Where to find funny this week
Sunday 9 December: This month's No Pressure to be Funny at the Soho Theatre sees guests Sara Pascoe, Robin Ince, Pete Johansson, James Sherwood and Matthew Norman joining Nick Revell, Alistair Barrie and James O'Brien to come up with topical gags (7pm, £10).
Monday 10 December: Hurry! There are loads of tickets left for Bill Bailey at the Leicester Square Theatre, doing his Qualmpeddler show (10pm, £20).
Tuesday 11 December: Jerry Sadowitz was doing work-in-progress shows last week, now it's the proper thing at the Leicester Square Theatre for a month (7.30pm, £19.50). He complained recently about other comedians ripping him off; see why he's the original and best.
Wednesday 12 December: Jigsaw are one of our favourite sketch groups, a brilliant combination of silly and frighteningly clever. See them at the Crown Comedy Club in Blackheath, along with Michael Legge, Paul F Taylor, Wouter Meijs, Saban Kazim and Laura Lexx MCing (8pm, £7 / £6 / £5).
Thursday 13 December: There's sketch heaven at the Bloomsbury Theatre, with mini-sets from Idiots of Ants, The Penny Dreadfuls, Two Episodes of Mash, Max & Ivan, The Beta Males, Cariad Lloyd, Spak Whitman and Pattie Brewster. Perfect for the attention-depleted Christmas brain (7.30pm, £15 / £13).
Friday 14 December: Troupe Clever Peter (as heard on Radio 4) host a night of sketch comedy at the Pleasance, with guests Allnut & Simpson, The Silky Pair, Sam Fletcher and Pattie Brewster (8pm, £5).
Saturday 15 December: There are still some tickets left for tonight's Robin Ince's Nine Lessons and Carols for Godless People (also 20 and 23 December). If you head to the Bloomsbury Theatre you'll get Helen Arney, Richard Herring, Matt Parker, Joanna Neary, Helen Keen, Barry Cryer and Ronnie Golden, Ben Goldacre and more (7.30pm, £25 / £15).
Book ahead: We have a feeling tickets for these might go quickly: Robert Newman and Mark Thomas are working out new material at the Pleasance in January.
Tip us off to friendly, intelligent, alternative comedy around town [email protected], read our guide to watching live comedy in London and our top 10 themed comedy nights.
