Supporting Camden’s Theatres and Grassroots Performances Spaces
April 19, 2024
A reminder of why we should all head out and enjoy a local show
Good News / Bad News is a new monthly Camden comedy night at Tufnell Park venue Aces & Eights, where a line-up of top acts bring along their best and worst news story from the last few weeks – and off they go.
It’s hosted by comedian and writer on Have I Got News For You and Radio 4’s The News Quiz, Suchandrika Chakrabarti, who we spoke to back in the summer ahead of her Fringe show, Doomscrolling.
This week, a selection of acts from the upcoming shows have been telling us about their best and worst memories from gigging and beyond, here in the lively streets and clubs of Camden…
WORST: My worst night out in Camden would be getting absolutely sloshed one Halloween, and getting very, very lost, then having to pay for a £100 cab home, and then an extra fee for yacking in the taxi.
BEST: most definitely as a 13 year old emo kid hanging out by the lock thinking I was the tits with my friends, with endless amounts of trips to Cyberdog and eating copious amount of Chinese food.
WORST: Killing time before a gig, I’ve frequently been waiting outside Camden Town tube and witnessed some truly bizarre street preaching, including one guy whose way to the peoples’ hearts was to shout that none of our parents wanted us. I was a bit hurt. I also wasn’t converted.
BEST: Gigging! I’ve done some lovely gigs in Camden and the audiences are always lovely. Camden Comedy In Your Eye is particularly good one.
WORST: The time when I was walking through Camden High Street and a drunk woman decided to swing her arm during a heated conversation with her equally drunk friend, proceeding to slap me across the face as I tried to walk past. She then called me a ‘rude bitch’ and started crying.
BEST: when I was walking through Camden High Street and got slapped across the face and called a bitch. I’m not usually into kinky stuf,f but that was really hot.
WORST: I was there in 2011 the night of the London Riots because my boyfriend at the time lived in the borough. Not good times.
BEST: My best mate lived in Camden for a while and I was there once for Christmas, which was great, as the cornershop down the road didn’t ever close, and the nearby sushi restaurant did 50% off on Tuesdays – good times! The first time I went, I was probably 13 and with some mates to buy those “cannabis” lollipops and Beedi cigarettes.
WORST: I used to work for Associated Press right inside the Market, and went to report on the crowds gathered outside Amy Winehouse’s flat a few days after she died. Worst doesn’t cover it completely, but as a fan, I was very sad. It was like an out-of-body experience, speaking to the gathered fans about this event that didn’t feel real yet.
BEST: My friends Dan and Shelly had their wedding reception in the gorilla enclosure of London Zoo, so these huge apes were wandering around behind their transparent walls, watching us all eat. It was slightly unnerving, but also very funny. Afterwards, we got wasted and ended up in one of those bars on Inverness Street, where I somehow ended up losing my shoes.
WORST: I once bit into a Camden kebab and tasted nothing but bits and cartilage. Back in the day the late night eateries in NW1 were not subject to the food hygiene checks I imagine they have to have now.
BEST: I used to go to a now closed club on Inverness St called Colour, on Friday nights which played rap, r&b and soul. If the N20 was taking too long to come (as it often did) I would say ‘eff it’ and head there keep the night going there on the way home from somewhere else.
Good News / Bad News, Tues 7th Nov, Aces and Eights, Camden comedy nights:
Posey Mehta, Phil Green, Rhiannon Shaw, Joseph Parsons, Headliner: Kate Cheka, MC: Suchandrika Chakrabarti
Good News / Bad News, Tues 12th Dec, Aces and Eights
Shalaka Kurup, Adam Larter, Su Mi, Michael Brunström, Headliner: Athena Kugblenu, MC: Suchandrika Chakrabarti
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