So, my love for comedy history has now widened out from this site and the accompanying YouTube channel. I’ve personally found so many interesting stories and important places within a few square miles of central London that I decided to produce a Mislaid Comedy History Walk. 

 

My route takes you from 17th century Drury Lane antics to contemporary alternative comedy. City landmarks identifying major moments in comedy evolution have gradually been lost to public consciousness, ignored by daily passers-by. Over time, accidents and flukes in comedy have developed the business into bigger and better things but the original details have faded from collective memory. 

 

Opening the lid on a treasure trove of secrets, The Comedy History Tour of London will expose some astonishing facts. For example:

How did the Music Hall Lion Comique lead to the creation of today’s hospital A & E departments? 

Where did the ridiculing of a mediocre actor trigger the birth of UK pantomime? 

Why were the walls of the original Comedy Store covered in hessian sacks and gold foil curtains? 

Which runaway teenager, roughing it in Soho, would be the driving force of sixties’ satire? And what exactly was the West-End steeplechase?

 

This is not just a trek around the city to share in its concealed comedy inventory. It’s also two hours with an enthusiast who’s as thrilled and delighted by the insights and quirky stories that changed UK comedy forever.