First Call, Last Call

First Call

DIRECT FROM an acclaimed sell-out run at the Edinburgh Festival, triple Perrier Award nominee Al Murray (right) will perform his first-ever West End run. Our critic called Murray's beer-swilling, bigoted pub landlord persona "an electrifying act". Murray claims to be where "the Lager of Life burns brightest". Don't expect a sober evening.

`Al Murray Pub Landlord's Late Lock-In', The Improv, 161 Tottenham Court Road, London W1 (0171-387 2414) 24 and 31 Oct, 7 and 14 Nov

Last Call

THE CALIFORNIAN quintet Grandaddy have an eccentric image: big beards and a slightly demented hillbilly look. They have also mastered a lo-fi sound and been compared to Pavement and Neil Young. After supporting Super Furry Animals in the summer, Grandaddy are touring solo later this month.

Wedgewood Rooms, Portsmouth, 19 Oct; LA2, London WC2, 20 Oct; Varsity, Wolverhampton, 21 Oct; Venue, Edinburgh, 22 Oct; Broadwalk, Sheffield, 23 Oct; TJs, Newport, 24 Oct; Arts Centre, Colchester, 25 Oct. Credit card hotline: 0171-734 8932, pounds 5, pounds 7 London