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Category Archives: Comedy
Hollywood superstar Chaplin takes his place on Coulsdon trail
Charlie Chaplin, one of the greatest movie stars of all time, is featured in the latest finial on the Coulsdon Art Trail. Chaplin’s association with Coulsdon is, perhaps typically of his screen persona, a poignant one: his mother, Hannah, was … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Cinema, Comedy, Community associations, Coulsdon, Coulsdon East, East Coulsdon Residents' Association, History, Transport
Tagged Cane Hill, Charles King, Charlie Chaplin, Comrades Club, Coulsdon, Coulsdon Club, Coulsdon History Trail, East Coulsdon Residents' Association, ECRA, Farthing Downs, Finials, Hannah Chaplin, Happy Valley, Mammoth, Merstham Tunnel, Navvies, Stoats Nest Farm
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Comedy Fyles are worth seeing when they get to Edinburgh
FRINGE REVIEW: As the Croydonites festival enters its final two days, KEN TOWL (Croydon’s answer to Tynan), pictured right, conducts a compare and contrast of two of the shows this week, and marks your card for tonight and tomorrow, and … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Comedy, Croydonites Festival, Ken Towl, Poetry, Stanley Halls, The Front Room, The Front Room, The Oval Tavern, Theatre
Tagged Croydonites, Croydonites Fringe, Edinburgh, Edinburgh Festival, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Emma Davies, Emmy Fyles, HR, Human Resources, Ken Towl, Stanley Halls, The Front Room
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From cabaret to the World Cup, from Sea Cadets to LTN refunds
PODCAST: The Croydon Insider returns with a new panel of readers to discuss the latest Croydon news, in a Croydonites Fringe special that picks some of the must-see shows at the festival from July 1 to 5. There’s even a … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Comedy, Commissioners, Croydon Council, Croydon Insider, Croydonites Festival, Elaine Jackson, Inside Croydon, Johnny Dobbyn, Music, Poetry, Sea Cadets, Stanley Halls, The Front Room, The Front Room, The Oval Tavern, Theatre, Under The Flyover
Tagged Anna Arthur, Cheryl Fergus-Ferrell, Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon Sea Cadets, Croydonites, Croydonites Fringe, Crystal Palace, heatwave, Johnny Dobbyn, LTN, LTN fine refunds, Mark Windsor, Sea Cadets, World Cup
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Croydonites Fringe Festival, various venues, from July 1 to 5
A D V E R T I S E M E N T Click here for full details of the Croydonites Fringe Festival and ticket bookings
Croydonites Fringe Festival, various venues, from July 1 to 5
A D V E R T I S E M E N T Click here for full details of the Croydonites Fringe Festival and ticket bookings
Time travel by velvet and smoke back to a Paris club in 1896
STEVEN DOWNES takes a trip back in time and a sip of a once-banned liquor Everyone these days appears to be on “a journey” of some kind or another. If you were to take a half-hour journey from East Croydon, … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Art, Comedy, Dance, Music, Theatre
Tagged Coco Belle, Croydon, East Croydon station, Joe Morose, Le Chat Noir, Secret Cinema, The Lost Estate, West Kensington
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Dara Ó Briain is a BIG act. Fairfield Halls needs more like him
It was a big night at the Fairfield Halls on Saturday, with Dara Ó Briain, one of the biggest stand-up acts around, performing in front of a full house. KEN TOWL fills in the venue’s audience feedback form The minute … Continue reading
Eagles glory, Mozart magic and Ó Briain’s gags at Fairfield Halls
Fairfield Halls, south London’s sleeping giant of the arts, is waking up to the first half of 2026 with “a vibrant programme” of music, theatre, comedy and culture. Highlights include The Real Thing’s 50th anniversary tour, stand-up from Dara Ó … Continue reading
Posted in Art, BH Live, Comedy, Fairfield Halls, London Mozart Players, Music
Tagged Crystal Palace FC, Dara Ó Briain, Fairfield Halls, London Mozart Players
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PANTO WARS! Which shows are worth seeing this Christmas
OUTSIDE CROYDON: Ken Towl has reviewed the pantomimes being performed in Croydon and Bromley this festive season. But there’s lots more family shows available across London. Here’s DAVID MORGAN’s suggestions
PANTO WARS! Which is the Beauty? And which is the Beast?
Christmas 2025 has Beauty and the Beast as the seasonal pantomime at the Fairfield Halls. And Beauty and the Beast is also on at the Churchill Theatre, just a short bus ride away in Bromley. Oh yes it is! KEN … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Ashcroft Theatre, Bromley Council, Churchill Theatre, Comedy, Fairfield Halls, Ken Towl, Music, Theatre
Tagged Ashcroft Theatre, Beauty and the Beast, Churchill Theatre, Croydon, EastEnders, Ellie Dadd, Fairfield Halls, Hi De Hi!, Ken Towl, pantomime, Royal Variety Performance, Samantha Womack, Su Pollard
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By George! She’s Got it! My Fair Lady’s a triumph for Scorziello
FIRST NIGHT REVIEW: The classic Lerner and Loewe musical can be a challenge to stage even for the biggest theatre companies on the West End or Broadway. In Coulsdon this week, the local community centre is staging ‘a lavish, fast-paced show… … Continue reading
TfL offers discounted theatre tickets in 25th birthday giveaway
As the 25th anniversary year of Transport for London approaches an end, the capital’s transport authority has teamed up with Official London Theatre to offer exclusive savings on Theatre Tokens that can make the perfect Christmas gift for an array … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Comedy, Music, TfL, Theatre, Transport
Tagged 25th anniversary, Christmas, Official London Theatre, TfL, Transport for London, West End
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Oh yes she is! Victorian dancer who became a pantomime star
CROYDON CHRONICLES: One of the great British traditions of this time of year is the family visit to the theatre, or to a church hall for the local am-dram performance, during pantomime season. DAVID MORGAN traces the career of Caroline … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Comedy, Dance, David Morgan, Fairfield Halls, History, Music, Stanley Halls, Theatre
Tagged Caroline Parkes, Charles Fenton, Croydon, Croydon Chronicles, Crystal Palace, David Morgan, Dick Whittington, Fairfield Halls, Panto, pantomime, Sanderstead Dramatic Club, Stanley Halls, The Brothers Grinn, Theatre Royal
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It’s the final countdown as Rowland reflects on our mortality
KEN TOWL considers Plato, kingfishers and Ian McKellen’s balls in an hour-long Croydonites Festival performance which could never over-run James Rowland is dead. Well, sort of. The end was inevitable. The digital clock at the back of the stage counted … Continue reading
READER OFFER: Half-price tickets for Croydonites comedy
The Croydonites Festival is offering Inside Croydon readers half-price tickets – while seats are available – for one of its headline acts: James Rowland Dies at the End of the Show. With a cheeky poster that almost got Inside Croydon … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Art, Comedy, Croydonites Festival, The Front Room
Tagged Comedy, Croydon, Croydonites, Croydonites Festival, Reader offer, St George's Walk, The Front Room
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Croydonites provides a front-row seat for hard-hitting comedy
The 2025 Croydonites Festival is well underway, and KEN TOWL could not resist the chance to go along to see the sold-old Dick’s Picks (geddit?!) Dick Denham had been tasked with curating a range of comedians for a night of … Continue reading
Now wouldn’t that be loverly?! My Fair Lady comes to Coulsdon
Some of the best-known and most-loved show tunes ever written are about to be dusted off and performed with suitable gusto, as My Fair Lady is brought to the stage of the Coulsdon Community Centre this December. Possibly one of … Continue reading
Trustees bring down final curtain on the Crystal Palace Festival
After almost 20 years, the Crystal Palace Festival is no more. The largely volunteer-led summer festival of music, comedy and arts, was first staged in 2006, by traders in the Upper Norwood Triangle. At its peak, thousands would attend various … Continue reading
Skibabble open mic night at The Front Room, next up: Oct 7
S U B S C R I B E R A D V E R T I S E M E N T
Posted in Activities, Art, Comedy, Music, Poetry, St George's Walk, The Front Room
Tagged Comedy, Music, Poetry, Skibabble, St George's Walk, The Front Room
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The Croydonites Festival looks more edgy than just the fringe
This year’s Croydonites Festival opens on October 8, marking 10 years of supporting local artists and bringing high-quality performances to Croydon. Croydonites’ artistic director Anna Arthur says the festival’s mission “is to identify and nurture local theatre and performance makers through … Continue reading
Pregnant with vulnerability, Gwilliam sets the scene for festival
KEN TOWL ventured deep into an abandoned building site while full of hopeful expectation for a workshop performance ahead of the 2025 Croydonites Fringe I had seen Amy Gwilliam’s evil alter-ego, property developer Frankie Foxtone, deliver a corruscating satire on … Continue reading
Live at His Majesty’s! Sign up for stage school’s free auditions
A D V E R T I S E M E N T
Posted in Activities, Comedy, Dance, Education, Music, Theatre
Tagged His Majesty's Theatre, Pauline Quirke Academy, PQA, Selhurst
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