Comedy Virgins: Cavendish Arms, Stockwell, London, 2013
Old Comedian of The Year: Museum of Comedy, London, 2015
Birdies Comedy: The Blue Posts, London, 2016
Birdies Comedy (2 shows): The Savoy Tup, The Strand, London, 2017
Birdies Comedy (2 shows): The Savoy Tap, The Strand, London, 2018
Birdies Comedy (3 shows): The Savoy Tap, The Strand, London, 2019
Birdies Comedy: The Savoy Tap, The Strand, London, 2020
I first came across Brendan O’Donoghue when I went to a free comedy night at The Cavendish Arms pub in London in 2013. I went along to support my mate Jonathan Boulton who was starting out and was t perform a five-minute set. O’Donoghue was warm, positive and jovial making all the new comedians feel welcome and encouraging them to do well.
Two years later, I saw O’Donoghue fronted a heat of the Old Comedian of the Year competition at the Museum of Comedy. Then from 2016 onwards I have watched him compare on many a happy occasion at the Birdies free comedy showcase all in London.
O’Donoghue’s delivery of a joke is brilliant rattling through the material until somebody laughs – he reminds me of comedy great Frank Carson and like me, he is a wonderful supporter of live comedy.
On a regular basis (January and September 2018 then again in March, July, September 2019 and January 2020), I like to return for a free night of laughter at Birdies Comedy night in London. As ever, my Irish friend and comedian O’Donoghue is always on hand to MC. I always like to sit at the front where all the comics sit nervously in the audience in the upstairs room of the Savoy Tap pub. In January 2018, O’Donoghue announced my presence as ‘Comedy royalty with a great laugh!’ He then kept going to try and get laughs from one-line jokes that I had heard many times before, but his delivery is key and on cue, he made me laugh out loud with his wonderful routines.
When I went again to Birdies Comedy, the jovial Irishman was in command of the room and new comedians a platform and a chance to shine. In March 2019, he again brilliantly controlled the lively audience with a mixture of well-trodden expert one-liners and timing. In July 2019, the jovial Irishman was again in total command of the room and giving new comedians encouragement, a platform and a chance to shine. O’Donoghue is a very warm, funny man and a great promoter of live stand-up comedy and it is always a pleasure to watch him front this great comedy night.
