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Sunday Night Stand-Up
Sunday Night Stand-Up
Oct 9, 2024 2:21 PM

Author:Various Artists,Tom Allen,Pippa Evans,Suzi Ruffell,Kiri Pritchard-McLean,Jayde Adams,Gemma Arrowsmith,Stephen Buchanan,Alun Cochrane,George Fouracres,Various

Sunday Night Stand-Up

A sparkling selection of one-off comedy shows from Radio 4's Sunday night Stand Up Specials season

Since 2018, BBC Radio 4 has been making the nation laugh with its Stand Up Specials strand, featuring fantastic half-hour sets from a host of celebrated comedians. This wide-ranging collection brings together eleven of the very best acts, from established stars to new and emerging talent, as they 'zoom through angst from all angles' (The Guardian).

Among the hot comic takes, Tom Allen's Not Very Nice explores what happens when the hilarious host of The Apprentice: You're Fired turns from sweet to naughty; Pippa Evans Grows Up finds the Now Show star asking what it means to be a grown-up; Postcards to Portsmouth sees Suzi Ruffell returning to her home town (well, just down the road) to share tales of her family; and Kiri Pritchard-McLean spotlights the life choices of millennials in Egg-sistential Crisis, asking 'why have they stopped having babies?'

From Asda to Diva introduces us to Jayde Adams, who combines wit and show-stopping music to demonstrate how she went from working in a supermarket to fully-fledged prima donna; Emergency Broadcast sees Gemma Arrowsmith trapped in Broadcasting House and presenting a lockdown sketch show with Tom Crowley, Adam Courting, Hugh Dennis and Susan Harrison; Talking Shop outlines BBC New Comedy Award winner Stephen Buchanan's chequered work history and friendship with a Vietnamese refugee; and in Centrist Dad?, Alun Cochrane defends the much-maligned middle ground as he tries to find his place on the shifting political spectrum.

Also included is Black Country Gentlemon, in which George Fouracres tells his story of growing up in Wolverhampton; Magnifying Class, Athena Kugblenu's examination of class identity and what it means to be upwardly mobile; and One of Many, where Stephen Bailey contemplates his numerous namesakes - all of whom are more newsworthy than him - and wonders whether you can change your life just by changing your name.

Production credits

Tom Allen Is Actually Not Very Nice

Written and performed by Tom Allen and featuring Gabby Best

Produced by Richard Morris

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 22 April 2018

Pippa Evans Grows Up

Written and performed by Pippa Evans

Produced by Alison Vernon-Smith

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 13 May 2018

Suzi Ruffell: Postcards to Portsmouth

Written and performed by Suzi Ruffell, with additions from Ann Ruffell

Produced by Suzy Grant

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 12 May 2019

Kiri Pritchard-McLean: Egg-sistential Crisis

Written and performed by Kiri Prichard-McLean

Produced by Suzy Grant

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 10 January 2021

Jayde Adams: From ASDA to Diva

Written and performed by Jayde Adams, with music by Richard Thomas

Produced by Hayley Sterling

Production co-ordinator: Caroline Barlow

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 24 January 2021

Gemma Arrowsmith: Emergency Broadcast

Written by and starring Gemma Arrowsmith, with Tom Crowley, Adam Courting, Hugh Dennis and Susan Harrison

Produced by Victoria Lloyd

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 7 February 2021

Stephen Buchanan: Talking Shop

Written and performed by Stephen Buchanan

Produced by Adnan Ahmed

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 7 March 2021

Alun Cochrane: Centrist Dad?

Written and performed by Alun Cochrane

Produced by Richard Morris

Production co-ordinator: Mabel Wright

Sound engineer: Michael Smith

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 18 July 2021

George Fouracres: Black Country Gentlemon

Written and performed by George Fouracres

Produced by Richard Morris

Production co-ordinator: Beverly Tagg

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 20 March 2022

Athena Kugblenu: Magnifying Class

Written and performed by Athena Kugblenu

Produced by Leila Navabi

Production Coordinator: Caroline Barlow

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 24 April 2022

Stephen Bailey: One of Many

Written and performed by Stephen Bailey

Produced by Georgia Keating and Hayley Sterling

Production Coordinator: Katie Baum

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 1 May 2022

© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

Reviews

Calling all avid overthinkers, this funny and honest book is here to give you a break from the constant brain chatter.

—— Stylist

Hilarious...I absolutely loved this book! I almost wet myself from laughing!

—— Dr Amir Khan

Hayley Morris's debut is a fresh, very funny take on 21st-century high-functioning anxiety... an insightful, intimate account of modern life that is a joy to read, with shades of Dolly Alderton's Everything I Know about Love

—— Scarlett Sangster , iNews

A fresh, laugh-out-loud take on 21st-century high-functioning anxiety, Hayley Morris's honest and easy-to-read debut is a joy. It's a zeitgeist novel for our times, exposing just how normal it is to feel abnormal... Morris' insightful narrative to modern life feels like confessing to a best friend. Hayley Morris is most definitely an author to watch.

—— Press Association

TikTok's funniest comedian

—— Sunday Times (praise for online content)

Genius. So great... Wonderful!

—— Jamie Laing , Private Parts

Even for a convinced sceptic, John Yorke's book, with its massive field of reference from Aristotle to Glee, and from Shakespeare to Spooks, is a highly persuasive and hugely enjoyable read. It would be hard to beat for information and wisdom about how and why stories are told

—— Dominic Dromgoole, Artistic Director, The Globe Theatre

This book is intelligent, well written, incisive and, most of all, exciting. It is the most important book about scriptwriting since William Goldman's Adventures in the Screen Trade

—— Peter Bowker, screenwriter, Blackpool, Occupation and Eric & Ernie

Part 'How-to' manual, part 'why-to' celebration, Into The Woods is a wide-reaching and infectiously passionate exploration of storytelling in all its guises ... exciting and thought-provoking

—— Emma Frost, screenwriter, The White Queen and Shameless

Into The Woods is an amazing achievement. It has a real depth and understanding about story, a fantastically broad frame of reference and it's interesting and absorbing throughout. Full of incredibly useful insights, every TV writer should read the first chapter alone

—— Simon Ashdown, series consultant, EastEnders

Testing the adage that "in theory there's no difference between theory and practice but in practice there is", this is a love story to story -- erudite, witty and full of practical magic. It's by far the best book of its kind I've ever read. I struggle to think of the writer who wouldn't benefit from reading it -- even if they don't notice because they're too busy enjoying every page

—— Neil Cross, creator/writer of Luther, Crossbones and writer of Dr Who, MI5

Books on story structure are ten a penny but Mistah Yorke's is the real deal

—— Kathryn Flett

All script-writers will want to read Into The Woods. All plots and archetypes BUSTED

—— Caitlin Moran

Got to say Into The Woods by John Yorke is marvellous. The prospect of another screenwriting book made me yawn, but its terrific ... It's a great read, wise and cogent, and a must for all screenwriters

—— David Eldridge

A mind-blower ... an incredibly dense but very readable tome about the art of storytelling ... Really worth a read

—— Lenny Henry , The Independent

I don't always enjoy books on writing, but Into the Woods by John Yorke is brilliant on story structure.

—— Ken Follett, author of 'The Pillars of the Earth'

In his brimmingly insightful, stimulating study of how stories work, Yorke compellingly unpicks how a whole range of films, plays, novels and fairy tales all display the same archetypal structures . . . His book, in telling scores of stories in such a fresh, enlightening and accessible manner, is a gripping read from beginning to end

—— Sunday Times

The best book on the subject [of storytelling] I've read, tells us everything we need to know about it. Yorke's analysis is superb

—— London Evening Standard

A mightily impressive opus, both hugely informative and highly educational. I love the way it's populated with so many examples - the many combinations of both mass market and the slightly more esoteric giving a something-for-everyone feeling. A brilliant work

—— Peter James, best-selling author of NOT DEAD ENOUGH and LOOKING GOOD DEAD

Yorke sets out to analyse the patterns behind storytelling, explaining why the fundamentals of narrative have remained the same from Aristotle to Aaron Sorkin. A great starting point for anyone wanting to create a story

—— Stuff Magazine

I've just read a book about professional writing which has genuinely helped me. It's for those who are serious about avoiding bad 'How To' books and want to raise their game, and it's more intelligent than most of the others. John Yorke's Into The Woods: How Stories Work And Why We Tell Them is a genuine game-changer and has helped me put past bad habits to rest

—— Christopher Fowler, Author of Bryant and May

Into The Woods is utterly brilliant

—— Ed Cumming , Daily Telegraph

Love storytelling? You need this inspiring book. John Yorke dissects the structure of stories with a joyous enthusiasm allied to precise, encyclopaedic knowledge. Guaranteed to send you back to your writing desk with newfound excitement and drive

—— Chris Chibnall, creator and writer of Broadchurch and The Great Train Robbery

Into The Woods is brilliant. One of the best books on script writing out there . . . I loved the book. Inspiring

—— Dominic Mitchell, creator and writer of In The Flesh

There is no end of books that instruct us on how to write the perfect screenplay, but few that delve more deeply into the art of storytelling than this erudite volume

—— Financial Times

Its strength is Yorke's acute perception of the wellsprings of universal narrative structures relevant to all artistic activities

—— The Times

Terrific . . . It's a great read, wise and cogent, and a must for all screenwriters

—— David Eldridge, writer of Festen and In Basildon

It's a great read. It makes me smile and say 'Yes!' aloud. Only this and PG Wodehouse do that

—— Lucy Gannon, writer/creator of Soldier Soldier, Peak Practice, Frankie, The Best Of Men

Not How 2 Write them but how stories work. John Yorke's Into the Woods: A 5 Act Journey into Story is brilliant, illuminates & explains

—— Susan Hill, Author, The Woman In Black, I’m The King Of The Castle

I'm only 70 pages into John Yorke's Into the Woods but it's already helped me crack two stories

—— Andy Diggle, former editor of 2000AD, comic book writer for Marvel, DC

Highly recommended reading

—— Huffington Post

Yorke is aware that the world is not suffering for lack of prescriptive screenwriting manuals. Instead, with Into the Woods, he takes a scalpel to narrative structure - dissecting protagonist, antagonist, inciting incident, crisis and so on - before asking how and why this underlying shape still holds audiences spellbound like a fairytale witch. "A story is like a magnet dragged through randomness," Yorke writes, but while he elegantly untangles the deepest roots of storytelling, he also honours the human need for truth and sense with some more superficial questions: why do series tend to "jump the shark" round about season three, for example, or why is clunky exposition - particularly in medical dramas - so appallingly comical? Sit comfortably, then begin

—— Guardian

I absolutely love this book. It's incredible and so well written. I keep trying to find fault but so far no joy - It's so good

—— Matt Charman, writer Bridge of Spies (dir Stephen Spielberg); Black Work (ITV)

[John Yorke's] writing book is arguably possibly almost as good as mine, all right it's loads better shut up

—— David Quantick, Author of HOW TO WRITE EVERYTHING

Probably, in the hackneyed phrase, "the last book on screenwriting you'll ever need." He is very good at debunking the claims of some screenwriting gurus, all of whom are busy trying to sell you their own particular brand of snake oil. It's truly excellent

—— Tim Adler , Daily Telegraph

Of all the books I've read about story construction and the art of fiction, this one is the most comprehensive and concise

—— John Collee, writer on 'Master And Commander', 'Happy Feet', 'Creation', 'Walking With Dinosaurs'
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