After years as the only Muslim woman on the comedy circuit, the standup is now making history with a female touring troupe. She relives the attacks she faced on the way, from ‘letterbox’ burqa taunts to Isis allegationsFor years, Muslim women have been…
Continue ReadingThe rise of an Islamic arts industry is celebrated by its screen, music and comedy stars, but the view rarely strays beyond a western perspectiveIn this survey of the expanding Islamic entertainment industry, The Balance presumably refers to the line f…
Continue ReadingKomedia, BrightonThe comic’s swaggering take on religion is ebullient before a handbrake-turn brings emotional candour tooLuisa Omielan’s last show, Politics for Bitches, ostensibly about public affairs, devolved into a personal tale of her mother’s de…
Continue ReadingShe was living on beans. Now she’s in LA writing Ms Marvel, the eagerly awaited TV series starring MCU’s first Muslim superhero. The writer talks about joyriding premiers and how to silence trollsBefore she became a Marvel screenwriter, Bisha K Ali was…
Continue ReadingThey’re inspired by Charlie Hedbo and tell jokes that would get British comedians cancelled. Our writer spends a week watching French standupsHow Greece’s theatre staged triumph from tragedyLast dance for Berlin’s 56-hour party people?Poland’s world-be…
Continue ReadingVaults, LondonZoe Lyons is a pyjama-clad deity with wrath-management issues and a retinue of doubtful angels in David Javerbaum’s enjoyable comedyIt began as a Twitter account, which begat a book, which begat a Broadway show, in which God descended amo…
Continue ReadingThe comedian has written his first play – on whether science can prove that the Almighty exists. But first, there are some hecklers to deal with … Schrödinger’s cat can be both alive and dead – so surely David Baddiel can be both a comedian and a pla…
Continue ReadingBack in August, Seth Meyers did a fascinating segment on Donald Trump’s longtime “spiritual advisor” Paula White, a televangelist who believes that wealth “is a sign of God’s approval” and believes that Trump is “saved” despite never going to church and, well, all of his other actions in life. A great segment to counter that […]
Continue ReadingHis show Made in Britain debunked myths about Muslims in the UK. As he returns to Edinburgh, Tez Ilyas talks about the cut and thrust of panel shows and why the fringe is like a freshers’ week for standups
Hi, Tez. This is your third standup show. What’s it all about?
In the crudest terms, the first one was about religion, the second was about culture and this is about politics. It’s called Teztify. I confront a lot of the assumptions people make about me. The main one is that I’m religious in a secular world and an extremely secular industry. I had a working-class upbringing in Blackburn, my politics are leftwing and I’m a man of colour – these are what I talk about.
Related: Tez Ilyas review – clever comedy about British National Pakistani life
Related: Laugh a minute: Edinburgh festival’s 2017 comedy lineup
Continue ReadingHere’s a clip from last night’s Late Night, where Seth Meyers checks in on Donald Trump’s evolving views on God and religion and how, despite claiming the Bible is his favorite book, there’s no record of him ever attending church services during his presidency. “And that makes sense, because Trump would hate church. It’s an hour […]
Continue Reading