Comedy: Punchlines

Rich Hall

is a one-man refutation of the old cliche that Americans have no sense of irony. He comes at you from so far out of the left-field, he's almost off the pitch. He has been known to croon songs whose words are lifted directly from Loot. He is on an impressive bill with Ricky Grover, Tim Vine, Rhona Cameron and Junior Simpson at the 97th Birthday Celebration for the Hackney Empire.

Hackney Empire, London E8 (0181-985 2424) Wed

Lee and Herring

Stewart Lee and Richard Herring trade in the most profitable currency for double-acts: bickering. "A lot of our stuff is about the logic of arguments and the way people who know each other far too well argue. In one routine, I actually started to cry," Herring says. They are trying out new material for their TV series This Morning With Richard Not Judy, which returns to BBC2 next year.

Riverside Studios, London W6 (0181-237 1111) Thur