As one of the UK’s biggest names in comedy, Lee Evans is known for his high octane, energetic, and lively presence onstage. His previous DVD’s, such as Wired and Wonderful received rave reviews: and it looks like this will be no exception.

Starting the show by acknowledging his character trait of – just sometimes – sweating a little, he’s perfectly happy to be derogatory about himself and his style. Having self-branded himself as a ‘sweaty chimp boy’ before he even reaches the stage, you instantly feel there’s no ego in sight.

Evans is no stranger to area tours, and despite the fact that the largest stages in the country are provided for the use of one man, it never feels empty. His inability to stay still for any period of time means that there is likely no corner of the country’s biggest areas that hasn’t been trodden by Evans. It’s this authority he has over the stage and the audience that helps to make him a sell-out act, again and again.

While a lot of the material he pulls his jokes from is rather mundane, it’s the fast-paced, over-excited way he delivers it that helps to make him stand out from the crowd. He covers a range of topics – from getting dressed in the morning and crazy shopping experiences to the things women say and getting older.

It’s the way that many of his observations ring true in the lives of his audience that makes the material even funnier. While there are so many lines to choose from, a favourite has to be that “women never take a coat out, they don’t need one. No they’ve already got one, it’s lovely and warm…I should know, it’s called f**king mine”.

This is the kind of comedy DVD that can be seen again and again: with so much material crammed into 2 hours, it’s easy to miss those throwaway lines – and multiple viewings means there’s always something new to laugh at.

Probably most well known from his successful TV series Black Books, Dylan Moran has been entertaining audiences for over 20 years now with his very definitely un-PC stand up comedy. The experience works well in his favour, and he comes across confident and practised.

Portraying a raffish, laid back and lazy Irishman, you’d be mistaken for thinking Moran is simply going to make jokes on the smaller topics. Yet he’s quick to put you right as he launches into his first rant on the technological world – saying “you can’t put a machine that goes blip into a grocery shop – you need to talk to people”.

Starting his set with a trip round the British Isles, Moran touches on a wide range of topics – from politics and parenthood to musicians and male pride. He makes reference clever references to the situation between Ireland and Germany, then manages to seamlessly slide into his views on the pointlessness of skiing.

While he often acts the ignorant – his belief that The Archers is simply a show about people who are “very, very worried about getting their crisps to the fete on time: no wonder everybody’s hooked” – it’s obvious he’s done his research and is talking from experience. This contradiction makes gives his punch lines an extra edge that goes beyond simple one liners.

Moran flits from one subject to another, sometimes so quickly it’s hard to keep up. One moment he’s talking about the weather, then he’s onto the confusing things women do, and finally he’s talking about middle age – and all within the space of a couple of minutes.

However, despite this, the quick change is done so flawlessly that you barely notice, and even in the pauses he doesn’t lose that audience. Though he often ‘loses his thread’ – and you can actually believe that he’s just rambling instead of following a planned and practised script – he picks up quickly enough to keep you engaged.

For some intelligent comedy that can even leave you thinking once it’s finished, Dylan Moran never fails to disappoint. Yeah Yeah is out now in time for Christmas, and is well worth treating yourself to.

Rock n Roll Nerd is a light-hearted story of a young man dreaming of playing on the big stage to thousands of fans – and while you kind of know it’s coming; when Minchin reaches the end and lets us in to that fact that he’s singing about himself, the laughs are just as appreciative.

With his ability to capture the audience’s attention as he leads up towards his next piece, you can’t help but find something to laugh at – even in his old material, which has been given a new lease of life with the orchestra behind it.

He’s just as irreverent as ever, with songs like Sam’s Mum and the always popular Pope Song making an appearance. As he launches into the latter piece, a cheer goes up – proving that it’s still a firm favourite with Minchin’s audience.

Tim Minchin has a great skill for making his audience both nervous about where he is going, as well as to keep them anticipating what he will say. Even from the comfort of the sofa, you can feel the strain the audience is going through as he brings out a copy of the Qur’an, places it next to a copy of Harry Potter and quite calmly discusses the significance of burning books.

Daring the audience seems to be a game to Minchin, as can be heard in Cont, where on first playing he seems to insult every possible minority group possible, leaving you feeling slightly uncomfortable when it reaches the end. However, as always, Minchin manages to alleviate any fears after revealing the true title of the song is not ‘Cont’, but in fact ‘Context’.

However, it’s not only irreverence and smart gags that make up the show. His closing number, White Wine in the Sun in tear-jerkingly beautiful, and as he quite rightly says, he gets trouble from his audience if he doesn’t play it.

Although it may not quite be a DVD for family viewing over the Christmas period, if you need a break and some light-hearted disrespect, Tim Minchin and the Heritage Orchestra is perfect viewing.

Rufus Hound: Being Rude

TV’s Rufus Hound is a comedian, presenter, actor and the owner of a very fine moustache.

You already know him as the star of Celebrity Juice, Let’s Dance For Comic Relief (dressed as Cheryl Cole), Argumental, and of his own CBBC sitcom, Hounded.

Now, in this brilliant debut DVD, Rufus goes back to his stand-up roots in a stunning live show, recorded at London’s legendary 100 Club.

In addition to the 70 minute main feature – DVD Extras include an audio commentary from Rufus Hound and his Celebrity Juice chums Fearne Cotton and Keith Lemon, as well as a feature length interview with Rufus backstage at the 100 club.

Rufus Hound has also been busy of late, launching Your PC Mate, a national campaign with Microsoft Windows where he will be hitting the streets of England to give away free PCs to the most deserving cases. Rufus and the Windows team will be matching unsuspecting owners of out-of-date, old computers with shiny, new laptops from The Collection complete with Windows 7 and Office 2010.

Cities next on Rufus’s list include:
Birmingham – 22 November
Southampton – 29 November

To support the campaign we are inviting people to tweet via #YourPCMate, telling us their location and why they deserve an upgrade for the chance to win a free PC makeover. In addition a Facebook App has been created on the Windows UK Facebook page where people can upload an image of their PC or their friends/family PC for a separate chance at winning. There users can also follow Rufus via a Bing integrated Twitter Map and MSN videos as he tours the UK.

Buzzin Media Free Comedy Competition

Please Note: this competition has now closed

Enter our free competition for a chance to win a copy of Rufus Hound: Being Rude DVD all you need to do is answer the following question:

For Let’s Dance for Comic Relief, who did Rufus Hound dress as?

a.    Cheryl Cole
b.    Ashley Cole
c.    Carlton Cole

Send your entries to comps@buzzinmedia.co.uk with “Rufus Hound Comp” in the subject line with your answer and your full address and contact telephone number.

This Buzzin Media Competition ends on 18th December,2011. The editor will randomly choose 3 winners.

The editor’s choice is final.

But sometimes it’s good to watch older films or a complete television series all in one go!  For this you have always had to buy or rent the DVD.  But now there is another way to watch films and TV series that have been released on DVD, on your computer.  With faster and better quality broadband services available across the UK you can watch your favourite comedy classics with an online streaming service.

There is a wealth of British comedy past and present, currently available to stream online including television series The Inbetweeners Series 1 & 2, Phoenix Nights Series 1 & 2 and Fawlty Towers; as well as great British comedy films such as the hilarious Four Weddings & A Funeral, Monty Python & The Holy Grail, Life Of Brian and Lock, Stock & Two Smoking Barrels to name but a few.

John Cleese and his then wife Connie booth wrote and starred in Fawlty Towers, the best British Sitcom of all-time, in my opinion.  They only recorded twelve episodes over two series.  The first series was in 1975, followed by a second series in 1979.

Fawlty Towers is based on a fictional hotel in the south west of England though the proprietor and main character, Basil Fawlty, played by John Cleese, was apparently based on a real-life rude hotelier in Torquay where John Cleese stayed with the other members of the Monty Python comedy team in 1970.

The sitcom follows Basil as he struggles not to be rude to guests and his attempts to hide trouble from his dominatrix wife Sybil, played by Prunella Scales.  The other main characters are Polly the maid, played by Connie Booth, and Manuel the Spanish porter and waiter, played by Andrew Sachs.

The scripts were brilliantly written and the interplay between the four main characters and the guests is hilarious.  In 2000 Fawlty Towers was voted number one in a list of 100 Greatest British Television Programmes compiled by the British Film Institute and voted by industry professionals.

Another brilliant British sitcom that is available to rent or watch online is The Office which was written by Ricky Gervais & Stephen Merchant.  Gervais, who also starred in the show, has referred to Fawlty Towers when asked why he refused to make a third series.

There is thousands of comedy DVD’s now available online to stream at a time of your choice, in the comfort of your own home.

BBC TV Episodes DVD

Episodes is a hilarious new comedy series from the highly acclaimed writing partnership of David Crane (Friends) and Jeffrey Klarik (Mad About You).

Episodes is the story of a happily married English couple, Sean and Beverly Lincoln who also happen to be successful producers of a hit British TV show called Lyman’s Boys.

At an awards ceremony in London they are wooed by a hugely powerful and charismatic US network executive who persuades them to move out to LA and remake their hit show for an American audience – with disastrous results.

Things begin to unravel at Sean and Beverly’s first studio meeting. It soon becomes clear that the network president has never even seen their show.To make matters worse, he insists they replace their lead actor, a Royal Shakespeare veteran played by Richard Griffiths with Matt LeBlanc. Sean and Beverly are appalled. But the decision is out of their hands. Matt comes on board and they find themselves in a complicated triangle, which threatens to destroy not just their TV show but their marriage too.

The quintessential US comedy star Matt LeBlanc plays a larger than life version of himself. Joining him are Tamsin Greig (Green Wing, Love Soup, Shaun of the Dead), Stephen Mangan (Free Agents, Never Better, Green Wing), Kathleen Rose Perkins (Without A Trace, Tell Me You Love Me), Mircea Monroe (Scrubs, Without A Trace), Daisy Haggard (Psychoville,Sense and Sensibility) and Richard Griffiths (The History Boys, Withnail and I).

Buzzin Media Free Comedy Competition

PLEASE NOTE: THIS COMPETITION HAS NOW CLOSED

Enter our free competition for a chance to win a copy of Episodes Series One DVD all you need to do is answer the following question:

What is the name of the American comedy actor who stars in Episodes

a.    Matthew Perry
b.    Matt Le Tissier
c.    Matt LeBlanc

Send your entries to comps@buzzinmedia.co.uk with “Episodes Comp” in the subject line with your answer and your full address and contact telephone number.

This Buzzin Media Competition ends on 16th March,2011. The editor will randomly choose 3 winners.

The editor’s choice is final.

Episodes will be released on BBC DVD and Blu ray fresh from its run on BBC2 on the 28th February 2011 priced  £20.42 for DVD and £25.52 for Blu ray.

Some Mother's Do 'Ave 'Em 4 Disc DVD boxset

Alongside his very understanding and tolerant wife Betty (Michelle Dotrice), Frank Spencer tries to hold down a job and generally get on in life, often with disastrous yet hilarious consequences.

Written by Raymond Allen and starring Michael Crawford, Some Mother’s Do ‘Ave ‘Em was one of the biggest situation comedies on British television in the 1970’s and continues to be shown to this day.  Each episode contains dangerous stunts that were undertaken by Crawford himself.

The show is fondly remembered and gave the world the catchphrase ‘Ooh Betty’.  This new boxset includes four DVD’s containing all three series and an extra disc with all the Christmas Specials.

Buzzin Media Free Comedy Competition

PLEASE NOTE: THIS COMPETITION HAS NOW CLOSED

Enter our free competition for a chance to win a copy of Some Mother’s Do ‘Ave ‘Em DVD Boxset all you need to do is answer the following question:

What is the name of Michael Crawford’s character in Some Mother’s Do ‘Ave ‘Em?

a.    Frank Black
b.    Frank Spencer
c.    Frank Sidebottom

Send your entries to comps@buzzinmedia.co.uk with “Some Mothers Comp” in the subject line with your answer and your full address and contact telephone number.

This Buzzin Media Competition ends on 14th March,2011. The editor will randomly choose 3 winners.

The editor’s choice is final.

Some Mother’s Do ‘Ave ‘Em – The Complete Series Plus Christmas Specials is now available as a BBC DVD boxset priced £30.63 rrp.

Jethro: Feast of Fun DVD Boxset

Following the release of Jethro’s latest stand-up comedy DVD, I Told It My Way is a boxset including 3 DVD’s from this loveable funny man from Cornwall.

The Feast of Fun DVD Boxset includes I Told It My Way, Too Late To Grow Up & A Giant Portion Of Jethro.

I Told It My Way
The Cornish comedian Jethro returns for this brand new and hilarious touring stand-up show I Told It My Way, filmed across 4 different venues on tour around the country.

Too Late To Grow Up
Jethro takes a look at life, as only he can, and shares the benefits of going out with a homeless girl to his experiences at a deaf and dumb dance. Discover the true meaning of ram raiding in Wales and find out what Denzil Penberthy’s been up to – from meeting a sniffer dog to having an out-of-this-world sexual experience.

A Giant Portion Of Jethro
Jethro spins side-splitting yarns with a little help from Denzil Pemberthy including Olympic and dog-swallowing condoms, being hospitalised by a hoover and banned from a supermarket. From Salisbury to Somerset, Worthing to Wisbech and of course Live at Jethro’s, it’s time for a giant portion of the daft and barmy from your favourite Cornishman!

Buzzin Media Free Comedy Competition

Enter our free competition for a chance to win a copy of Jethro’s Feast of Fun DVD Boxset all you need to do is answer the following question:

Where is Jethro from?

a.    London
b.    Cornwall
c.    Devon

Send your entries to comps@buzzinmedia.co.uk with “Jethro DVD Boxset” in the subject line with your answer and your full address and contact telephone number.

This Buzzin Media Competition ends on 17th January,2011. The editor will randomly choose 3 winners.

The editor’s choice is final.

jason manford Live at the Manchester Apollo DVD

Perhaps best known to many for his short stint fronting the The One Show on BBC, Jason Manford is an award winning comedian from Manchester who has recently released his debut stand up DVD, the self explanatory, Live At The Manchester Apollo.

No stranger to television , as well as his stint on The One Show Manford has been on the box a fair bit this year on stuff like 8 Out of 10 Cats, Odd One In, As Seen on TV, Walk On The Wild Side and Live at The Apollo.

The popular and likeable comedian presents his first stand up DVD from a show recorded in Manchester during his 2009 tour and while some of the material may be familiar from his TV appearances it is generally quite fresh content delivered with a friendly knowing smile.

When Manford talks about men urinating, which takes up a fair chunk of his material, he mentions how it is possible to accidentally aim between the seat and the porcelain when a man is sitting on a toilet. As the camera pans around the audience every man in the crowd is being given the same ‘I told you it was you!’ look from their partners.

He talks about a willy holder that he is thinking of showing on Dragons Den which is amusing and there are hilarious anecdotes about urinal etiquette, driving and learning to drive and why there are plenty of call centres in Newcastle.

Manford tells a good story and interacts well with the audience without being too rude, his best stories are saved until close to the end, with the stories that Dad’s tell and his experiences with a narcoleptic father.

He then descends int o a funny bit that starts off about fertility treatment but quickly switches to masturbation, procreation and the pain of child birth at which point with the help of the audience Manford tries to decide whether child birth is actually as painful as a man being kicked in the balls! Very funny stuff.

The DVD also features an exclusive extras package, which includes behind the scenes, being interviewed by his brother and a visit to Manchester City.

Jason Manford Live at the Manchester Apollo is available now on DVD, Cert 15.

Kevin Bridges: The Story So Far... Live In Glasgow DVD

Kevin Bridges: The Story So Far… Live In Glasgow is Kevin Bridges debut DVD release after a meteoric rise to the big stage following television appearances on BBC’s Live At The Apollo and Michael McIntyre’s Roadshow.

I was fortunate enough to see Kevin Bridges perform at this year’s Latitude Festival after being tipped of by my son.  We sat through his set on Saturday afternoon crying with laughter, as did the whole comedy tent that bulged past capacity and merged with the gathered crowds in front of the large video screens that flanked the Comedy Stage.  Kevin Bridges is only 24 years old but he has already made a name for himself as one of the most talented young comedians in the UK.

Kevin Bridges is very funny.  His stories include growing up and living in Glasgow, school, kids, dogs, the English, and the problems with still living with his parents. He says how some English people love his show but can’t quite understand everything he says because of his strong Glaswegian accent.  While people from Glasgow will ask why he has changed his accent and sounds like a “poofta!”

The DVD was recorded on the last night of his sell-out tour and sees Bridges return to Glasgow for a sold out homecoming.

In the past 12 months or so Kevin Bridges has sold out over 100 dates on his first ever UK solo tour, and played to 25,000 people at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe.  He has already collected a couple of awards:  a 2010 Chortle Award for Best Breakthrough act and a 2009 Edinburgh Comedy Award nomination for Best Newcomer.

As well as the aforementioned stand up comedy shows Kevin Bridges has also appeared on  BBC ONE’s Friday Night With Jonathan Ross and as a regular contributor on Channel 4’s Stand Up For The Week.

Kevin Bridges: The Story So Far… Live In Glasgow also includes extra bonus material including Kevin Bridges appearance on the Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Roadshow (which was filmed in Edinburgh).