Sense of humour is a personal thing, and what makes one person laugh leaves another completely unmoved.
For me, comedy needs to be relatable. One of the worst (semi-famous) comedians I saw spent the first half of his act talking about his drinking and wild nights out to an audience that didn’t care about these things. As I’ve got older, I’m the same. I’m no longer interested in comedians talking about their toddlers or their drinking games.
Instead I enjoy those who tell stories that resonate with me or who are clever with words and one-liners. So, who did I see?
1. Bill Bailey, Cornerstone, Didcot – September 2025
To call Bill Bailey a comedian is a bit like calling Leonardo Da Vinci an artist. He’s also an incredibly talented musician, and, of course, dancer. The show was a test bed for his new material, so it was only an hour long. During this time he told jokes, sang and played a myriad of musical instruments. It was brilliant!
2. Rich Hall, Cornerstone, Didcot – November 2025
Rich Hall is an American comedian, living in England, whose seemingly grumpy persona belies his sharp wit.
He’s well known for his political rants and the first half didn’t disappoint as he laid into Trump with his trademark observations and laconic style.
The second half highlighted his improvisation skills as he made up and played country songs based on the audience. He created a fantastic song for a lady who was an equine therapist. It was very clever and, although I’m sure he has a structure that he follows, it felt spontaneous and funny.
3. Reginald D Hunter and special guests, Cornerstone, Didcot – February 2026
The ‘and special guests’ tag meant that we had about 40 minutes of Reginald, plus two other comedians – Mike Gunn and Joe Wells. I really enjoyed Mike, who talked about getting older, whereas Joe tended to focus on his autism.
Prior to this show, I hadn’t realised that Reginald had endured a private prosecution against him for a joke he told at a festival. Although it was quashed, he had only just come back to the comedy circuit and he seemed noticeably nervous on stage, which was a little surprising given his experience.
That said, he did tell the very joke that had got him into trouble in the first place – which took some courage!
4. Ed Byrne and guests, Abingdon School – June 2026
Another of the ‘and guests’ tags. The first guest was Mike Gunn , who we’d seen supporting Reginald D Hunter. He was, again, very good, but it was almost exactly the same set as when we’d seen him previously! Ingrid Dahle, a Norwegian comic, talked a lot about living in the UK and the difference between Norwegians and British people.
As there were breaks between both comedians, Ed didn’t come on until 10pm and his set was only about 30 minutes. He was very good at interacting with the audience, but I do wish he’d had longer.
5. Paul Merton and Suki Webster, Oxford Playhouse, September 2026
This was an improv show rather than a traditional stand up act. Paul and Suki, along with Mike McShane, played games and created songs which the audience helped make suggestions for. There was also an unexpected guest, Alexander Armstrong. My favourite skit was a slapstick set where a member of audience had to move Paul and Xander’s arms, legs and heads in time with a conversation – it was incredibly funny! Although it wasn’t quite what I expected, it was an enjoyable show and I’m in awe of people who can create songs and comedy on the spot.
Challenge partly completed.
Pop over to read the full list of my 60 things to do before I’m 60.