Mortification by Mark Watson review – why disappointment shouldn’t get you down
The standup’s amusing, sometimes dark reflections on eight personal setbacks shine a light on the comedy business and give succour to people who feel like a failure
February 2022
Sunday with Mark Watson: ‘Watching my kids play rugby is labour intensive’
The comedian on shuttling between pitches, pub roasts and an evening run
November 2021
Miranda Sawyer on podcasts and radio
The week in audio: The Exploding Library; Famous Firsts; Ry-Union; Bed of Lies
Flann O’Brien takes centre stage, while the latest round of celebrity ‘interviews’ are in need of a tough producer
January 2021
'Why isn't crying manly?': a comic and a Bake Off star ask what makes a man
In their new podcast, Great British Bake Off contestant Michael Chakraverty and Mark Watson probe all aspects of masculinity
August 2020
Mo Gilligan: ‘A lot of us comics do feel a bit like key workers’
Mark Watson: 'The pandemic makes you realise how precarious comedy can be'
May 2020
Lockdown culture
Mark Watson’s Comedy Marathon: an irresistible carnival of idiocy
The blokey joker fired up his webcam to deliver a 24 hours of faux-ballads, toilet humour and even a real-life wedding
November 2016
Open mic
The rise and fall of the Invisible Dot, comedy's Factory Records
The innovative outfit that cultivated talents such as Tim Key and Claudia O’Doherty is no more. So why, during this boom time for comedy, did it fail?
November 2015
On my radar
On my radar: Mark Watson’s cultural highlights
The comedian and author on his mixed feelings about Michel Houellebecq and the importance of risk-taking
July 2015
Pass notes
A 46-nil thrashing – but it's not all bad news for the world's worst football team
Micronesia’s under-23s were humiliated in their Pacific Games debut, but there might be a silver lining
January 2015
Mark Watson: Flaws review – bracingly honest account of anxiety
Watson’s show is both funny and edgy – and the closer we get to his demons the more compelling it becomes, writes Brian Logan
September 2014
Autumn arts preview 2014
The funniest comedy gigs in autumn 2014
End of the Road festival review – expertly curated indie rock
August 2014
Behind the joke
Mark Watson: Never trust a comedian who says 'the other day …'
Tim Vine wins Dave award for funniest joke of Edinburgh fringe festival
Edinburgh fringe 2014 in pictures: Murdo MacLeod's best shots – week one
Edinburgh festival 2014: 10 questions for Mark Watson
June 2014
This week's new live comedy
This week's new live comedy
Tim FitzHigham | Mark Watson | Monty Python
March 2014
Watch television with …
Mark Watson's favourite TV
Comedian, sports pundit and novelist on his TV highs and lows
August 2013
My Edinburgh festival
My Edinburgh: Nat Luurtsema – eyeball ulcers at a Mark Watson show
The comic and writer may have ended up in A&E four years running, but she'd never go anywhere but Edinburgh in August
