It Might Get Ugly 4, The Harrison Bar

Weird, funny and dangerous, It Might Get Ugly is a comedy fan's delight, and for good reason one of our favourite nights in London. 

In this fourth London iteration of ‘the night where comedians are challenged to be honest to the point of regret’, comic enigma Karl Schultz comperes a bill starring Harry Hill, Andrew O’Neill, Beth Vyse, and Phil Nichol. 

It’s a night of short sets which aims to let you hear stories that comedians would self-censor in any other environment. This is a big ask of the comedy A-listers Schultz has presented to the IMGU audience so far: Bridget Christie, Sara Pascoe, Joe Lycett and Aisling Bea have all taken to the stage this year ‘to disclose some kind of self-communion worth sharing and be very funny with it’. 

And yet it works. Whether it’s the atmosphere – the Harrison Bar’s basement space has an intimate, ramshackle, underground feel – or the originality of the premise, whenever we’ve been to this show it’s felt like a splash of cold water to the comedic face. This is standup shot through with real emotional jeopardy, focussing everyone involved on the precarious, potentially antagonistic relationship between audience and perfomer that is the founding stone of standup comedy.

On the heels of a harrowingly candid and hard-to-top set by comedian Trevor Lock last month, April sees Schultz’s old pal and mentor Harry Hill top the bill fresh from penning the new Simon Cowell-themed musical I Can’t Sing! (opening this month at the London Palladium). Occultist comic Andrew O’Neill will also be chatting candidly about cross-dressing and veganism, alongside Canadian comic Phil Nichol, and Matt Highton and Beth Vyse of the much-vaunted Weirdos comedy collective.  

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Doors open at 7pm, show starts at 8pm.