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Brilliant! The Fast Show's quickfire comics return

Lovers of The Fast Show will be heartened to know that the release of a second batch of internet-only episodes is due next week.

The hottest ticket in comedy? Comedians' favourite is set to return

He has been called the comedian's comedian, a 21st-century raconteur who avoids the limelight by shunning profile-raising TV work. Now Daniel Kitson is returning to stand-up after a three-year absence, sparking a frenzy for tickets to watch him test his fresh material.

Carry on, nurse: Miranda Hart in 'Call the Midwife'

Slapstick to serious can be a bumpy ride

Miranda Hart has made the best of moving from comedy to drama, says Gerard Gilbert

Being Modern: Arena comedy

You see those two tiny dots in the distance? That's you, that is. Well, it was if "you" were Rob Newman and David Baddiel. Oh, how we chuckled at their "History Today" sketches in the early 1990s. How we roared as they took their shtick to Wembley Arena, becoming the first comedians to fill its 12,000 seats. How we wept when we realised we were sat so far from the stage that they might as well have been sarcastic marionettes.

Last week, Billy Connolly was voted the UK's 'most influential stand-up of all time'

Has Billy Connolly lost his mojo?

He's still on tour at 69, but Britain's 'greatest stand-up' is turning into a cantankerous and unpredictable diva, says Simmy Richman

Mason says: 'I'm very good at ballet dancing, which, let's face it, I was born to do'

My Secret Life: Jackie Mason, 75, comedian

My parents were... fantastic. My father was a rabbi, my mother was a typical Jewish mother who fussed over her children and thought they could do no wrong.

Red terror: 'People come up to me all the time and ask me to swear at them. So I say, 'f*** off', and they love it', says Capaldi

In the thick of a new satire: Peter Capaldi on his new foray into gentle comedy

Foul-mouthed Malcolm Tucker has allowed his creator to explore his range of talents on film, TV, and stage.

Tom Sutcliffe: The luxurious nature of whimsy

The week in culture

French connection: Roman Polanski is filiming Carnage in the Parisian suburbs
Ingrid Oliver (left) and Lorna Watson have a fully-fledged series of their sketch show, Watson & Oliver on BBC2

Where are all the female comics?

Decades after they started out, French and Saunders are still Britain's best-known 'funny girls'. But a new generation of women is about to change all that, discovers Gerard Gilbert.

Festival of the Spoken Nerd,
Bloomsbury Theatre, London

If there was a theme to Festival of the Spoken Nerd's mix of science and comedy tonight then it was pyrotechnics. From a tale of homemade napalm to a demonstration of a standing wave flame tube there were flashes and bangs aplenty, if no explosive end result.

Simon Munnery: Hats Off To The 101ers, And Other Material, Soho Theatre, London

“The arch of limited triumph” says the mild-mannered Simon Munnery in the direction of a concertinaed piece of metal on stage.

Stuart Pearson Wright's portrait of Keira Knightley will go on show in London on Monday
Love cheat: Uma Thurman and Robert Pattinson in 'Bel Ami'

2012: The unmissable cultural treats

Next year promises to be a cultural jamboree, with world-class films, art exhibitions, gigs and theatre performances around the country. Our critics select the most exciting highlights

She says: 'My material comes out of my conversations or experiences. That's why I have to keep a normal life as otherwise you become too far removed from your audience.'

Sarah Millican: Gossip girl

She's the unlikeliest comedy hit of the year – the one-time lowly civil servant from South Shields whose total candour and killer punchlines have won her a vast audience

Career Services

Day In a Page

Apple admits it has a human rights problem

Apple admits it has a human rights problem

After years of complaints and workers' suicides in China the technology giant faces up to the human cost of its gadgets
Peter Moore: 'I feel guilty I'm the only one alive'

Peter Moore interview

'I feel guilty I'm the only one alive'
Sellafield faces nuclear option as overspending threatens plant's future

Sellafield faces nuclear option

Overspending threatens plant's future
Israel blames Iran for embassy bomb attacks

Israel blames Iran for embassy bomb attacks

Tehran rejects Netanyahu's 'lies' after diplomats in India and Georgia targeted
Former manager enjoying Apoel crack at the big time

Tommy Cassidy interview

Former manager enjoying Apoel crack at the big time
James Lawton: Patience may not be a virtue this time, Roman – Andre Villas-Boas looks all at sea

James Lawton: AVB looks all at sea

Abramovich's visits to training reinforce the idea of a coach feeling pressure from above and below
The 10 Best sledges

The 10 Best sledges

Not all of them require snow...
Procrastination: Not now  – I'm busy

Procrastination: Not now – I'm busy

Confronting the real reasons for puttting things off can help us beat it
Fun in the sunset years

Fun in the sunset years

A new movie follows retirees moving to India for low-cost care and a culture of respect for the elderly. For many Britons, it's already a reality
Picture preview: Lucian Freud drawings

Lucian Freud drawings

Picture preview
Silent revolution at the Baftas as the French take top awards

Silent revolution at the Baftas

The Artist wins in seven categories, with Meryl Streep the other big success story
Whitney Houston: The diva who had – and lost – it all

The diva who had – and lost – it all

Nick Hasted charts the highs and lows of Whitney Houston's life
How Picasso won over (some of) the British

How Picasso won over (some of) the British

Winston Churchill and Evelyn Waugh hated his work, but Picasso provided inspiration for a whole generation of UK artists
Topshop: A Decade Of Design

Topshop: A Decade Of Design

When London Fashion Week starts on Friday, Topshop will celebrate 10 years backing its brightest young stars
John Prescott: 'My wife thought I'd just retire, but I'm not a slippers man'

'My wife thought I'd just retire, but I'm not a slippers man'

At 73, John Prescott isn't mellowing. In fact he's taking a shot at becoming a police commissioner