Comedy: Give a little love…

The art of giving doesn’t have to be entirely altruistic; taking a look at charity shows

Take charity. Go on, take it and run with it. We have such a wide variety of charity nights foisting the best of comedy’s talent onto us in Brighton throughout the year, as well as some incredibly worthy local charities from MS Sussex to the Sussex Beacon and Amaze. We really are the People’s Republic Of Brighton (check out the Facebook group that popped up in the wake of the general election results of that name too).
There are the big annual fundraisers. The Brighton Comedy Festival kicks off on 9 October with it’s Opening Night Gala, in aid of the Sussex Beacon, which in recent years has been hosted by the charity’s patron Alan Carr. Fingers crossed for this year. The bill for 2015 has yet to be announced but past talents to grace the Concert Hall’s stage for this prestigious event include Seann Walsh, Jack Dee, Angela Barnes, Kevin Bridges and Michael McIntyre. With tickets at just £26.50 it’s giving to a good cause and bagging yourself a fantastic night out too.
Of course, not all charity evenings occur on such a large scale. This coming Sunday sees a brand new fundraiser pop up over at The Pond pub for Mouth Cancer Awareness. Called Smiley Sunday – you see what they did there – there are seven comics on the bill headlined by the delectable and ever-sharp musical comic David Jordan, who was nominated for Leicester Mercury Comedian Of The Year earlier this year.

September starts with the same generous attitude, with Komedia playing host to first the North Laine Charity Comedy Night on
Wednesday 2 September, and then the return of the monthly fundraiser Charity Chuckle on the 8th – which rotates which charity benefits from each show, giving them all the benefit of a good laugh.
And – stop the presses – on Wednesday 9 September the rare treat of award-winning TV comedy producer (Baby Cow) Henry Normal can be seen as performer when he gets to the stage with A Celebration Of Poetry, Humour & Family Photos. Describing his poetry as “All the humour and frivolity of Leonard Cohen and all the spiritual depth of Daffy Duck”, this intimate gem of a show is in aid of local charity Amaze, of which Normal is a patron, and is again at Komedia. Wunderbar!
Opening Night Gala, Friday 9 October, 8pm, £26.50, Concert Hall, Brighton Dome, www.brightoncomedyfestival.com
Smiley Sunday, Sunday 16 August, 7.30pm, £3, The Pond, Gloucester Road
www.komedia.co.uk/brighton