Today on the show, Mike Brown gets on the phone with the super-busy Anne Edmonds to chat about grocery shopping, comedy’s best music instrument, and getting on the big stage. Check Anne out in The Quarter Cabbage, 8.30pm tonight (and every Tuesday through Saturday) at the Town Hall, 7.30pm on Sundays. Get your tickets from Ticketmaster.
Today’s MICF Daily News:
– There’s plenty of movement during this comedy festival – and we’re not just talking about punters walking from show to show. Previous MICF Daily guest Ronnie Chieng is on the move due to overwhelming demand. Ronnie is currently on at the Melbourne Town Hall’s Council Chambers, but from Tuesday April 16, his show Can You Do This? No You Can’t moves into the more spacious digs of the Forum’s Downstairs Theatre. The time slot does not change – 7pm Tuesday to Saturday, 6pm Sunday. Tickets purchased for Cheing’s final week will be valid at the new venue, but if you haven’t picked yet, we recommend doing so from Ticketmaster.
– Also on the move is The Annoying Devil in Melbourne. Originally scheduled this week at Sahara Restaurant & Bar, the show is taking a short break and will return to The Red Violin from this Tuesday through the end of the fest. See The Annoying Devil – Tuesday through Saturday at 10.30pm, Sunday at 9.30pm. Tickets from TixNoFee.
– BONUS SHOWS: A few bonus shows are taking place this weekend. Phil and Me, the play about the Vietnamese iconic sewing machine Mum seen previously in Phi and Me has added an extra show at 5:30pm tomorrow at the Hairy Little Sista. Also on tomorrow is another edition of Hannah Gadsby‘s Nakedy Nudes – 3.30pm at the National Gallery of Victoria. MICF Daily will have a full wrap of next week’s bonus shows in tomorrow’s edition of the MICF Daily News.
– PODCASTS: Three podcasts tape live episodes today. I Love Green Guide Letters with three big name surprise guests; 4.15pm today at the Town Hall. Open Mic Life, the podcast hosted by Doug Gordon and Russell Wigginton tapes from 5.30pm at the Sahara Restaurant & Bar on Swanston St. And one podcast debuts live recordings today at the fest – Doctor Who celebration Splendid Chaps hits record at 5.45pm at the Trades Hall.
– KIDS COMEDY: Want to take the kids to experience the comedy festival? The (Very) Big Laugh Out is on today, and better yet it’s totally free. Today at the City Square, Les Chiche Capon feature at 11.30pm, with the Lords Of Strut strutting their stuff at 12.30pm. Then at 2pm, a mini-gala of family comedy takes place at Federation Square, featuring host The Amazing Mr. Fish and guests Les Chiche Capon, the Lords Of Strut, Hilby, and Mooky Cornish. Other family shows on today include A Super Speedy Sound Shed, Candy B & Busty Beats, and the Comedy Club for Kids. For a full list of all family friendly comedy on today at the fest, check out the Comedy Festival website.
– WALKING TOURS: Is 2013 the year of the comedy walking tour? If it is, today is the day to do one. Rod Quantock gets the tours going at 1pm today with his Fourth Annual Mystery Comedy Walking Tour – meet under the Portico at the Melbourne Town Hall. Tickets are on sale for the event from Ticketmaster – no tickets will be sold at the Meeting Point. But if you want to review the year 2013 (despite it only being April), Xavier Toby and Micah D Higbed lead their walking tour 2013 – When We Were Idiots at 2pm and 6pm. Meet at the Bourke & Willis Statue in the City, tickets from TryBooking and by the statue.
– DAYTIME SPECIALS: Saturday afternoon contains plenty more daytime specials, so skip the footy and head out to the festival. Daniel Kitson presents his sold out Work in Progress at 11am this morning at the Tuxedo Cat. Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience returns to The Aegean Restaurant at 1pm. Australian and English comics go to war at Ashes: The Comedy Showdown, 1.30pm today at the Exford. Matthew Grant presents his art installation and character piece Me, Me, Me and Me. 2pm at Kado in Richmond. Huggers, the family friendly comedy and cabaret showcase takes place 3pm at Comedy on Collins. The Best of British showcase, 3.30pm at the Exford. Eddie Pepitone documentary The Bitter Buddah screens, 4pm at The Hi-Fi Bar. Charlie Pickering and Waleed Aly try and solve the world’s problems in The World’s Problems Solved, 5.30pm at the Capitol Theatre. Also at 5.30pm today, FanFiction Comedy returns to the Victoria Hotel with special guest, triple j’s Tom Ballard.
– LATE NIGHT: Festival Club reunites the duo of Sammy J and Randy for Comedy Bonanza tonight. Also on the bill tonight: Bev Killick, Stuart Goldsmith, Arj Barker, Pat Burscher, and Elbow Skin. Once the comedy is done, Mikeangelo and the Hot Pearl Snatch kick out the jams ’til the sun comes up (or The Hi-Fi Bar kicks everyone out). The show starts at 11.30pm, tickets at the door.
– Also returning tonight is Politicial Asylum’s Late Night Riot! – a balls to the walls showcase of hard-hitting topical humour tonight at the Town Hall. Tonight’s show features Matthew Kenneally, Aamer Rahman, Stella Young, Toby Halligan, Scott Abbot with Jon Brooks, Nelly Thomas, Damian Callinan, and a international act so big that he can’t be named in advance. The satire starts 11pm tonight, tickets from Ticketmaster.
– Other late night shows include Facty Fact, the Heaps Good SA Showcase, Capital Punishment, Tri Nations Comedy, Shaggers, Ali McGregor‘s Late-Nite Variety-Nite Night, Stand-Up Sit-Down: Comics in Conversation, The New Conway Tonight Show, and The After Party. Check out the MICF website for the full listings of all of tonight’s shows.
– REMINDER: Daylight saving time ends tonight at 3am. Remember to wind your clocks back one hour – and enjoy the extra hour of sleep or fun at the festival tonight.
