Sun Sep 23, 8pm, Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow, £12 (£10), 0870 060 0100 Comedy at this year's Merchant City Festival has a distinctly homegrown flavour, with standout acts including veteran comic and breakfast host Fred MacAulay and skilled young Kevin Bridges appearing at the Old Fruitmarket and Tron respectively on Saturday. Online phenomenon-turned-live performer Limmy fronts two shows at Blackfriars on Thursday, but with both likely to sell out, why not sample the Stand Up Drink Up! pub crawl with Alan Anderson and Scott Agnew the same evening, beginning at Lauries Acoustic Room?
- Sun Sep 23, 8pm, Old Fruitmarket, Glasgow, £12 (£10), 0870 060 0100
Comedy at this year's Merchant City Festival has a distinctly homegrown flavour, with standout acts including veteran comic and breakfast host Fred MacAulay and skilled young Kevin Bridges appearing at the Old Fruitmarket and Tron respectively on Saturday. Online phenomenon-turned-live performer Limmy fronts two shows at Blackfriars on Thursday, but with both likely to sell out, why not sample the Stand Up Drink Up! pub crawl with Alan Anderson and Scott Agnew the same evening, beginning at Lauries Acoustic Room?
The weekend's highlight though will surely be the Scottish Comedian of the Year contest. Distinguished by the shoddiest trophy ever spray-painted, last year's inaugural competition witnessed a slender victory for Mark Nelson over Paul Pirie. Following a series of heats across Scotland, this year's line-up of emerging talent includes the assured Agnew, returning finalist and bampot the Wee Man, amiable Aussie Ro Campbell, Teddy, one third of ramshackle sketch trio the Amazing B*******, sassy Jay Lafferty, National Service advocate Sean Grant, occasionally surreal Northern Irishman Niall Browne, crowd-baiting Scott Forbes and wild-card Aberdonian entry Gus Tawse. One spot remains open to - potentially - anyone as it's for the winner of tonight's Gong Show at Maggie May's. Des Clarke hosts and the prize money is £1000.
