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There
was an Englishman, three Scottish men and three women from The West
Country - no, it's not a feeble joke, but some of the 12 participants
on a day-long course to find out more about breaking into the world
of comedy.
Among
them was a trainee teacher, an IT guru, a former record plugger,
an accountant and a college lecturer in English literature - and
me.
 I
feel sorry for the spouses of comedy obsessives as it's like
being a football widow. They don't really want to hear the recitation
of comedy sketches at breakfast.  |
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Andrew
Barclay
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There
already was one joke. I was sitting in a room above a restaurant
trying to learn to be funny - when the Rugby World Cup was playing
- and all I could decipher about the England/Australia scores was
from the various cries coming the streets outside.
And
I had beaten through pouring rain, train diversions and gone without
breakfast to attend the course - on a Saturday too. It had better
be worth it.
The
action started quickly. Course leader Andrew Barclay, from St Albans,
guiding us through different comedy genres and the elements needed
to make a good sketch.
And
then we were away, in small groups writing to a deadline - of 10
minutes. Amazingly each group came up with a sketch that had the
makings of a good gag.
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| Master
of comedy - Ricky Jervais |
We
then looked at people with strong characteristics with comic potential
- strangely three of the group chose their mother-in-laws!
After
lunch, the emphasis turned to the business of comedy - how to get
your hilarious sketches used.
Covering
things from basic customer research to who exactly to send your
script to, this session also included ideas about self-promotion
and putting on a fringe production.
And
the day rounded off with "some we'd made earlier" - sketches
that we had brought along with us to the course. Considering we'd
all written them without any help, the standard was surprisingly
good!
Afterwards
I asked Andrew - who you may recognise from a popular insurance
advert - the idea behind the course.
"The
aim of the course is to encourage people to get writing comedy.
"It's
for anyone who's ever thought about writing comedy and thought they
would like to do it.
"This
course gives them the tools to get started with a disciplined focussed
approach, so using their talent as efficiently as possible."
Andrew,
39, has been running the courses for three years and holds them
every few months. One of the courses graduates now runs a comedy
club at The Polar Bear pub in London where Andrew comperes.
And
Andrew often calls his students afterwards to see how they're getting
on: "I feel passionate about comedy and want to see others
feel the same way.
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Top
comedy tips
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- Find
your own voice
- Get
ideas from your own life
- Do
the research
- Try
out your ideas with your friends
- Start
writing ASAP
- Be
disciplined in your approach
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"I
feel sorry for the spouses of comedy obsessives as it's like being
a football widow. They don't really want to hear the recitation
of comedy sketches at breakfast!"
And
so the course ended and I now have the tools to become a funny writer.
So
here's my first sketch:
Bob:
What's brown and sticky?
John:
I don't know Bob, what is brown and sticky
Bob:
A stick of course.
Maybe
I shouldn't quit my day job yet.
Andrew
and his company, Comedy People, have kindly offered a place on the
course to a winner of a BBC Beds, Herts and Bucks sketch
writing competition >>
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