Comic Hal gives it to you straight

Comedy star Hal Cruttenden comes to Nottingham this autumn with his brand new stand-up tour, Straight Outta Cruttenden.

He will be appearing at the Alea Casino as part of this year’s Nottingham Comedy Festival.

In Straight Outta Cruttenden, Hal rants about the real evils of the modern world such as over-sharing on social media and the 5:2 diet.

The hungrier he gets the funnier he becomes.

Hal also gives us his unique insights on being an orphan on Facebook, taking his wife to Saudi Arabia and how he knew George Osborne at school (or Gideon as he was then) and personally blames him every time he puts up the price of petrol.

Hal is one of the top comedians working in the UK today, as well as being a highly accomplished writer and actor.

He has had two Radio 4 series in the past year and a third is in the pipeline.

Over the last year he’s made his second appearance on The Royal Variety Performance, hosted Live at the Apollo and was the guest comic in the final of The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice.

He has also appeared on Would I Lie To You?, Have I Got News For You, Sunday Night at the Palladium, Mock The Week, Pointless Celebrities, Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled and wrote and performed in his own Radio 4 sitcom, Hal.

He has previously been nominated for the Edinburgh Comedy and tChortle Awards.

His TV and film credits include Shackleton, The Madness of King George and EastEnders.

Internationally, Hal has travelled across Canada on the Just For Laughs Comedy tours, including two Just For Laughs Galas in Montreal which were hosted by Joan Rivers and Howie Mandel.

He has also performed shows at the Kilkenny Cat Laughs Festival.

Other international comedy tours include India, Bermuda, Germany, Norway, Dubai, Jakarta, Bali, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and The Falklands.

He is in Nottingham on Thursday, November 12 and tickets are available now on 08712 200260.

n Opera North return to Nottingham in November, writes Tony Spittles.

There will be fully staged productions, all sung in English, of two old favourites, Rossini’s The Barber of Seville and Janacek’s Jenufa, plus a new staging of Cole Porter’s Shakesperian classic Kiss Me, Kate

But for Wagner fans it’s June 2016 as the month to watch when the company is back in town for a complete staging of its year-on-year presentation of the four instalments that comprise the Ring Cycle.

Full details of this epic undertaking can be obtained from www.theringcycle.co.uk, but for those anxious to book dates and times, including three early starts at 3pm, the line-up is:

Monday, June 6 - The whole Ring Cycle gets underway in thrilling fashion at 7pm with Das Rheingold (2 hours 40 minutes, no interval).

Tuesday, June 7 - The Ride of the Valkyries is just one of the highlights of Die Walkure, which requires early attendance from 3pm. (5 hours 40 minutes with two intervals, one of 30 minutes, the other 1 hour 15 minutes).

Thursday, June 8 - It’s another 3pm start as the youthful hero Siegfried slays the dragon Fafner and steals the ring from the dragon’s hoard. (5 hours 50 minutes with two intervals, one of 30 minutes, the other 1 hour 15 minutes).

Saturday, June 11 - It’s curtain up again at 3pm for the longest part of this 15-hour musical marathon with the awe-inspiring finale of Gotterdammerung sweeping the audience along from Siegfried’s Rhine Journey to his Funeral March. (6 hours and 30 minutes with two intervals, one of 1 hour 15 minutes, the other 30 minutes).

For further details of prices -- which range from £15 to £55 for single tickets or £50 to £196 for the full cycle - and seat availability at the Royal Concert Hall contact the box office on 0115-9895555, or check the website at www.trch.co.uk