Ven Benables

Comedians Won't Forget Who Performed at the Riyadh Comedy Festival Soon (with Jay Jurden) Podcast Episode · Good One: A Podcast About Jokes · 09/10/2025 · 57m

Catching up with the latest Good One pod with comedian @jayjurden.bsky.social : a thoughtful discussion about the Riyadh Comedy Festival and how comedians help launder the reputation of an oppressive regime while staining their own:
podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/c...

Mentioned on 3CR earlier – but I suspect the source was the rumour mill!

Great pod. Makosso’s punishment was so dumb, like putting the class comedian in detention. Pair him with an organised senior pro instead – they’ll both have a laugh and make it to team meetings on time

Tremendous digging by @jayirichardson.bsky.social and @chortle.bsky.social

www.chortle.co.uk/news/2025/08...

Revealed: The review website secretly owned by a Fringe publicist. Story @chortle.bsky.social : www.chortle.co.uk/news/2025/08... #EdFringe

CAN YOU HELP US DISCOVER THE STORIES BEHIND THESE 'ILLEGAL' LADIES' FOOTBALL MATCHES AT KENILWORTH ROAD IN 1935? - Luton Town FC Do you recognise any of the players running out of the tunnel? Perhaps your great-grandmother told you tales of the time she played at Kenilworth Road? Do you

What a great photo! It’s so important this history is unearthed – proud of what the community trust is doing
www.lutontown.co.uk/en/news/can-...

I love that someone may have borrowed this, had it signed and then took it back to the library!

Can any Hatters confirm these signatures I just found in an old library copy of The Luton Town Story (I think it’s Rob Johnson, Ricky Hill and David Preece – but could be Pleat)?

Yeah Elijah seems thoughtful and grounded. Not the kind who doesn’t want to be here. I think players gave it all last season only for results to not reward them – and we’re seeing a self-perpetuating confidence crisis this season, not a lack of effort or loyalty

He makes himself big

Very sad to see Rob Edwards leave Luton. But congratulations to Mikel Arteta who is now the most handsome manager in football

Should we be giving younger players a chance while best xi are off their game?

Clock set for an extra hour of insomnia

Review | ‘1984’ gets a new life, and a fresh perspective, in ‘Julia’ Sandra Newman’s novel reimagines George Orwell’s classic from the point of view of Winston’s lover.

It's publication day for my new novel, JULIA, a retelling of Orwell's 1984, and as basically never happens, today it got a long rave review in the Washington Post.
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2023/1...

The little Ethan that could!

The cover of Victor & Barry's Kelvinside Compendium shows a black and white photo of them in front of a pale blue background, surrounded by newspaper clippings and photos from the 80s and 90s. Text says 'Alan Cumming and Forbes Masson present Victor and Barry's Kelvinside Compendium. Publishing 25th July 2024. Pre-order now!'

Victor and Barry are the epitome of ‘big in the 80s’. Annoyingly, they were also a little big in the first bit of the 90s too, so that phrase doesn’t really pan out very satisfactorily.

They wrote a book all about it that can be pre-ordered now!: linktr.ee/404ink

Cover by Luke Bird

I wrote an article about Brand & rape culture in the comedy industry over 10 years ago, I was hounded even back then by his distraught fan boys. Once the fuss died down I decided to quietly removed it to protect myself. It was too terrifying.

Whatever Dispatches have, it won’t be the half of it

What number is ‘an obscene amount of high profile comedians’?

George’s best work was helping Ringo write Octopus’s Garden