News

It's been another great week for TV scoop, Tube Talk Q&A fans, so it's time to celebrate - just as long as you don't get too hammered at the pre-drinks first. Which don't exist. Because this is a metaphor. Wait, we've lost ourselves.

Ah, who cares, you don't want elaborate introductions - you want hardcore TV facts and figures on Bates Motel, Utopia and the like, so let's not waste any more time. Get readin'...

What's happened to Archer? I've been watching it on 5* but it isn't listed next week.

Well... d'you want the good news or the bad? The positive spin on this is that Channel 5 hasn't dropped the chucklesome Archer entirely - just moved it to a new slot. But *what* a slot...

After two weeks in a post-11pm 5* slot, the spy spoof will now shift to sister channel 5Usa. But you'd be forgiven for missing...

Chicago – The great city of Chicago can’t stop the funny this week. The TBS “Just for Laughs Chicago” comedy festival returns for another hilarious six days. Highlights include performances by Russell Brand, John Hodgman, Seth Meyers, Bill Maher and the legendary Chicagoan Bob Newhart.

But that’s not all. Every day through Sunday, June 16th, venues all over the city will be open for a variety of acts, in both types and sizes. HollywoodChicago.com has compiled the highlights of each day, with both the name acts and something more Chicago-centric to celebrate one of comedy’s funniest American cities. For a complete schedule, including ticket buying information, click here.

Russell Brand at “Just for Laughs Chicago” 2013

Photo credit: TBS

Tuesday, June 11

”iO Theater Presents Tj & Dave”

The iconic Chicago improvisation duo – T.J. Jagodowski and David Pasquesi – now nationally known through their hilarious commercials for Sonic restaurants, gets a...

Chicago – After wrapping up recently, the “Just for Laughs Chicago” comedy festival was a rousing success, as established and new comic performers entertained audiences all over the Windy City. Shows featured such diverse talents as Vince Vaughn, Patton Oswalt, Kevin Smith, Tj Miller and Janeane Garofalo.

Joe Arce of HollywoodChicago.com took photos of the top performers as he captured the Just for Laughs scene. Click “Next” and “Previous” to scan through the slideshow or jump directly to individual photos with the captioned links below. All images © Joe Arce of Starstruck Foto for HollywoodChicago.com.

JustForLaughs1: Vince Vaughn presented his ‘Comedy Showcase’ to close the festival. JustForLaughs2: The notable film director participated in ‘An Evening with Kevin Smith.’ JustForLaughs3: Patton Oswalt appeared at the historic Vic Theatre in Chicago. JustForLaughs4: Pete Holmes was part of ‘The Nerd Show’ at the Up Comedy Club. JustForLaughs5: Comedian...

Chicago – If a collective chorus of guffaws is heard throughout the Windy City this week, blame it on the ‘Just for Laughs Chicago’ 2012 Festival. From June 12th-17th, stages large and small throughout Chicagoland will feature some of the hottest comedy acts, stars and the taping of the ‘Conan’ TBS chat show, featuring Conan O’Brien and Andy Richter.

Every day through Sunday, June 17th, over one dozen venues will be open for a variety of acts, in both types and sizes. HollywoodChicago.com has compiled the highlights of each day, with both the name acts and something more Chicago-centric to celebrate one of comedy’s great American cities. For a complete schedule, including ticket buying information, click here.

The ‘Conan’ Show is in Chicago through June 14th

Photo credit: TBS

Tuesday, June 12

”Conan”

The “Conan” TBS show will be taped at the Chicago Theatre with load-in beginning at 4pm from today through June 14th.

Inbetweeners actors Simon Bird (who plays Will), Joe Thomas (who plays Simon) and Jonny Sweet (who cameod as Dean during the ‘Night Out In London’ episode) are teaming for a brand new Sky 1 HD sitcom, “Chickens”.

The period comedy series which they wrote & pitched themselves will follow three young men who are rejected to fight for their country during World War I and must stay at home in a sleepy English village that has become a world of women.

George (Thomas) is a conscientious objector, Cecil (Bird) is rejected on health grounds, and Bert (Jonny Sweet) is an amoral philandering scaredicat.

Apparently all three of the actors have been friends and writing together since university and they pitched the idea for Chickens to Sky after Channel 4, which launched two of the trio into major stardom with the uber successful Inbetweeners on E4, rejected the pilot that aired on the...

I wasn’t a fan of Green Wing, the semi-improved comedy based on scripts that were a hodgepodge of jokes, sketches and sight gags gathered from a hive-mind of writers. It was an interesting way to produce a single-camera sitcom, and one that clearly found an audience, but I found its scattergun approach quite tiring. Many of Green Wing‘s writers are behind Channel 4′s new comedy offering Campus, which won’t escape “Green Wing in a university” branding, because that’s exactly what it is. The uni’s motto is even “with wings”.

“Publication, Publication, Publication” was a 70-minute extension of the half-hour Comedy Showcase pilot from 2009 (including adverts), which basically means there was an awful lot of filler. But this filler is exactly what Campus thrives on, as it’s really just an extended sequence of sketches and non sequiturs. Jonty De Wolfe (Andy Nyman) is the...

Filed under: TV News

If you're not up on your United Kingdom TV news, you might've overlooked the pilot of David Cross's new TV show 'The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret.' The episode aired in the U.K. as a part of the Channel 4 series 'Comedy Showcase,' and then leaked online (as those things typically do).

Luckily, IFC has picked up the series and planned a proper U.S. television premiere on Oct. 1. But since the pilot is already in cyberspace, the channel decided to throw the entire thing up online -- if you can't beat the pirates, join 'em. The first season is only six episodes long, so it's best for the network to get as many viewers hooked as early as possible.

 

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David Cross has revealed that he will reshoot the pilot episode for The Increasingly Poor Decisions Of Todd Margaret without Russell Tovey. Todd Margaret, which centres on an American energy drinks firm employee who is dispatched to work in London, screened on Channel 4's Comedy Showcase strand last year and will return as a series later this year. Cross told Digital Spy of the upcoming comedy: "We have a great cast. Unfortunately, we lost one of the main actors, the guy who played Dave, so we had to recast that and reshoot a lot of it. The cast is great, I've written the other scripts with Shaun (more)...