Rich Hall: Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh, 2006
Rich Hall: Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh, 2007
Rich Hall (as Otis Lee Crenshaw): Fifty Per Cent Words: Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh, 2008
Stand Up For Freedom (Amnesty International) (as Otis Lee Crenshaw): Assembly Hall on the Mound, Edinburgh, 2008
Best of the Fest 2008: Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh, 2008
Rich Hall: Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh, 2009
Play: Campfire Stories: Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh, 2009
Rich Hall’s Hoedown: Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh, 2011
Rich Hall’s Hoedown: Assembly George Square, Edinburgh, 2013
The Greenwich Comedy Festival: Greenwich Park, London, 2014
Rich Hall’s Hoedown: Soho Theatre, London, 2014
Jack Dee’s Helpdesk (Guest): Soho Theatre, London, 2014
Rich Hall’s Hoedown: Leicester Square Theatre, London, 2015
Magners Greenwich Comedy Festival 2015: Greenwich Park, London, 2015
Rich Hall’s Hoedown: Leicester Square Theatre, London, 2015
Rich Hall’s Hoedown: Leicester Square Theatre, London, 2016
Headliner’s Comedy 16th Birthday: George IV pub, Chiswick, London, 2018
Stand Up Against Alzheimer’s: The Comedy Store, London, 2019
Headliner’s Comedy 17th Birthday: George IV pub, Chiswick, London, 2019
Headliners Comedy Club: George IV pub, Chiswick, London, 2020
Boothby Graffoe: Songs and Stories: Online: 2021
Stand Up for Jeremy Hardy: Hammersmith Apollo, London, 2022
Headliners Comedy Club, George IV pub, Chiswick, London, 2022
One of America’s greatest comedy exports, Montana born comedian and writer Rich Hall splits his time between the US and the UK. Hall has relentlessly toured the British Isles and I have seen him many times over the years.
I first saw him perform on his own at the Edinburgh Festival in 2006. He was ranting as he walked on and maintained the pace timing and delivery of the material, bringing the audience immediately round to his way of thinking and conveyed a completely satisfying and hilarious hour of topical and political comedy.
When I saw Hall in 2008, he appeared as jailbird alter-ego, the much-convicted Country music singer Otis Lee Crenshaw and when I saw Hall again in 2011 at the Edinburgh Festival, he had brought his band along to perform and created Rich Hall’s Hoedown. I was tired at the end of a day at the Fringe but ended up dancing with some of the other comedians from the audience (most memorably Shappi Korshandi) who had all gone along to support. It was a great night and has become a regular gig for Hall and his superb band.
In 2014 after a Hoedown show at the Soho Theatre in London, I finally got to meet Hall who was charming. This very funny observant man has become a memorable and popular act on the circuit and together with his band always delivers a great show.
Hall once again perform with his band for a Hoedown show at the Leicester Square Theatre, London in May 2018. Hall divides his time between his native America and the UK and is equally perceptive when he talked about both countries on stage. His shrewd observations of British culture mashed up with the confused stance of a man who can’t believe what’s happened to his country provided a seemingly limitless source of comedy.
The first half of the show was delivered by Hall alone on-stage ranting and rambling about his annoyances and the musical second set saw Hall and his band appear offering their take on country and western with material gleaned from the audience. Hall’s contact with the audience has always been exceptionally funny and it all makes for a terrific, enjoyable and very funny show from a superb performer and his band.
In September 2018, Hall was top of the bill at Headliner’s Comedy 16th Birthday and in June 2019, he was a special guest for Stand Up Against Alzheimer’s at The Comedy Store in London. He returned as to Headliners Comedy Club in September 2019 (to celebrate their 17th birthday) and headlined again in February 2020. Every time he delivered razor sharp comedy armed with his guitar, his ability to make up a comic song on the spot about an audience member he has just encountered was brilliant.
In January 2021, Hall was a guest for Boothby Graffoe: Songs and Stories online talking about his comedy career and singing favourite songs, which made for a very entertaining evening.
A year later, in January 2022, Hall appeared at the memorial evening Stand Up for Jeremy Hardy at the Hammersmith Apollo as well as Headliners Comedy Club both in January 2022. He demonstrated new, sharp material and songs that had both audiences laughing out-loud at the great comedian.
