in Arts by admin — November 2, 2011 at 8:38 pm

Brits and Yanks have always expressed different tastes when it comes to comedy. British comedy tends to be more wry, deadpan and (dare I say it) sophisticated whilst American humour is largely considered more in-your-face. Despite this sweeping generalisation, it would be fair to say that British comedy is arguably at its most influential right now, with many hit shows being remade across the pond and several of our brightest comedic talents achieving success inHollywood(Ricky Gervais and Russell Brand are two of our biggest exports).

But this has been no fair trade. As I sat in the Leicester Square Theatre, a venue painfully too small for a talent as painfully hilarious as Margaret Cho, I couldn’t help but feel like the UK doesn’t know what it’s missing. That night, only a few hundred fans were having the last laugh. So here’s my pick of the funny-men and women who need to make the transfer from my computer screen to your TV screen.

Margaret Cho has found her own niche inUS comedy since the early 90s, as a Korean/American bisexual fag-hag. Since starring in the short-lived sitcom ‘All American Girl’, her reputation as a live act has grown considerably, with several successful and critically-acclaimed tours under her belt. Cho’s observations on race and sexuality form the basis of her tirades against society’s anxieties, as well as famous egos in the political and entertainment arena (her most famous victim being former Governor of Alaska and 2008 vice-presidential hopeful Sarah Palin and her daughter Bristol Palin – “the temple prostitutes of the Republican party”). Cho has won a loyal fanbase for her commitment to LGBT and human rights charities – and her small English fanbase is no exception, despite her having gone on record as declaring England to be “fucking boring”.

The fact that Sarah Silverman is not a bigger star in theUK than she currently is is a TRAVESTY. Her sometimes irreverent, often offensive and highly original act has made her one of the hottest comedic talents in America, and proof that Americans can and do understand irony. What’s more amazing is that multi-ethnic audiences actually understand her sense of humour and are usually willing to go the distance with her; Silverman’s comic character leaves no racial or religious group (including her own Jewish heritage) unscathed in her mocking of bigotry and stereotyping. It’s a testament to her mastery of her craft and her natural charisma that she can pull of such risqué material – Silverman evokes fits of laughter where lesser comedians would induce outrage and disdain.

Louis CK rose to success in America in the last decade as a touring comedian and Emmy-nominated actor, however still falls short of total mainstream recognition. This is an atrocity given the talent this man has for his relatable yet often dark take on life as an average-Joe. Louis CK’s mid-life annoyance at the world around him makes for great comedy, turning the depressing and inevitable tolls that ageing weighs on his life and mental state into anecdotal gold. The current recession makes Louis CK the perfect comedian to resent the world vicariously through, though American audiences are arguably his preferred audience. Louis has this to say of England: “Home of the original white people who spread disease to every dark continent and enslaved the majority of the world’s population for centuries”. He does have a point.

By Christopher Nelson