Hold onto your pelvic floor. Samantha Laurie discovers a lunchtime comedy club for new mums and their babies
Stand-up comedy can be a tough gig – a rowdy crowd heavy on the bottle, lots of screaming and incoherent heckling, perhaps even a swaying staggerer being sick in the corner. But when your audience is under 12 months old, it goes with the territory.
The brainchild of comedians and best buddies, Carly Smallman and Alyssa Kyria, Bring Your Own Baby Comedy is a daytime comedy club where sleep-deprived mums and dads can enjoy a proper adult night out – in the middle of the day – with some of the best performers on the circuit.
“We want to help parents feel like themselves again; to give them a place where they can relax, have a glass of wine and remember what it’s like to enjoy a good old laugh,” says Alyssa. “It’s a treat. This may be the first thing they’ve done that’s about them, not the baby.”
Looking for more great Child's Play content? You can check out our piece exploring fun outdoor activities for the kids this summer by clicking here
Toys, bubbles and a light show are provided for the little ones – maximum age a year, as there is plenty of adult content at large – while for the grown-ups the monthly shows in pubs and performance spaces include two comics from the regular circuit, plus a compere(often either Alyssaor Carly).
It was an idea conceived by the two friends a year ago, while Alyssa was recovering slowly from postnatal depression after the birth of her daughter Lola.
“I found that first year hard,” she admits. “I struggled with breastfeeding and felt isolated. I would have loved somewhere like this – somewhere you can go on your own and meet people and feel your old self again.”
When your emotions are all over the place and you’re shattered from lack of sleep, laughter can indeed be the best medicine. One mum, recalls Alyssa, reported that her little one was looking at her strangely during the show. Then she realised that it was the first time that her baby had seen her laugh.
And word is spreading fast: having started in Beckenham, BYOBC now has 13 venues and shows sell out quickly, often within a week. This month it comes to Battersea Arts Centre, with clubs opening in Teddington’s Landmark Centre, The Half Moon (Putney) and The Stoke Pub (Guildford) in the autumn.
But what kind of comic subjects him- or herself to an audience of exhausted new parents and noisy babies? A confident one, says Alyssa.
“If you can handle the volume from 90 mums and their babies, you can definitely handle Edinburgh,” she laughs.
“It’s kind of surreal, but we do give tips: don’t tell too many long stories and don’t mumsy the audience – they’re here for a proper comedy show. Most of all, don’t get distracted by the overload of cuteness! All those gorgeous baby faces...”
- BYOB will be at BAC on July 12; Landmark Arts Centre in Teddington on Sept 19, Oct 17 and Nov 21; The Half Moon in Putney on Oct 16, Nov 20, Dec 18; The Stoke in Guildford on Oct 11, Nov 8, Dec 13; with a Sunday Special at The Antelope in Tooting on Sept 24. Shows (75 mins) start at 12 noon; tickets £10; byobcomedy.com
Carry on regardless...
... going to concerts
ALEJANDRO TAMAGNO
There’s no reason why, once you have babies in tow, you can no longer listen to high quality classical music. Award-winning pianist Miaomiao Yu set the bar high with her Bach to Baby concerts – marvellously noisy, child-friendly events in atmospheric churches and performance halls in Farnham, Wimbledon, Teddington, Southfields, Windsor and many more besides.
These popular concerts continue to grow in ambition, and this summer the team are staging family concerts in Queen’s Gallery at Buckingham Palace.
- Family concert, Queen’s Gallery, July 24; bachtobaby.com
... partying
What happens when seasoned clubbers have babies? They host an afternoon dance party playing acid house classics with club lighting and multiple DJs for the parents and bubbles, confetti and glitterballs for the kids.
Family ravers Big Fish Little Fish, hosts of regular parent and child dance events at The Bedford in Balham, are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Summer of Love at the Alexandra Palace Festival this month. On the bill is house, techno, drum’n’bass, hip hop, old skool rave and a dash of psychedelia, with an astro turf dance floor, a bubbleologist and hula hoop performances. Child under 8? Get your party trousers on!
- July 22; bigfishlittlefishevents.co.uk
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