Lone Star Comedy moves to the Tower Theatre

The Lone Star Comedy Club returns at a new venue – The Tower Theatre on North Road at Shorncliffe in Cheriton, near Folkestone – on Saturday May 31st with MITCH BENN, MICHAEL FABBRI, compere MAFF BROWN and a newcomer’s act.

Now the home of FHODS, the Tower Theatre is currently the town’s best-kept secret and is the old Garrison Church at the Shorncliffe barracks. There are about 300 seats in the auditorium and a Full bar service. Drinks will be available before the show starts, in the interval and afterwards. Don’t be put off making the effort – there’s ample FREE parking and you’ll love it when you get there! Take a look at the website – www.towertheatrefolkestone.co.uk – for a map and further details.

MITCH BENN headlined the club’s opening night at the Lanterns in Folkestone back January 2004. He is not only one of the most sought-after acts on the comedy circuit but is widely acknowledged as one of the best writer/performers of comic songs in the country. Mitch began his comedy career at Edinburgh in 1994. He moved to London two years later and quickly established himself as a comedy club ‘headliner’ as well as a favourite on the university circuit.

In 1995, he was voted ‘Best New Comic’ at the Glastonbury Festival and he has appeared there every year since, including an hour-long extended set in 1999 which drew a standing ovation from an audience of 1,500.

Mitch is a regular writer and performer on ‘The Now Show’ for BBC Radio 4 and ‘It’s Been a Bad Week’ for BBC Radio 2. Three series of his successful Radio 4 show, ‘Mitch Benn’s Crimes Against Music’ have been broadcast so far. He also presents ‘The Mitch Benn Music Show’ on BBC Radio 7.

On tv, Mitch appears regularly on BBC1’s ‘The One Show’ as the writer and arranger of ‘the Complaints Choir’. He contributes occasional songs to Channel 4’s ‘Bremner Bird and Fortune’. He has also appeared on ‘The Last Word’ for More4, ‘Gas’ for Channel 4, ‘Live at Jongleurs’, ‘The warehouse’ and ‘Today With Des & Mel’ for ITV, ‘The Comedy Store’ for Channel 5, ‘The World Stands Up’ for Paramount and ‘Raymaan Is Laat’ for Dutch tv. He was the presenter of the paranormal discussion show ‘Out There’ for Carlton World.

Mitch’s second album “Radio Face” was released through Laughing Stock records in 2002. His earlier live album, “The Unnecessary Mitch Benn’ is still available.

In 1999 he had won the Mercury Comedian of the Year prize at the Leicester Comedy Festival. He has performed many times at the Edinburgh Festival and also appeared in the successful revue show “The Bootleg Bootleg Beatles’.

Mitch has toured extensively abroad, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Dubai, Ireland, Montreal, Holland and South Africa.

“Well crafted, well sung, his songs are just plain funny.” – The Guardian.

MICHAEL FABBRI is fast earning an enviable reputation as one of the best up-and-coming acts around – becoming sharper and smarter with each passing month. Inventive in his outlook, he has latterly acquired the gig-hardened discipline of hitting punchlines hard and often without allowing this reliable professionalism to compromise his relaxed, slacker persona.

His trick is to play the juvenile buffoon while delivering material with an increasing edge. The suppression of his own exuberance is a highly effective technique, as it makes the audience feel a little naughty in empathy, and so they laugh all the more.

MAFF BROWN is the resident host of the award-winning Outside the Box comedy club in Kingston-upon-Thames. Within three-and-a-half months of its launch, it won the Best Comedy Venue for small clubs in London by chortle.co.uk he has been described as a material machine by Frank Skinner as he is constantly writing a new 20 minutes for his club every Monday.

“Maff is one of those comics that doesn’t need to try. Jokes fallout of him like gold coins coming out of a pirates chest.” – Frank Skinner.

Tickets are £8 each and available by contacting Richard on 07810 864228 or the Tower Theatre direct at 01303 223925. Doors open at 7.30pm, with the show starting at 8.30pm.

2008 :: Comment / reply