How to have a comedy festival in your own lounge
We've found the best comedy specials to watch from the comfort of your own home. Plus: the new Doctor Who and... a sneezing guitar?
It’s been a sad week for New Zealand television, as two of our longest running and top-rating shows Sunday and Fair Go aired their final episodes. It’s the end of a TV era, and if there was ever a time to distract yourself with a hearty laugh, this is it. That’s why we’ve found some of the best local comedy specials available to watch this weekend – or, if you’re lucky enough to be in Auckland or Wellington, be sure to catch some of the fantastic talent currently appearing in the NZ International Comedy Fest. Enjoy!
If you can’t get to the NZ Comedy Fest, we’ll bring the festival to you
The New Zealand International Comedy Festival is in full swing at the moment, with a veritable smorgasboard of comedy treats on offer for those lucky enough to live in Auckland or Wellington. It may well be the festival’s final week, but there’s still plenty of stellar comedy acts to come, including Guy Montgomery, Melanie Bracewell, Ray O’Leary, Jed Parsons and Laura Daniel.
For those of us who live outside of Auckland or Wellington, there’s no need to miss out on the comedy fun. We’ve pulled together a list of local comedy specials that you can enjoy for free in the comfort of your own home, whenever you want – maybe even at 9 o’clock on a Sunday night? The internet! What a blessing. Grab some snacks, hold onto your sides and let the good times roll.
Urzila Carlson: It’s Personal (YouTube)
If you laughed like a drain during Urzila Carlson’s Netflix special Overqualified Loser, then get ready for some more LOLs in her new special It’s Personal. From the ripeness of avocados to the menopausal love of linen to dealing with an elderly cat, Carlson is in brilliant form here.
Best Foods Comedy Gala 2024 (ThreeNow)
Hosted by Chris Parker, the Best Foods Comedy Gala 2024 showcases the very best in stand- up comedy, featuring a variety of local and international comedians appearing at this year’s NZ International Comedy Festival. Acts include Heath Franklin’s Chopper, Brynley Stent, Pax Assadi, Abby Howells, Alice Snedden and Eli Matthewson. If that’s not enough comedy hijinks for you, the 2023 and 2022 comedy galas are also available on ThreeNow.
Guy Montgomery: My Brain is Blowing Me Crazy (YouTube)
The genius behind Guy Montgomery’s Guy Mont Spelling Bee is back with this new comedy special. “I used to be a little boy and now I am a 35-year-old man,” Montgomery explains on YouTube. “The world is a crazy place and I would like to tell you about it through the medium of stand-up comedy.” What more do you need, New Zealand?
Melanie Bracewell: Forget Me Not (YouTube)
Filmed at the Athenaeum Theatre in Melbourne last year, Forget Me Not sees Billy T Award winner Bracewell discuss everything from antihistamines to her Grandad to impersonating Jacinda. Don’t miss it; this review called it “hilarious” (phew) and “exceptional”.
The Comedy Treatment (ThreeNow)
This stand-up special was held in 2023 to raise money for The Cancer Society. Headlined by Dai Henwood, the charity extravaganza also features laughs from Melanie Bracewell, Josh Thomson, Ben Hurley, Justine Smith, Chris Parker and Paul Ego.
Nick Rado: On Trend (YouTube)
Mapua, this is your moment. Nick Rado’s comedy special was filmed in the Mapua Playhouse in Tasman, and the laughs come thick and fast. Rado is the head writer at 7 Days and has opened for Rob Brydon, Aziz Ansari, Danny Bhoy and Russell Howard.
James Mustapic His Mum a Man (TVNZ+)
Listen, this is your comedy festival, and if you want to include a six-part series in your laughfest, go right ahead. James Mustapic His Mum a Man is a romantic comedy the likes of which we’ve never seen on New Zealand TV before, as comedian and Celebrity Treasure Island winner James Mustapic embarks on a quest to find his Mum a man. The twist? The last thing Janet wants in her life is a bloke.
The New Zealand international Comedy Festival runs until May 26.
We're keen to get to know listeners of The Fold podcast better! Please complete our short survey and help us tailor our content to your preferences.
Why you should watch: Bodkin (Netflix)
If you’re a fan of a true crime podcast, you’ll enjoy Netflix’s new comic thriller Bodkin, which pokes fun how we hoover up a gruesome murder mystery once it’s framed as entertainment. Three podcasters – an enthusiastic American, an English researcher and a reluctant Irish journalist – travel to the small Irish town of Bodkin to make a podcast about some disappearances that happened there 25 years earlier. Once they arrive, it seems the “friendly” locals will do anything to keep these secrets buried. It’s more of a comfortable thriller than an edgy one, but if you love a bit of dry Irish humour amid some light, quirky drama, you can’t go wrong.
You might also like: Big Mood (ThreeNow) Big week for Nicola Coughlan, who stars in both the new season of Bridgerton and new comedy drama Big Mood. Coughlan and Lydia West play Maggie and Eddie, whose close friendship is pushed to the limits when bipolar writer Maggie decides to go off her meds. This is friendship and life in your 20s in all its messy, complex glory.
Why you should watch: Doctor Who (Disney+)
As a lifelong fan of Doctor Who, it really feels like this is the most exciting time to be tuning in for many years. Disney+ has injected a significant boost to the show once best known for its cheap, men-in-rubber-mask monsters, writer Russell T Davies is back at the helm, and there’s a fresh new duo in control of the Tardis. What could go wrong? Based on the first two episodes of the new series (advertised as “season one” despite it being the 14th of the reboot), quite a lot. A desperate need to be “zany” dominated much of the first episode, although the second episode is an improvement. Who knows what the rest of the season will bring? I’ll still be tuning in to find out. / Stewart Sowman-Lund
More pop culture from The Spinoff:
With the last episodes of both Fair Go and Sunday this week, I asked some of Fair Go’s former presenters about what the show meant to them, and watched Sunday’s farewell episode, which was full of gratitude and grace.
To celebrate NZ Music Month, Sophie Ricketts ranked her favourite band T-shirts (inexplicably, the True Bliss T-shirt failed to make the cut?!).
Looking for something good to stream this weekend? We’ve got you.
In one of my favourite My Life in TV profiles, the actor, comedian, producer and presenter Ginette McDonald took us on a magic trip down TV memory lane.
Shanti Mathias went to the ballet to see some swans and had a very lovely time.
Why you should listen to: ‘Candy’ by Mk.gee
I have watched a 15 minute YouTube video explaining how Mk.gee gets his guitar to sound the way it does, but I’m still no closer to understanding it. I have read the enthusiastic Pitchfork review of his new album Two Star & the Dream Police and thought “yes… yes!” but I still can’t really put my finger on why I can’t stop listening to it. All I know is there’s a moment in ‘Candy’, a track that could be a scuzzed-up long-lost Prince demo from 1984, where it sounds like his guitar is sneezing, and something about it gets me every time. Never thought I’d live to see the day a song called ‘Candy’ even better than the Magnetic Fields one came along, but here we are. / Calum Henderson
Join The Spinoff Members
“With a publication like the Spinoff, you never know quite what excellent journalism you will find. Complement this with the literary wizardry covering all manner of cultural topics, and you are contributing to a very fine publication indeed.” – Julie, Spinoff Member since 2019.
If, like Julie, you enjoy our work and want to support us, please consider becoming a member today.
Before we pop off…
The next season of The Block NZ has been cancelled before it was even announced, with host Mark Richardson finding out by reading it in the paper.
Despite cancelling The Block NZ, Three is taking applications for new property show On the Ladder.
If you’re a theatre fan, don’t miss this new play that tells the fictionalised story of wāhine Māori working in the Crown Lynn factory in the 1970s.
We can’t decide if the new portrait of King Charles should go straight to the pool room or to the fiery pits of hell.
Tom Hiddleston will play Sir Edmund Hilary in an upcoming movie about origin story of the $5 note/some big mountain.
Prime Video have announced their slate of upcoming shows, including an Elle Woods Legally Blonde prequel executive produced by Reese Witherspoon.
The Office is back (sort of) – but this time, it’s…The Paper?
That’s it for Rec Room for this week. If you liked what you read, why not share Rec Room with your friends and whānau.
