Bexhill: Omid Djalili ponders how the pandemic has changed comedy

Things are certainly different as we emerge from the pandemic, Omid says. He was noticing it in the first few days as he hit the road.

Shows coming up include: Bexhill’s De La Warr Pa-vilion on March 19; and Hastings’ White Rock Theatre on October 29.

“I think we have all changed. I think there is a new normal. You can tell it from the audience. The difference is that everybody has been at home watching stuff digitally and they are now demanding higher-quality content.

“Stuff that I was saying in comedy clubs that would have got a ‘Wahay!’ or a cheer, well, it has changed. I was doing a joke about Covid variants, the kind of thing that you would put on Twitter. I said something and there was a groan and somebody said ‘Oh my God!’ It was like ‘For God’s sake, is that the best you can do?’

“I think new audiences are more empowered and very entitled. They are demanding better quality, and I think that that is good.

“And I think people are way more intolerant about jokes about the other. The Paddy jokes, the Scottish jokes, they all went out in the 1970s. But now they won’t tolerate jokes about somebody who is other in some way, somebody who is German or whatever. We have got to be thinking about really important stuff about people’s lives and experiences.”

And certainly it is difficult talking about the pandemic: “You find that if the joke is not brilliantly funny, then people will get twitchy. If it is actually brilliantly funny, then they will go with it. If you are trying to create something new – and new comedy is all about clutching something out of the air – then I do think people will appreciate that shared experience.

“But I think people want you to talk about the pandemic. They want you to talk about politics and where we are. They want you to talk about what we have all been through and how things have changed. They want to reflect on all the terrible things that have happened. It is about finding the right moment.”

And Omid has changed too: “I have certainly really appreciated coming back to stand-up comedy.”

Omid cites a gig in Telford. A smallish venue. No big deal. The gig was something to get through in order to get to the hotel afterwards. But not anymore.

“And I absolutely cherished it. I loved every moment. I absolutely loved being on stage and I wanted to stay there.”

So in that sense the pandemic has energised him, he says: “I really appreciated the job because I haven’t done it for 20 months. I just loved being back there doing it again after all this time.”

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