following night, hundreds of fans flock to Birmingham’s Town Hall to see Katherine Ryan’s critically acclaimed and Chortle Award-winning show, Kathbum.

Ryan varies her support acts throughout each tour, and tonight’s warm-up entertainment comes from Stephen Bailey, who, as Katherine rightfully states herself, better fits the criteria for a headline act than a support slot these days in terms of competence in performance. Stephen is a wise head on young shoulders; reassuringly secure in himself and his act in a way that enables him to take an audience under his wing. With an attitude of confidence and independence, blended with a humorous suggestion of neediness, Bailey’s material is slick, but not so slick that audiences have difficulty warming to him.

Katherine Ryan has blossomed over the past year and this is clear from the moment she walks on stage, greeted by bellowing cheers of excitement and endearment. She appears surprisingly relaxed, but humble, explaining her reasons for always bringing a support act with her on tour before progressing towards the heart of the show.

katherine-ryan-comedian-large

© Idil Sukan

This comic is constantly developing as a writer and performer, which is some feat considering how smart and cutting her comedy has been since her first UK tour in 2013. This latest show is about evolving as an individual as those we grew up with do the same, and the inevitable drift from those we used to relate to. Ryan uses this as a tool to discuss issues relating to overcoming the judgements of others and being assured enough in ourselves to make the decisions that are best for us. The somewhat-obsessive interest in celebrity culture is still apparent, serving as a metaphor for greater issues in society such as racism and misogyny.

Katherine’s comedy is self-aware in a triumphant sense, rather than a defeatist one. Her craft is admirable, with each narrative carried out to its conclusion and perfectly timed callbacks that fit into the performance, rather than shape it. She is professional, yet personal; brutally honest but not irrational in her cutting remarks with each issue being clinically dissected and evaluated before any ill-informed opinions are able to be expressed. And whilst she may introduce challenging concepts, Ryan always has her audience’s best interests in mind, assuming an almost-maternal role that shines through brightest when she talks directly to young female audience members; whom we might deduce to be her target demographic.

Katherine Ryan is not fazed by anything, it seems, whether that be hecklers or significant life events. The quality of her craft is creatively motivating; the content emotionally uplifting, whilst remaining delightfully unpredictable, accessible and genuine.

KATHERINE RYAN’S DVD RECORDING OF ‘KATHBUM’ WILL BE AVAILABLE SOON

Posted in: Comedians, Live Comedy, Reviews Tagged: British Comedy, Comedy, Kathbum, Katherine Ryan, Live Comedy, Stephen Bailey

The Glee Club Comedy Night, April 2016

April 19, 2016 by Becca Moody Leave a Comment
f083d5_e80ef58504d149039e89066767e6f38f

Stephen Bailey © Steve Ullathorne

Is Birmingham Glee Club the best comedy club in the country? Quite possibly. The latest ‘Best In Live Stand-up Comedy’ show at the Glee is a showcase of four acts as well as compère Andre Vincent.

Stephen Bailey has a rare charm about him. A young face paired with an air of experience makes for a very enticing performer. He speaks with a quiet confidence that suggests this man is a born performer; showing an aptitude for conversing with an audience as a collective. There is an undeniable hint of showbiz behind Stephen’s demeanour but also an endearing realism. With a twinkle in his eye and a manner that suggests both innocence and filth, this comedian seems to demonstrate experience beyond his years. And, having recently supported Katherine Ryan on her UK tour, that comes as no surprise.

Harry Stachini only began his comedy career in 2013 and has evidently been doing his homework. With admirable competence in front of a rowdy crowd and an obvious appreciation of joke and narrative formation, Stachini was indistinguishable from the other acts on the bill in terms of quality of material and stage presence. Next up comes Gareth Richards with an interesting blend of odd mannerisms and relatable observational material. With a silly and playful tone, an audience feels instantly obliged to humour him, although he is well aware that some of his crafted punchlines are cheesy and the addition of a musical interlude helped to maintain this illusion of a somewhat variety act. Richards throws in frequent narrative curve balls whilst playing up to a ‘loser’-status that ensures his audience is on board from the very first, “Everyone say hello to Gareth”.

And finally Andrew Bird; self-depreciating and confessional, Andrew appears to be the voice of reality, accepting and embracing the turmoils of relationships, fatherhood and technology. His qualms about society are both easy and enjoyable to follow. Bird gets caught up on many of modern life’s minor irritations, picking up ideas and running with them with impressive energy.

BOOK TICKETS FOR THE NEXT COMEDY NIGHT AT ONE OF THE GLEE CLUBS ACROSS THE UK

Posted in: Comedians, Live Comedy Tagged: Andre Vincent, Andrew Bird, British Comedy, Comedy, Gareth Richards, Glee Club Birmingham, Harry Stachini, Live Comedy, Stephen Bailey
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