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Vault Festival 2018: Go underground with the hottest comedic talent

From across the pond: UK-based Canadian comedian Mae Martin gets improvisational: Murdo Macleod
From across the pond: UK-based Canadian comedian Mae Martin gets improvisational: Murdo Macleod

The annual Vault Festival in Waterloo has always featured groundbreaking theatre but this year it has expanded to include a dedicated comedy festival.

There will be more than 125 shows over eight weeks in venues around SE1 from January 24, ranging from household names and TV favourites to experimental shows shattering boundaries. And best of all they will be in rooms so intimate that you can see the whites of the performers’ eyes. Whatever your taste in comedy there will be something for you here.

Award winners

Bridget Christie, winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award 2013, will debut new show What Now?
Bridget Christie, winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award 2013, will debut new show What Now?

Take your pick from three past winners of the prestigious Edinburgh Comedy Award. 2013 champion Bridget Christie (Jan 31, Feb 8 and 28) will be previewing a work-in-progress version of her latest show What Now? As ever, Christie will not be shying away from the big themes, taking in Brexit, Trump, nuclear apocalypse and environmental catastrophe as well as giving us her thoughts on the death of Playboy founder Hugh Hefner.

The winner in 2011, Adam Riches (Feb 28-Mar 4), will be even more ambitious. His run will not only feature new material but he will also be reviving all of his old shows, including, on March 2, his 2003 debut, Plat du Nuit — The Comeback Special. Approach with caution, Riches has a penchant for getting the audience fully involved in his innovative, immersive act.

When Richard Gadd (Mar 11) won the Edinburgh Comedy Award in 2016 with a show exploring masculinity, critics said he was straddling stand-up and theatre. Gadd has said this new show will mark a move further into theatre. Whatever the category, brace yourselves for something different. His last show was performed entirely on a running machine.

Rising stars

Rhys James is one of the smartest kids on the comedy block
Rhys James is one of the smartest kids on the comedy block

UK-based Canadian Mae Martin (Mar 15) is developing an autobiographical sitcom for Channel 4 as well as a new stage show. This improvised work in progress will see her bouncing off suggestions from the audience.

Panel show regular Joe Lycett (Feb 1-4) is playing three major shows at the Eventim Apollo in June. Get ahead of the curve and catch him warming up for his snappily titled I’m About To Lose Control And I Think Joe Lycett tour here.

James Acaster (Feb 4) published his first book, Classic Scrapes, last autumn. He could now add a new chapter about his recent scrape of being trapped in New York when snow grounded his flight. His impromptu Manhattan sojourn may well feature in this gig.

Rhys James (Mar 18) is rapidly becoming one of the smartest kids on the comedy block. In this show you can expect some new quips and some of his classics such as “Umbro is named after what your friends say to you if they see you wearing it”.

Master of self-deprecation Tom Houghton (Feb 8) used to be in sketch group The Noise Next Door but is now making a big noise as a solo performer. He certainly has a unique story to tell. His father is the Constable of the Tower of London, which is where Houghton lives. His bedroom is next to the room where Guy Fawkes was interrogated.

Tom Houghton is going solo with tales of living in the Tower of London (yes, really)
Tom Houghton is going solo with tales of living in the Tower of London (yes, really)

Master of self-deprecation Tom Houghton (Feb 8) used to be in sketch group The Noise Next Door but is now making a big noise as a solo performer. He certainly has a unique story to tell. His father is the Constable of the Tower of London, which is where Houghton lives. His bedroom is next to the room where Guy Fawkes was interrogated.

Expect the unexpected

A word of warning about Mat Ewins (Jan 24-28) — blink and you might miss some of his finest jokes. Adventureman 7 — don’t panic if you have not seen the first six, there is no first six — is so crammed full of one-liners, puns and sight gags you have to concentrate to keep up. Best of all are his gags onscreen. Powerpoint presentation has never been so ludicrously brilliant.

One of the most talked about acts at the moment is Jordan Brookes (Feb 24 and Mar 3). His risk-taking performances deconstruct all sorts of stand-up sub-genres, from confessional shows to observational humour. He is a physically striking performer too, who can be clownish and disturbing, often at the same time.

Provocative Fin Taylor (Jan 26) has made a name for himself for pulling the rug on expectations and taking potshots at Left-wingers in his shows, calling them dismissive, pedantic and smug. Taylor never opts for an easy, obvious opinion and is always very funny. Expect white privilege and virtue signalling to come under attack too in this greatest hits set.

Obituaries are constantly being written about the sketch comedy format but trio Sheeps (Jan 27 and 28) consistently demonstrate that there is life in the old sub-genre yet with their cool, postmodern spin on absurdist humour. The only thing holding Daran Johnson, Al Roberts and Liam Williams back is that they are all busy on solo projects too.

The International Brigade

Phil Wang grew up between the Far East and Stoke on Trent
Phil Wang grew up between the Far East and Stoke on Trent

Acclaimed Australian Steen Raskopoulos (Feb 11, 18, 24, 25) teams up with Carlo Ritchie for The Bear Pack, an hour of improvised storytelling described as “the kind of stories your grandparents wish they could tell you”. No two shows are ever the same so if you like them go and see them twice.

Phil Wang (Mar 15) has an English mother and a Malaysian father. He grew up in the Far East and then Stoke-on-Trent and has a distinctive take on British life, which is helping him to establish himself as a distinctive voice on the circuit and on television shows.

Yuriko Kotani provides a humours take on the differences between London and her native Japan
Yuriko Kotani provides a humours take on the differences between London and her native Japan

Japanese comedian Yuriko Kotani (Mar 3) has been based in London for a while now and gets considerable mileage out of cataloguing the differences between the relatively laid-back English capital and the industrious country where she grew up. “Have we anyone from Japan?” she asks at gigs. When there is no reply, she adds: “Because all the Japanese are at work.”

Pakistan-born actor/comedian Mawaan Rizwan (Feb 23) has made waves with his own YouTube channel but his live shows are also winning him an army of new fans. He recently supported Simon Amstell and his fast-paced combination of confessional comedy and skilful physicality mark him out as a definite name to watch.

The Vault Comedy Festival runs from Jan 24-Mar 18 at various Waterloo venues (07598 676 202, vaultfestival.com)