Page 116 - The Language of Humour

STAND-UP COMEDY 103

3 When I was seven at school, one of my classmates told me
that all Jewish people were wealthy. Nice one. You know, I
remember that day, even now—running home excitedly to
break the news to my mother and father. We spent that
weekend taking up the floorboards.
(Arnold Brown)
4 All the time they keep stopping me—I say, ‘Why?’ They
say, ‘Suspicion.’ I been stopped that many times I’m
beginning to suspect myself. You know, I look in the mirror
and go, ‘Well, maybe I did do something, you know what I
mean?
(Lenny Henry)
5 They fucking love me down the Arts Council, you know,
down Piccadilly with the ponchos and the Lapsang
Suchong, you know, and the trousers tucked into the boots,
they say, ‘Here’s a working-class halfwit—let’s patronise
him!’
(Alexei Sayle)

Discussion

What type of comedy is popular in your social group? Is there now a
backlash to the alternative comedy movement? Discuss the following
three comedians’ comments. (No commentary follows.)

Comedy is sort of incidental—it just happens that I’ve always made
people laugh with my opinions. I do believe in change and I know you
can change people. And I know that things are changing all the time. We
changed the face of comedy to a certain extent—not very well; the
original idea was to change the world, and to stop people doing Irish
jokes, and mother-in-law jokes… now people give lip service to that.
He who follows the innovator does exactly the opposite of what the
innovator does.
(Tony Allen)

Why is it that most comics can only do half an hour? It’s because
material comes from the heart. Irishmen are not stupid and it’s not
funny to say they are—you can pretend for ten minutes and then your