Comedy Christmas

When you hear the word 'Christmas' what do you think? Probably turkey, mistletoe, presents, family. How about comedy? It's hardly the first thing that jumps to mind, but a Christmas without laughter isn't much of a Christmas at all. That's probably why December is our busiest month of the year; with numerous sell out shows and people partying with us til the early hours. Laughter is the perfect way to unwind and make the most of the time you have with family and friends.

With only a week of shows left (acts including Gary Delaney and Ivan Brackenbury) our minds are now turning to the best ways to get yourself giggling when your favourite comedy club is closed for the week.

FILMS

There are literally hundreds of films on over the holiday period butt some are always worth watching year after year. The awesome slapstick of 'Home Alone' never fails to delight, helped along by the surprisingly decent acting of the young Macaulay Culkin (or Mac has he no prefers).

 Having just bagged the 'International Achievement' award at this years British Comedy Awards (much to the chagrin of our friend Johnny Vegas) Will Ferrell's comedy classic 'Elf' will surely get a prime time slot sometime in the next couple of weeks. It manages to be one of those few films that genuinely ticks the box for both adults and children alike.

Similarly Jim Carrey's performance in 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas' raises the film up to be more than just a kids film. Well worth a look if you've not seen it.

BOARD GAMES

Whilst Monopoly and Ludo tend to reduce families to tears rather than laughter there are plenty of board games kicking about today which are actually (dare we say it) fun. Balderdash has been kicking about for quite a few years now but it never loses it's shine. A per-cursor to the TV show 'Would I Lie to You', the object of the game is to convince your friends and family that your lie is in fact a far-flung fact.

Articulate is another great game, partly because the concept is so simple. The game sees you trying to describe everyday objects without using 'rhymes with' or 'sounds like'. This simple concept becomes ten times harder when you include a timer and your families natural competative streak.

Also it's not a board game, but Christmas would be Christmas without a game of Charades, even if your uncle does insist on trying to do Free Willy every time.

SONGS 

Most Christmas are played ad nausea from about the end of August to the start of the new year. Despite this, there are a few great comic songs which you never get to hear on the radio. Take Weird Al Yankovic's 'The Night Santa Went Crazy' for instance; there's guns, bling and decapitation a plenty here which means no radio station in their right mind would touch it, but  it's still a good holiday listen.

Peter Kay's comedy creation Geraldine McQueen may have only had two hits to her name but to be fair one of them has done pretty well for itself. 'Once Upon A Christmas Song' manages to both satirise and embrace everything about the traditional Christmas tune. It's repetitive and juvenile but also kind of brilliant. You'll be singing it over and over and over again.

Not really a comedy song but instead a brilliantly heartfelt seasonal number from musical comedian Tim Minchin. There aren't many songs which really capture anything with such honesty and humour as this one, and if you've never heard 'White Wine in the Sun' then you really should. It might just be your new favourite yule tide tune.

TV 



If you've never seen the IT Crowd before then now is the time to jump on 4OD and cram before the final episode is aired on Christmas Eve. A properly good show that has all the elements of a great sitcom: farce, slapstick, ridiculous characters and brilliant pathos. Providing it doesn't go tits up in the last episode it will be one of the few British sitcoms to not have outstayed its welcome.

1:30pm, Christmas Day, you've got everyone round, what do you stick on the telly? Well we defy anyone not to enjoy 'You've Been Framed! At Christmas'. Whether your 7 or 97 it's always funny watching someone get knocked down by a toboggan, that's just a fact of life.

Although 'The Big Fat Quiz...' formula has been milked to death recently, much like anything Jimmy Carr is involved with (8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown' anyone?), its yearly outing is still worth a watch, if only to see what comment the Daily Mail will try and work up in to some media furor. It's like going to the pub quiz, only you get to sit inside and eat left over turkey.

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Man, too much Christmas talk has left us craving a mince pie or five. Merry Christmas Tonic fans. We look forward to seeing you in the new year.