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Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

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It's Friday and, to celebrate the FINA World Championships open water event, it's time to dive into the web's salty ocean, swim around a buoy and then run out on the beach covered in bits of slimy comedy seaweed.

• by Craig Platt at 9:56 AM
• Comments (9)

Last Laugh: World's greatest publicity stunt

The blogosphere is buzzing: did a practical joke website recently pull off the greatest publicity stunt in history?

According to the people behind the prank, yes they did.

• by Craig Platt at 3:18 PM
• Comments (16)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's Friday, time to relax after a (short) week of work with a few lazy pints of comedy bitter poured from the web's endless jug. Yum!

• by Craig Platt at 10:21 AM
• Comments (9)

Last Laugh: So good you'll what?!

WARNING: Today's last laugh entry contains adult themes and language that may be offensive to some readers. But it is bloody funny.

Last Laugh loves a good stuff-up on live TV and today's is a beauty. NBC Augusta in the US recently broadcast a story about Krispy Kreme doughnuts. There was nothing offensive in the story itself, but the graphic that appeared behind the news presenter contained a rather, uh, interesting slogan.

• by Craig Platt at 4:19 PM
• Comments (31)

Last Laugh: Nerd eye for the single guy

Interior design is no longer just the domain of women and gay guys - nerds are now in on the act. An English design firm called 24th Century Design (that's right, 24th) will redecorate your home in a futuristic/sci-fi style. It's every Trekkies' fantasy come true.

• by Craig Platt at 11:04 AM
• Comments (14)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's that time of the week again, time to wade through the internet's swamp and let thirsty comedy leeches stick to your legs. This week's selections over the jump, as they say.

• by Craig Platt at 10:02 AM
• Comments (3)

Last Laugh: Kazakhstan is nice!

Remember last year when everyone was talking about Borat - the film and the man? Remember how Kazakhstan was upset with how it was portrayed in the film? Remember how the country took action by placing ads in the New York Times to combat the view that Kazakhstan was a backward country?

• by Craig Platt at 6:33 PM
• Comments (19)

Last Laugh: Beer barrage

Lazy beer drinkers rejoice! An inventor has created a fridge that will throw beer cans to drinkers - rather than them having to get up from the couch, walk all the way too the fridge, get the door open, bend down to take a beer out, close the door, walk back to the couch, sit down again and finally open the beer. Sounds like a million-dollar idea, right?

• by Craig Platt at 9:38 AM
• Comments (24)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

Once again, it's time to forget about work, put on a miner's helmet and delve into the web's deep, dank, dark cave to seek out a vein of comedy gold.

• by Craig Platt at 10:51 AM
• Comments (1)

Last Laugh: Best laughs - cute critters

Time for another dose of my weekly video segment, Best Laughs on the Net. This week the focus is on some of the cutest, funniest animals caught on film doing silly things. Watch it here.

• by Craig Platt at 3:05 PM
• Comments (1)

Last Laugh: Vegemite Wars (or How to Get on National TV in Australia Without Really Trying)

Let me draw your attention today to something that occurred a couple of weeks ago that I find a little weird.

A YouTube vlogger called boh3m3 put up a video post featuring his theory that Vegemite is a scam perpetrated by Australians, who are attempting to trick foreigners into eating something that's disgusting.

• by Craig Platt at 11:25 AM
• Comments (40)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's Friday - hup, hup, huzzah! Which means it's time to turn on the web's drip watering system and let those precious drops of comedic water fall on the barren ground of your brain.

• by Craig Platt at 10:17 AM
• Comments (4)

Last Laugh: Office nutbags

Shameless self-promotion today. A new edition of the weekly "Best laughs on the web" video is now online. This week, I'm focusing on office nutbags. Watch it here!

If you want to see more of the balloon prank, here's the full video (warning - the victim drops an F-bomb).

• by Craig Platt at 10:18 AM
• Comments (0)

Last Laugh: Nigerian parrot

Just a quick entry today to draw your attention to a story in our Technology section. A "scambaiter" who received an email from Nigerian spammers asking for money has turned the tables on the scammers, convincing them that he would give them money if they performed the famous "Parrot Sketch" from Monty Python's Flying Circus. Read the story and watch the resulting video here.

In other news, Chad Vader, as featured on Last Laugh many moons ago, has made international news. Now, how long before George Lucas sues the creators and demands all the previous episodes be destroyed? (Or perhaps he'll allow them to continue if they add a computer-generated Rastafarian alien to the cast)

• by Craig Platt at 1:22 PM
• Comments (0)

Last Laugh: Full-length Simpsons movie trailer arrives

Some breaking news - the full-length trailer for the upcoming Simpsons movie has just gone online in the last 24 hours. It features much more action than the last two teaser trailers, though it still gives very little away regarding the plot.

Watch it here:

Or head over the Apple's trailers and go for Trailer 3.

What do you think? Is this film going to meet expectations? It will need to be better than the most recent episodes, which have not been up to scratch, in my opinion.

• by Craig Platt at 2:08 PM
• Comments (22)

Last Laugh: Better living through chemistry

Internet hoaxes are continuing to fool folks around the world - even when they're not actually hoaxes. Australian artist Justine Cooper currently has an exhibition showing at the Daneyal Mahmood Gallery in New York. The exhibition takes the form of a marketing campaign for a drug, called Havidol, which is a treatment for Dysphoric Social Attention Consumption Deficit Anxiety Disorder (DSACDAD).

• by Craig Platt at 11:42 AM
• Comments (27)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's the end of the week, which means it's time for another end-of-the-week kick in the pants from the web's comedic steel-capped Blundstones. Now bend over.

• by Craig Platt at 10:20 AM
• Comments (9)

Last Laugh: The writers are Lost

Hit American TV show Lost returns to our screens tonight and, apparently, we "can't afford to miss the first five minutes". Presumably we can switch off after that.

When the last season ended, Jack, Sawyer, Kate and Fatty had been captured by the "Others", Michael had escaped the island with his son, and Locke and mysterious Scotsman Duncan seemed to blow up the bunker.

What's going to happen next?

• by Craig Platt at 10:09 AM
• Comments (38)

Last Laugh: Need a date?

Hey ladies! Are you without a date on this Valentine's Day? Never fear, there is at least one man who's still single and available.

• by Craig Platt at 9:55 AM
• Comments (7)

Last Laugh: Hammond risks life again

After nearly dying in a rocket car crash last September, Top Gear co-host Richard Hammond has risked his life yet again.

This time, he and his colleagues Jeremy Clarkson and James May drove through Alabama in the US. Not all that dangerous in itself, but the hosts "decorated" each others cars with slogans before heading deep into redneck territory.

• by Craig Platt at 11:02 AM
• Comments (55)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

The weekend starts here. Actually it starts over there, in the afternoon some time. In the meantime, let's see what interesting bits of comedy muck have been scooped by the bucketload from the web's pig pen this week.

• by Craig Platt at 9:44 AM
• Comments (8)

Last Laugh: Nutbag bride

It seems to be a big week for internet hoaxes. After yesterday's Donnie Davies item comes news that an infamous viral video of a bride's wedding day meltdown is, in fact, a hoax.

• by Craig Platt at 11:28 PM
• Comments (18)

Last Laugh: God loves satire

Warning: today's entry contains material that may be offensive to some readers. Particularly if you don't understand satire.

Mystery surrounds the identity of Donnie Davies, a fundamentalist Christian rocker whose song The Bible Says has become an internet phenomenon.

Davies, with his band Evening Service, unleashed the homophobic anthem last month and it's been quickly picked up by the blogosphere because of its ridiculously overt homophobia.

• by Craig Platt at 3:33 PM
• Comments (31)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's that time of the week again, time to poke a finger into the web's deep bellybutton and dig out a few bits of comedy lint.

• by Craig Platt at 10:15 AM
• Comments (10)

Last Laugh: Bursts of flavour

We have an early frontrunner for weirdest invention of the year - Season Shot. This shotgun ammunition claims it will both kill AND season a bird at the same time.

The flavoured shots apparently "season on impact" and dissolve when the bird is cooked - sparing hunters the tough task of having to dig steel shot out of the carcass.

• by Craig Platt at 9:44 AM
• Comments (11)

Last Laugh: Super-reality

I've never been a fan of the new generation of talent quests - Idol and its ilk. As I've written in the past, the real talent involved in these shows is Simon Cowell's ability to turn a tired, age-old concept into a multi-million dollar, worldwide phenomenon simply through the use of his Bernard King-style bitchiness (remember Pot Luck anyone?).

But finally a talent quest has arrived that I can support. America's Sci-Fi channel is currently holding auditions for season two of its outrageously nerdy talent quest - Who Wants to be a Superhero?

• by Craig Platt at 9:35 AM
• Comments (2)

Last Laugh: New video

Everyone's off celebrating Australia Day today, but I'm here in the office. Due to unforeseen circumstances, there will be no end-of-the-week funnies today. However, you can still watch this week's "Best laughs on the web" video. Check it out here. Enjoy your day off and think of me, slaving away here at work.

Also, enjoy this moment from last night's Late Show with David Letterman. For some reason, I find it hysterical. (Requires RealPlayer)

Seen something funny on the web? Share it with Last Laugh.

More of Last Laugh

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• by Craig Platt at 11:01 AM
• Comments (0)

Last Laugh: A gag too far?

Can comedy go too far? If so, how far is too far?

As an devout fan of South Park, I have to admit that I enjoy a certain amount of boundary-pushing in my comedy.

But what to make of the current court case involving Chaser star Chas Licciardello, who is facing offensive behaviour charges after allegedly trying to sell Canterbury Bulldogs "supporter kits", which included fake knuckledusters, plastic knives, tubes labelled as flares and packages labelled rohypnol, a drug used in date rapes.

• by Craig Platt at 4:32 PM
• Comments (79)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

Friday is here, and that means a weekend of hot weather and possible thunderstorms. It also means it's time to scoop out the dollops of comedy cream from the surface of the web's milk jug. Mmmm, tasty.

• by Craig Platt at 10:18 AM
• Comments (3)

Last Laugh: Irony is the new news

After lowering the tone of this blog a little in the past two days, it's time to get a bit high-brow.

The Detroit News has an interesting article this week about how, despite being declared dead in the post-September 11 world, irony is bigger than ever. It seems that irony has survived both the "War on Terror" and Alanis Morissette.

• by Craig Platt at 9:51 AM
• Comments (42)

Last Laugh: World's breast beer

According to Ananova and that well-respected journal of record, The Sun, European men are flocking to Bulgaria in order to buy Boza beer - an ale that can apparently increase the size of women's breasts.

This magical tipple was previously expensive in Europe, but now Bulgaria has joined the EU, it can be purchased duty free.

• by Craig Platt at 10:00 AM
• Comments (34)

Last Laugh: Putting the C into BBC

The UK papers reported over the weekend that the BBC is planning a documentary on the history and use of the C-word. Yes, you know the one.

The program, to be titled The History of the C-word or I Love the C-word, depending on which newspaper you read, will examine why the rudest word in the English language has become more mainstream in recent years.

• by Craig Platt at 9:36 AM
• Comments (60)

Funny-free Friday

No end-of-the-week funnies today I'm afraid - I'm laid up at present. Funnies will return next week.

• by Craig Platt at 12:11 PM
• Comments (6)

Last Laugh: Easy, tiger!

People at theme parks dressed up as cartoon characters are begging to be assaulted by brats. At least, that's the impression one gets from watching The Simpsons, where Bart revels in torturing the poor slobs who "just want to entertain".

Last week, at Disney World in Florida, one of those cartoon characters got revenge. The problem is, he picked the wrong kid. At least, he picked a kid who hadn't actually done anything wrong.

• by Craig Platt at 7:03 PM
• Comments (22)

Last Laugh: You can't flog a dead horse (but you can sit on one)

I'm putting on my top hat/Tying up my white tie/Brushing off my tails/I'm sitting on a dead horse/Centre of the main street/Nobody knows why.*

A mysterious photo published by Wisconsin newspaper the Sheboygan Press has been doing the rounds on the web. Believed to be taken during the 1870s, it features an elegantly dressed man sitting down in the middle of a major intersection - on a dead horse.

• by Craig Platt at 9:55 AM
• Comments (72)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's the first Friday of 2007 and that means it's time to dip a toe into the warm waters of the net and then dive head-first into the funny stuff it has to offer. Get your floaties on.

• by Craig Platt at 9:49 AM
• Comments (6)

Last Laugh: Darwin awards announced

This year's Darwin Awards have been announced! If you don't know what the Darwin Awards are, you probably haven't had access to the internet or news media for the past, say, six or seven years.

Basically, the premise for the awards is that they honour those who accidentally remove themselves from the gene pool, thereby making the next generation smarter than the last. (Creationists would argue that the deaths simply show that God has a wicked sense of humour).

• by Craig Platt at 10:06 AM
• Comments (18)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-year funnies

The year is drawing to a close and it has been a lot of fun. Last Laugh started out as a short-term blog focused solely on the Melbourne Comedy Festival but evolved into a repository for all things weird, whacky and amusing on the web and in the news.

Plenty of the funny stuff I linked to this year was video - mostly courtesy of You Tube. If you haven't watched my round-up of the year's funniest videos yet, check it out here.

If you want to see the full length version of these videos, here are the links to the original posts:

• by Craig Platt at 11:25 AM
• Comments (2)

Last Laugh: The Muppets take Baghdad

There's been plenty written recently about the quagmire that is Iraq. Should the US troops pull out? Should they stay? What is the solution? (If you want to talk about it, head over to Your Say).

Well, there is a solution - send in the Muppets. As I write this, Americans are watching a TV special called When Parents Are Deployed, in which Sesame Street favourite Elmo farewell's his dad - who is heading off to Iraq.

• by Ed at 10:53 AM
• Comments (19)

Last Laugh: Christmas funnies

Christmas is almost here, so I thought it was an opportune time to do a special Christmas-themed end-of-the-week funnies. OK, so the end of the week isn't actually here yet, but I figure most people will be sneaking off early tomorrow, so I thought I'd go a bit early this week.

• by Ed at 10:46 AM
• Comments (3)

Last Laugh: Battle of the ignoramuses

Folk from all over the world like to make fun of American ignorance. The guys from the Chaser, for example, who went around vox-popping Americans about the war in Iraq and discovered few of them even knew where it was. (A survey has shown less than 40 per cent of young Americans know where Iraq is). Or when the Chaser's Julian Morrow pretended to be John Howard and introduced himself to people on the street as the Prime Minister of Australia - and no one twigged (though that probably says more about Howard's profile than America's ignorance).

• by Craig Platt at 11:12 AM
• Comments (22)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's the end of the working week! For many it may, in fact, be the end of the working year. Not for me, I'll be here next week delivering daily (or close to daily) doses of funny stuff.

In the meantime, the web's bright sunrise hit me in the face this morning and blinded me with the following items.

• by Craig Platt at 9:49 AM
• Comments (8)

Last Laugh: Live! Nude! Sea cows!

Comedy and the law don't always have a good relationship. Yesterday I wrote about Universal Music threatening the Bank of America over two employees "reimagining" U2's One as a corporate anthem.

Today, litigation paranoia has resulted in a hilarious website spun off from a throwaway line on Conan O'Brien's tonight show.

Last week, O'Brien's show did a sketch about silly sports team mascots. One of the mascots was "the Webcam Manatee" - a sea cow rubbing itself in a lewd manner. At the end of the sketch, O'Brien remarked that the manatee could be seen on "hornymanatee.com".

• by Craig Platt at 12:33 AM
• Comments (5)

Last Laugh: Bank butchers U2

I'm back.

What did I miss? Well, for one thing, I missed a video of a corporate conference held by the Bank of America. During the conference, two employees paid tribute to the bank's acquisition of credit card company MBNA by performing U2's One with slightly adjusted lyrics.

• by Craig Platt at 10:40 AM
• Comments (17)

Last Laugh: In the meantime...

Last Laugh will be on a temporary hiatus while I take a dubiously-deserved break. In the meantime, if you're unable to entertain yourself, I suggest going and hanging out at Homestarrunner.com - the best animation site on the web. If you've never visited it before, then you'll probably still be there when I get back.

• by Craig Platt at 2:10 PM
• Comments (8)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's Friday, and those poor slobs (such as myself) who have worked a standard five-day week are feeling rather tired. So it's time to lay our heads down on the net's fluffy pillows and dream a little dream of funny stuff. Zzzzz....

• by Craig Platt at 10:24 AM
• Comments (20)

Last Laugh: Rumsfeld's greatest hits

US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has resigned, a move that has been celebrated by many. But not by me.

Why? Because Rumsfeld's resignation does damage to a forgotten people - political satirists. The comedy world has lost a great source of material, a man who was possibly second only to Comical Ali in his flying in the face of facts and his mangling of the English language.

• by Craig Platt at 11:00 AM
• Comments (60)

Last Laugh: Horsing around

To celebrate the Melbourne Cup, I thought today I'd take a leaf out of Ugly Overload's book and trawl the Fairfax archives for funny, rather unflattering pictures of horses. There's no more to it than that.

• by Craig Platt at 9:59 AM
• Comments (3)

Last Laugh: Where the Bali hell are you?

A small group of Balinese tourism operators have taken it upon themselves to try and get Australians going back to Bali. And what better way than by taking the mickey out of our own, much-maligned, "Where the bloody hell are ya?" tourism campaign.

• by Craig Platt at 12:03 PM
• Comments (22)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's Friday and, for some (not me), that means the start of a long, long weekend. But before you go, take some time to stick your head into the worldwide web's water-filled barrel and see if you can pull out a comedy apple with your teeth. Let's get bobbing.

• by Craig Platt at 9:42 AM
• Comments (1)

Last Laugh: Atene atones

The blogosphere has been buzzing over the last week or so about a bloke named Brian Atene. Why? Because, 20 years ago, Atene shot an audition tape and sent it to director Stanley Kubrick in an attempt to score a role in Kubrick's war film Full Metal Jacket.

Twenty years on and the audition video found its way on to You Tube.

• by Craig Platt at 12:18 AM
• Comments (4)

Last Laugh: Single freak, seeks same

Without wanting to stray into Sam Brett territory, today I wanted to talk about personal ads. More specifically, I want to draw your attention to a new book, being released in the UK tomorrow, called They Call Me Naughty Lola.

The book is an amusing collection of personal ads published in the London Review of Books. The LRB's advertising director David Rose has picked out the wittiest ads from his 10 years in the job and the results are fascinating, to say the least.

• by Craig Platt at 10:30 AM
• Comments (7)

Last Laugh: Happy Halloween (sort of)

Before launching properly into today's Halloween-themed entry, I need to make one thing clear: I hate Halloween. Which is to say, I hate the way it is celebrated by some people in Australia. Yes, I'm talking about dressing up and trick-or-treating.

I know that Halloween isn't just an American holiday, but it irks me that kids (and parents) in Australia have embraced these traditions because they've seen too many "Halloween special" cartoons and sitcoms. Trick-or-treating is just a form of extortion anyway, isn't it? "Give me lollies or I'll do something to you!"

• by Craig Platt at 11:13 AM
• Comments (26)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's the end of the working week, at last, and that means it's time for another serve of the funny, strange and just plain stupid from the web. Here are the amusing needles from the internet's haystack that have pricked my finger this week:

• by Craig Platt at 1:52 AM
• Comments (10)

Last Laugh: Things go better with Cocaine

The Associated Press reports this week that 7-Eleven stores in Texas have decided to pull an energy drink from shelves due to complaints about the product's name: Cocaine.

Now, I'm not the most conservative guy on the block, but I do have to ask: what the heck did they expect? In a country where a flash of nipple on television can cause such an uproar, didn't 7-Eleven, or the drink manufacturers, think this name might cause a few problems?

• by Craig Platt at 8:05 PM
• Comments (28)

Last Laugh: Stick it to 'em

This week, Richard Linklater's adaptation of the book Fast Food Nation hits cinemas. It's an expose of the fast food industry that has plenty of negative things to say about how the big fast food chains create their produce.

But when it comes to America's ballooning waistlines, it's not just fast food that's to blame. Sure, Burger King might have its Quad Stacker and KFC has its Famous Bowls, but in the US, even your home-cooked meal can send you on a short waddle to the land of the fat.

• by Craig Platt at 10:15 AM
• Comments (59)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's that time of the week again. Time to get out the tweezers and pluck thick, black comedic hairs from the internet's overgrown mono-brow. Now hold still...

1. Boy band survivors are all the rage this week. Mick Molloy's comedy BoyTown hit cinemas yesterday, and former Boyzone member Ronan Keating was in town for a spot on Dancing with the Stars. So it seems a good time to take a look at this video of Boyzone's first ever TV appearance in Ireland. Note the host's utter disdain for his guests.

2. It's been several weeks since there was anything Star Wars-related on this blog. Fear not, that's about to be rectified. A Kiwi bloke with way too much time on his hands has been creating an animated version of Episode IV using ASCII - that is, using only your standard alphanumeric symbols. He's been working on it since 1997.
Take a look. Makes me pine for my old Kaypro II (it used to fold up into a neat, 12 kilogram box!).

3. You may have come across this guy in a viral email, but if not, check out his amazing footpath chalk drawings, like this one, at his official site. Those guys at Southgate should take note.

4. This video compiles a stack of famous album covers into a gloriously violent animation (also contains occasional nudity).

5. This week's time wasting game is called Line Rider. Draw a line and then send a little toboggan rider along it. Then watch this video to see how far you can push it.

Thanks to Penny, Tony, Noel, Hannah and Vincent for contributing this week.

Seen something funny on the web? Share it with Last Laugh

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• by Craig Platt at 12:05 AM
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Last Laugh: Must have GSOH

You're never too old to find love. Or, at least, you're never too old to try and find love. Gong Duruo, a 105-year-old Chinese bloke has advertised on his blog for a new wife. The China Daily reports that Gong, double-PhD holder, wrote he "cannot live without love any more, and I want someone to spend the rest of my life with". (Anyone out there have a couple of months free?)

• by Craig Platt at 12:48 AM
• Comments (7)

Last Laugh: Holy roller!

Roller skating hasn't been cool since Xanadu was playing in cinemas, but this must be the coolest roller skating stunt ever. Little Muskaan, a five-year-old girl in India, roller skated under 40 cars last Thursday. Yes, that's right, under.

• by Craig Platt at 10:08 AM
• Comments (2)

Last Laugh: How much water in a cow?

As Victoria's Year 12 students prepare for their final exams and desperately try and achieve the marks they need for the university course of their choice, they can be thankful that they don't live in the United Kingdom.

Why? Because good marks just aren't enough over there, not if you want to get into one of the two top universities - Oxford or Cambridge. No, if you want entrance into Oxbridge (as they call it), you need to go through an interview process which includes questions the BBC kindly refers to as "eccentric".

• by Craig Platt at 12:15 AM
• Comments (7)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's that time of week again - time to drink comedy wine from the internet's cask, swish it around your mouth and then spit it out again.

1. The Indian Film Festival is on now, which means plenty of Bollywood action. If you want to get a handle on what it's all about, try watching this video of Michael Jackson's Thriller, done Bollywood-style.

2. This week's cute animal link again features cats. They're everywhere!

3. And now to an animal link that's not so cute. It's two dogs, doing what dogs do. It's wrong, kind of disgusting, but very funny.

4. Another time wasting game for you. This time it's actually a bit of viral marketing from Peugeot, though I'm not sure whether they are trying to say their car is easy to park, or really difficult to.

5. Last but not least, I feel I must draw your attention to this article about Mr T's new Dr Phil-style talk show (as reported on Last Laugh a few months back). Worth reading for quotes like this: "My show ain't no Dr Phil, where people sit around crying, 'What's wrong with me, Dr Phil? What's wrong with me, Dr Phil? You are a fool! That's what's wrong with you." I hope he's not trying to help anyone with self-esteem issues.

Thanks to Jeremy, Shaz, Jenny and Marcus for contributing to this week's edition.

Seen something funny on the web? Share it with Last Laugh

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• by Craig Platt at 9:59 AM
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Last Laugh: North Korea's "roneriness"

Something very odd is happening in Australian news and current affairs. Yesterday, the story of North Korea's nuclear test was all over the news. Fair enough, it's a big story and probably the biggest event in world affairs since the US invaded Iraq. But here's where it gets weird - at least three serious news programs opted to throw the marionette version of Kim Jong-il from Team America into their coverage of the story.

• by Craig Platt at 2:58 PM
• Comments (32)

Last Laugh: Little big star

Forget about comedian Judson Laipply and his "Evolution of Dance", the hottest dancer on the internet right now is Indian midget actor Thavakalai*, AKA Little Superstar.

Thavakalai's dance sequence from an old Indian film has become a massive hit on You Tube, with two million views and counting.

• by Craig Platt at 12:58 AM
• Comments (12)

Last Laugh@the Fringe: Self-help and bathing

On Saturday night I headed out to catch a couple more Fringe shows at the North Melbourne Town Hall. First up was I Can't Help Myself, a satire of American self-help seminars by Dave Bushell, followed by improv comedy with No One Lived Happily Ever After, then over to Bev's Bar for a night cap and a radio play.

In some ways, this I Can't Help Myself is a bit old-hat. After all, from an Australian perspective, America's self-help gurus seem like parody to begin. On top of this, doing comedy shows about self help is soooo 2004 (quite a few shows took this theme during that year's Comedy Festival).

• by Craig Platt at 11:41 AM
• Comments (2)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

Fringe Festival coverage is on hold today as I step into the vast library that is the internet, stroll by its bookshelves and occasional pull down a humorous volume that catches my eye - then I toss it across the room to you to open and enjoy.

Vol. 1. Dogs will eat just about anything. And after they swallowed down the long-dead remains of an animal while you were taking them for a walk, they love nothing more than to wash it down with a drink of water from the toilet bowl. Then they like to finish it off by licking your hands and/or face. But thanks to this invention, you can make their mouths a little less disgusting.

Vol. 2. According to reviewer Philippa Hawker, Garfield 2 sucks. So rather than go and see it, watch this video of a real life Garfield and Odie. I doubt Garfield would have given up that easily.

Vol. 3. Sci-fi author Simon Haynes has sent in this puzzle. Using the information provided, see if you can guess the number of balls. I did (sort of).

Vol. 4. This week's pointless, weird site will be enjoyed by fans of leeks, anime and songs in French*. Could this be the new Schnappy?

Vol. 5. This week's major time killer is this cool, kind of disgusting game called Sling. Skip the tutorial - you'll get the hang** of it in no time. (Lots of sounds, so keep the volume down if you're playing at work).

Thanks to Simon, Jenny and Vincent for contributing to this week's edition.

Update: In other funny stuff today, the annual IgNobel prizes have been announced. The awards, a humorous take on the Nobels, honour scientists and researchers who boldly go where no one has gone before - and often wouldn't want to.

This year's winners include two researchers who investigated why woodpeckers don't get headaches, while another study found out why fingernails on a blackboard is so irritating. For my money, this year's best is the group of winners from University of Tennessee College of Medicine and the Bnai Zion Medical Center in Haifa, Israel, who discovered that hiccups can be cured with a finger up the rectum. Ahem. Isn't this just a variation on the old theory that a fright cures hiccups? I mean, if you weren't expecting that finger ...

Read the story here or check out the official site.

*Is that French? Is it even a language?

** Pun alert

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• by Craig Platt at 12:02 AM
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Last Laugh@the Fringe: Parmas and aliens

Having taken in the two biggest comedy shows at the festival, Carl Barron and Stephen K Amos, it was time to start hitting some smaller shows last night.

I recall seeing Tommy Dassalo come runner-up at the Raw Comedy final a couple of years ago and vaguely remember thinking: "He was robbed". Dassalo's first solo show (Tuesday to Sunday, North Melbourne Town Hall, until October 14) focuses on that staple food of pub goers - the chicken parmagiana. Reading the blurb in the festival guide, I wondered how this simple meal could sustain an hour of stand-up. Oddly enough, Dassalo manages it (though it does take about 15 minutes for him to actually get on to the topic).

• by Craig Platt at 10:42 AM
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Last Laugh@the Fringe: Second chance for Amos

Stephen K Amos was the breakout hit of the Comedy Festival this year. To keep up with demand, he added a heap of extra shows - and still there were plenty of people who couldn't get a ticket.

At his performance last night, Amos said he decided to do the Fringe because a lot of people had missed out on his show during the festival. It was a good decision. His quick survey of the near-capacity crowd at the Lithuanian Club showed that just a handful of audience members had caught his show earlier in the year.

• by Craig Platt at 10:46 AM
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Last Laugh@The Fringe: Barron is king

Carl Barron's style of comedy isn't fashionable any more. His simple, straightforward style doesn't have the dangerous edge of some stand-ups. And, as well all know, observational humour died when Seinfeld left our TV screens.

Or did it? Barron's unique perspective on everyday life means the funny-faced comedian manages to turn the simplest topics into comedic gold. There's no nastiness to his humour and, importantly, there's no easy targets. Barron isn't interested in talking about pop culture or politics. Instead, he looks at the big picture in minute detail.

• by Craig Platt at 9:03 AM
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Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's that time of the week again. Time to pretend your working when you're really just waiting for the weekend to start so you can get ready for footy, friends, food and grog. So I've baited a fishing hook, tossed a line out into the web's deep and dirty river and pulled in the following humorous fish and left them flapping around on the blog for your enjoyment.

1. Ever been a bridesmaid? I haven't, though I have been a groomsman and, looking at this site, it makes me appreciate the simplicity of wearing a nice suit to a wedding. If you've got a bad dress to contribute, Ugly Dress will send you a prize.

2. Last weekend, two of the actors from Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey were in town for a special screening of the film. One of them was Keir Dullea, who played astronaut Dave. I'm hoping someone got up and said "Hello Dave!" in the same way it's said in this mash-up video (fans of The League of Gentlemen will get the most out of this).

3. This is just an amusing advertisement, but it's for a good cause, so I feel justified in inviting you to watch it.

4. A few weeks back I linked to a video of a guy who's been taking a photo of himself every day for six years and compiled it into a six minute video. Well, here's someone who has made an even better one. It's longer and faster, if that makes sense.

5. This week's major time-killing site is Eyez Maze. It's a collection of flash games a guy has created just for fun. It can be slightly difficult to work out exactly what you're supposed to do in some of them, but that's part of their charm. Perhaps try this one first. Scroll down and see how high you can make the tree grow before it topples over.

Thanks to Jac, Amanda, Jenny, Lewis and Nicola for contributing to this week's edition.

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• by Craig Platt at 8:37 AM
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Last Laugh: Bunny funnies

Every so often a site comes along that's so fantastic it makes you thankful that Bill Gates invented the Internet*. So it is with the work of Angry Alien Productions. Animator Jennifer Shiman recreates classic movies with cute bunnies as the stars, and she manages to tell the whole story in just 30 seconds.

So you can relive the fun of films like Alien, Pulp Fiction, Star Wars, Scream, Titanic, A Christmas Story (one of my faves) and plenty more.

It's a brilliantly simple idea, well executed. And because it's flash animation and only 30 seconds long, it doesn't take long to load. Shiman has been doing these cartoons for a couple of years and now has the sponsorship of US pay TV network Starz.

I've haven't seen Freddy vs. Jason, I have no intention of seeing Freddy vs. Jason, and now, thanks to this site, I'll never need to see Freddy vs. Jason. Actually, the same applies to Titanic. From what I hear, the two films are very similar.**

Thanks to Tony for bringing this excellent site to my attention.

*actually a joke, there's no need to post comments decrying my ignorance.

**see above.

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• by Craig Platt at 10:46 AM
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Last Laugh@the Fringe: Comedy highlights

The Fringe Festival kicks off tonight and this year there's a large contingent of comedy shows playing as part of the event. Somewhat surprisingly, some of the biggest names from the Comedy Festival are back to perform at the Fringe. Get a sample of the comedy of Carl Barron, Arj Barker and Stephen K Amos in this video.

Over the coming weeks, Last Laugh will be checking out the shows of the veterans as well as some newcomers to see how they stack up.

• by Craig Platt at 2:30 AM
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Last Laugh: Yawns across the water

The guys from Mythbusters, the hit science show seen here on SBS, are revisiting their "Is yawning contagious?" myth. In that experiment, they found that yawning was indeed contagious.

• by Craig Platt at 11:15 AM
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Last Laugh: Weird Al gets his groove back

Few novelty acts have lasted as long as Weird Al Yankovic. In fact, I can think of only two others - TISM and Madonna.

I still remember watching Weird Al dressed in a fat suit, dancing badly in the video for his parody of Michael Jackson's Bad - Fat. That was way back in the late '80s and 20 years later, Weird Al's still doing his thing.

• by Craig Platt at 11:13 AM
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Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's that time of the week again. Time to walk along the web's sandy shore and pick up the nicest looking shiny comedy shells - then chuck them in a plastic bucket and take them home.

1. The Scissor Sisters have a new album out and their record company has gotten cunning with promotion. Visit this site to put yourself into a Scissor Sisters video. Of course, you don't have to put yourself in - I opted to put in two of this year's nominees for World Stupidity Awards. Watch them here.

2. They don't make ads like they used to. Watching this old TV ad for the Atari 2600 game Pole Position certainly made me want to go out and buy one, wood panel finish and all. It's a bit like an old Twisted Sister music video. Be warned though, this video might leave "skid marks on your soul!".

3. Now let's go back even further, to the '70s. You may have seen this before, but if not, you will enjoy this news story about the residents of an American seaside town attempting to get rid of the carcass of an enormous beached whale.

4. Here's an huge Legoland-type of illustration that will certainly help you kill time today. Vincent, who sent in the link, suggests you try and find the following in the scene:

- a cliche love scene

- someone about to be eaten

- someone taking a nap at work

- young vandals

- a guy peeping on a girl getting changed

So far, I've found none of them.

5. It wouldn't be End-of-the-week funnies without a cute animal item, would it? This week, humiliate your guinea pig by dressing it up in one of these costumes.

Thanks to Liza, Marcus, Matt, Vincent and Georgia for contributing to this week's edition.

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• by Craig Platt at 10:38 AM
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Last Laugh: Who you callin' stupid?

With all the awards shows out there (the Daytime Emmys? What the hell is that?) it's about time someone cooked up a series of awards for stupidity. Well, at last, someone has. Actually, someone did four years ago. But the point is that the results for the 2006 World Stupidity Awards are out.

• by Craig Platt at 10:15 AM
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Last Laugh: Kylie is George Michael

Amazing what people can discover when they're mucking about with audio software. One such person has found that if you raise Muse singer Matt Bellamy's pitch just a little, he sounds exactly like Gwen Stefani (which, to my mind, also means Radiohead's Thom Yorke pitched up sounds exactly like Gwen Stefani too).

• by Craig Platt at 10:20 AM
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Last Laugh: NPR gets a sense of humour

America's National Public Radio network, regularly heard here on ABC Newsradio, isn't normally a source of great laughs. On the contrary, its programs tend to be serious discussions about serious world events.

However, even the staff at NPR program All Things Considered were bored out of their brains by NASA's live coverage of last week's seven-hour space walk taken by astronauts working on the International Space Station.

In a rather out-of-character move, the station decided to liven up the coverage a little, by treating it like a sports event.

This sports commentary approach could really liven up coverage of all kinds of boring events. Think of Rex Hunt commentating Question Time, or Bill Lawry doing the nightly stock report.

The possibilities are endless.

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• by Craig Platt at 11:56 AM
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Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's almost the weekend and that means it's time to dip a finger into the web's honey pot and taste the sweet comedy substance within. Let's begin.

1. "Dressing the ferret" might sound like a euphemism for onanism, but if you buy products from this website, you can feel comfortable using the phrase and meaning it literally.

2. Not one, but two cute animal items this week. This video is called "singing cat", but it seems to me the cat's trying to say something. God knows what.

3. Remember Where is Matt? It was a cool video of a guy dancing in exotic locations all over the world. This Australian guy has done something similar, but the locations are far less exotic.

4. In last week's End-of-the-week funnies, we mentioned a Filipino judge who had been sacked after admitting he reached his judgements with assistance from three imaginary "mystic dwarves". Well, the judge now has his own blog and - look out Philippine justice system! - the dwarves have ordered him to cleanse the judiciary and government of corruption.

5. Last but not least, here's a series of graphics that that will mess with your head, especially if it's been a long, hard week. (Powerpoint slideshow)

UPDATE: A follow-up to Tuesday's post: Kenyan followers of doom prophet Yisrayl Hawkins have decided to head into underground bunkers for a year - even though the world didn't end of September 12, as Hawkins predicted. I guess they don't want all that canned food to go to waste.

Thanks to PJ, Kath, Jay, Mike and Noel for sending in links this week.

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• by Craig Platt at 1:18 AM
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Last Laugh: Judging a book by its cover

A few weeks back, Last Laugh reported on American comedian Stephen Colbert's satirical attack on the Wikipedia, where he encouraged viewers to make stuff up and submit it to the online encyclopaedia.

In a similar vein, though less destructive, is the work of Amazon user John Swift. Swift writes lots of the reviews for books and submits them to Amazon. But he doesn't read any of them. (He occasionally reviews other things including the tank Badonkadonk).

The results, which you can find here, make for amusing reading.

• by Craig Platt at 10:41 AM
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Last Laugh: The end is nigh

It's September 12, 2006 and, according to self-styled prophet Yisrayl Hawkins, nuclear war is going to break out today and the world's going to end shortly after that - for most of us, at least.

That's right - it's doomsday people! Today!

According to Hawkins, it all kicks off with a nuclear war today, followed by the deaths of four fifths of the world's population over the next 13 months.

• by Craig Platt at 12:30 AM
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Last Laugh: Six years in six minutes

This video isn't actually funny, but it is pretty cool. A guy by the name of Noah Kalina has been taking a photo of himself every day for the past six years (that's 2356 photos, according to Kalina - which is a little more than six years). This video is the result.

• by Craig Platt at 10:42 AM
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Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

Another week draws to an end and it's time to countdown to the weekend with a countdown of funny stuff bouncing around the worldwide web. Starting with ...

1. Before you click on the upcoming link, make sure you don't have a problem with laughing at things that are a little cruel. It's in the vein of the endless footage of kids getting hurt on Australia's Funniest Home Videos. Certainly, this kid's parent or guardian seems to think the situation is hilarious. You have been warned. Watch it here.

2. Trash Talk reported this week on TomKat's baby Suri finally getting exposed. Seems that many readers thought the baby's hair was actually a wig. Well, as this website proves, it is definitely possible.

3. I'm not really a cat person, but I can still appreciate the cuteness of a kitten stuck in a tissue box, while two other kittens jump all over it.

4. Given the news coming out about the Bali 9 this week, Australians may be questioning the logic of the Indonesian judiciary. Hopefully, the judges aren't making their decisions the same way this Filipino judge was. What sort of dwarf names are Armand, Luis and Angel? At least there's one guy in the story who's Dopey.

5. Do you like the feel of a Brazilian, but wish you could maintain the look of an overgrown garden? Yes? Then these are the underpants for you.

Thanks to Liz for sending in a link.

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• by Craig Platt at 9:28 AM
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Last Laugh: A tank for all seasons

Here at Last Laugh, it's pretty common to draw your attention to weird things for sale on eBay. Today, however, it's serious retailer Amazon that's caught my attention.

The JL421 Badonkadonk Land Cruiser/Tank can be yours for just $19,999.95 (US), as long as you're prepared to wait a couple of months for its delivery. NAO Design, the company that manufactures it, seems to be serious about offering it for sale (their choice of the name Badonkadonk seems a little less serious).

• by Craig Platt at 11:45 AM
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Last Laugh: Learning English, Japanese-style

Nobody does weird like the Japanese. Sometimes it's deliberately weird - like those anime films that consists mainly of demons killing each other in bizarre ways. But what to make of Zuiiken English?

This program seems to be geared towards helping Japanese people learn to speak English, but its methods and scenarios are strange to say the least.

• by Craig Platt at 12:01 AM
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Last Laugh: Barbie's uncoolest accessory ever

Barbie, the ultra-thin, blonde, wealthy, wonderful role model for little girls everywhere, has got herself a new accessory -
a dog. That's not interesting in itself, but here's where it gets weird: the dog, Tanner, does plastic poo and comes with a Barbie-sized pooper scooper, so the blonde plastic fantastic can clean up after him. Apparently this works because the poo is magnetic (what has she been feeding him?).

Can anyone tell me why little girls out there would want to pretend to do something that's so unpleasant in real life?

• by Craig Platt at 12:50 PM
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Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's Friday and spring has sprung early: the sun is shining, it's warm outside and I bet you're wishing you were out in it, rather than sitting behind a desk looking at a computer. Me too.

Never mind, here's the weekly list of buzzing comedy flies caught in the worldwide web's sticky gossamer.

1. If this story had been received via email or reported in London's Sun, there's no way I would have believed it. In fact, it comes from reputable Chicago Sun-Times. When a security guard took a small, black item from Mardin Amin's luggage at O'Hare Airport, she didn't know it was Amin's penis pump. Amin, highly embarrassed (his mum was standing nearby), did what any of us would do in that situation: he told her it was a bomb. Oops. Now he's in trouble.

2. And now a story that does come from London's Sun (but they have photos to back it up, so it must be true). A bloke got a very long tattoo on his back, but it seems that tattoo artists should probably employ proofreaders.

3. A couple of years ago the State Government banned the sale of samurai swords. Watch this video from a home shopping network and you'll wonder why anyone would want to own one in the first place.

4. This is the angriest, scariest cat ever.

5. Do you like tofu, but only when it's at the right point between firm and mushy? Some nerds have gone to a lot of trouble to investigate tofu firmness. (PDF)

Thanks to Matthew for number five.

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• by Craig Platt at 9:59 AM
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Last Laugh: It's my party ...

Currently doing the rounds on the web is a 21st birthday party invitation from a young British Citigroup bank intern named Lucy Gao. The invite, which you can read in full here, is highly specific about what guests should wear, what times they should arrive and even the limited time period during which Gao will accept gifts.

Here's an example:

"ARRIVAL TIMES: [Please stick to these as best as you can, thank you]

9:00pm: Lucy, Sophie Sandner, Kajai, Mandeep, Preet, Sanami, Su, Lisa, Kate.

9:15pm: Phoebe, Sophie Seugnet, Theo, Dmitry, Ed, Nikolay, Paul, Nick, Harry.

9:30pm: Marco, Andrea, Jess, Ovi, Yuki, Olga, Kim, Marcelo, Ulyana,
Krystal, Dan.

9:45pm: Sunita, Alan, JingJing, Emma.

10:00pm: Anthony, Rachel, Roger, Uli, Yogi, Gharzi"

• by Craig Platt at 1:56 PM
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Last Laugh: Excuse me, Mr President, I need to sledge my family

Usually, there's no way this blog would link to a video of George Dubya giving a speech, but this one is actually worth watching. During CNN's coverage of the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the anchor, Kyra Phillips, forgets to switch her microphone off.

• by Craig Platt at 10:58 AM
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Last Laugh: Where there's a Wil

(Too lazy to read the article below? Listen to an audio version of the interview here.)

Wil Anderson isn't disappointed that no Australians received award nominations at this year's Edinburgh Fringe Festival - they didn't deserve to. Though he does believe after last year, when Australian Tim Minchin won best newcomer and Charlie Pickering was nominated, there has been a backlash against the antipodeans.

"There's been a sort of underlying backlash against the Aussies," he says. "But, that said, those five shows that were nominated for the Eddie (formerly the Perrier Award for best show of the festival) would definitely be in the top 10 shows of the festival. Of the shows I've seen, I don't think any of the Australian shows would be in the top 10 show of the festival."

• by Craig Platt at 12:22 AM
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Last Laugh: Mobile phone tossers

Forget about the weekend results from the footy, soccer, basketball world championships and all other sporting events. The real sports news out of the weekend is that Finland's Lassi Etelatalo has won the Mobile Phone Throwing World Championship. Reuters reports that the seventh annual contest, held in Savonlinna, Finland, attracted competitors from around the globe - though only 100 in total took part.

Etelatalo managed to throw his Nokia 89 metres, which is no small feat. The report doesn't say whether the phone was still working afterwards.

My feeling is that this event should be given a social context. For example, rather than throwing your own phone, you should throw other people's phones. Perhaps the event could be held in an open-air cinema, so that when someone rudely answers their phone in the middle of the film, you could grab it and piff the thing as far as possible.

Any other places you wish you could grab someone's mobile and throw it as far as you can? Post a comment and let us know.

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• by Craig Platt at 10:30 AM
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Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's that time of the week again. Time to pluck the internet's feathers and apply them to your funny bone. Here's what this week's plumage looks like:

1. This isn't really funny, it's just kind of cool. Beardy folk singer Obadiah Parker covers Outkast's Hey Ya in a totally different style. It works (except for, perhaps, the "shake it" part). Just goes to show that a good song is good no matter what style you do it in.

2. From the sublime to the ridiculous. In the tradition of Wing Sings, here's what can only be described as the world's worst cover band performing Europe's The Final Countdown. How they ended up on a stage that big I have no idea. Watch out for the kids at the very start who flee in terror.

3. Budget European airline Ryanair shows that, like the Chaser boys, they have a sense of humour about new airport security rules.

4. Get weirded out by listening to the audio on this site.

5. For the easily amused (audio required).

6. If you missed it on MashUp earlier in the week, the funny David Brent training video Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant did for Microsoft a few years ago has finally surfaced on the net. Parts one and two.

7. More silly things for sale on eBay. This is in mint condition - never used.

Thanks to Andrew, Matthew and Marcus for sending in links.

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• by Craig Platt at 9:34 AM
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Last Laugh: Jesus or not?

In the tradition of Amihotornot.com (remember that?) I'd like to throw this out to you today - is it Jesus or not?

Images of Jesus have been appearing all over the place over the past couple of years. Is it something to do with an impending Armageddon? Or is it due to the ever increasing popularity of selling crap on eBay?

And while Jesus' image is claimed to have appeared in places that might have some religious connection, most of the time the image seems to appear any old place. In the past (and as previously reported on Last Laugh), images of Jesus have appeared on a piece of burnt toast, a rock, a freeway underpass and in a frying pan.

• by Craig Platt at 12:09 PM
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Last Laugh: TV comedy blues

Say what you will about Channel Ten, at least it is making an effort when it comes to locally produced comedy. Earlier this year it had great success with Thank God You're Here (returning next month) and moderate success with The Wedge (though most Last Laugh readers agree that the latter isn't very good).

In the past two weeks Ten has added three more local comedy shows to the schedule. David Tench Tonight arrived last week, along with the second series of The Ronnie Johns Half Hour. Last night, Hamish and Andy returned to TV with Real Stories, a satirical take on commercial current affairs.

• by Craig Platt at 11:46 PM
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Last Laugh: Regarding William

America's pay TV channel Comedy Central this week pays tribute to William Shatner - best known as the star of '80s cop show T J Hooker and a couple of other obscure TV shows.

Even though it has yet to go to air, there are plenty of videos of the event up on You Tube. You can also test your Shatner knowledge with the Shatnerd Trivia Game.

Like the much ridiculed David Hasslehoff, Shatner is, these days, in on the joke. There's a sense of the ridiculous that he embraces and even celebrates on musical experiments like this or this.

• by Craig Platt at 11:16 PM
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Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's freaky Friday, a time to forget about what a long, hard slog the week has been and look forward to a relaxing weekend. To put you in the mood, here's another collection of humorous golden specks taken from the web's river bed.

1. A pair of mountains in China resemble breasts. What does one say about a news story like this? I've always wondered about the quality of Ananova's reporting, and now I know why - its news team clearly consists of 13-year-old boys. Coming up next: a American monument that looks kind of like a penis and a report on US swimmer Misty Hyman (snicker).

(On a related note: remember Shakira's (pictured) hit Whenever, Wherever featured the lyric "lucky that my breasts are small and humble/so you don't confuse them with mountains"? Maybe these were the mountains she was talking about.)

2. Did you know it was possible to go bear hunting in Australia? No? Well take a look at this video and you'll learn something. It should either make you laugh or inspire you to write to your local MP asking for gun laws to be made tougher again. Or both.

3. In the tradition of Mr Picasso Head comes this Jackson Pollock site. Turn your computer screen into a multi-million-dollar masterpiece. This was recently named as one of the top 50 coolest sites on the web by Time magazine. I name it one of the top four sites featured on Last Laugh today.

4. This audio clip from Irish radio station 98fm has being doing the rounds on the net. It features eight-year-old prank caller Becky asking a demolition firm to destroy her school. I generally don't find pranks that funny (unless, like The Chaser, their victims are politicians), but this one's great. Mainly because the victims aren't being humiliated - they think it's hilarious. The accents are great too. 98fm has found a real star here - you can listen to a bunch of Becky's other phone calls at her official site.

Thanks to "hvclc" and Tania for sending in links.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 10:07 AM
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Last Laugh: Great expectations

Last night, the ABC finally aired Ricky Gervais' long-awaited follow-up to The Office, Extras. Expectations were high - especially for anyone who read Jim Schembri's review ("To say Extras exceeds the comic and dramatic expectations set by The Office is an understatement worthy of imprisonment.").

The opening episode featured Ben Stiller playing a grotesque, egotistical version of himself directing a serious war drama. His character did feel a little bit over the top for the style of the show.

Gervais' character, Andy Millman, certainly had some similarities with David Brent, but I did like his quips (particularly his "you tell me, you were in it" put-down to Stiller). Making genuine funny jokes was something Brent could never achieve, no matter how hard he tried.

So, did it live up to the hype? Is it as good as The Office? Can you accept Gervais as Andy Millman or will he always be David Brent to you?

• by Craig Platt at 11:10 PM
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Last Laugh: Hope springs

The makers of hit vlog Ask A Ninja are delving into the teen Goth scene with the help of Crista Flanagan of sketch show Mad TV (occasionally seen on Australian TV in a graveyard shift).

• by Craig Platt at 10:44 AM
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Last Laugh: The history of Melbourne

Ever wonder how Melbourne became the wonderful city it is today? Why it deserves to have an exclamation point shoved into its tourism logo? (I suspect the marketing person actually had M3!60urn3 as their internet banking password and just changed a few characters).

• by Craig Platt at 11:19 AM
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Last Laugh: Dear diary...

While China is banning foreign TV shows from its screens, North Korea is rejoicing in the success of its home-grown films. The undisputed king of the North Korean box office so far this year is a film called Diary of a Student Girl, Reuters reports.

Now, readers of The Age online's most popular stories might think this means audiences are in for a racy, American Pie-style romp. Think again. The report says that " North Korea's student girl works with her younger sister in pursuit of scientific endeavors. Through their work they overcome hardships, better understand their parents and are instilled with pride in the nation and its military-first policy."

This sounds like the dullest student diary in the history of student diaries. I don't recall much writing about the government's military policy in my student diary. In fact, I think my diary would make a better movie than this. Would yours?

The film has apparently been made under the guidance of Kim Jong-il himself - which means this must be his most successful foray into the movies since this one.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 11:48 AM
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Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

Once again it's time to run down the clock with a dose of funny, fun and just plain weird stuff from around that great mass of madness, the worldwide web.

1. If you're reading this at work, there's a good chance you're a little bored at the office. However, I doubt you are as bored (or have as much time to spare) as the guys who created this. Is it the greatest office prank ever?

2. Have we all moved on from Mel Gibson's ranting? No? Well then, here's a video that claims to be the original cut of the trailer for Mel's Braveheart. Those with no sense of humour are likely to be upset by it. (Caution: lots of bad language is used, just like when Mel gets arrested)

3. In the tradition of the Zidane headbutt game comes the George Dubya Bush Backrub Game. Keep the world's leaders happy by giving them a nice shoulder massage.

4. This website isn't funny in itself - it's the site of Sydney plastic surgeon David Pennington. From all reports Pennington is a good guy, but you have to question his taste in music. Visit the site with speakers turned on to see what I mean. (Note: audio doesn't seem to work in Firefox)

5. And if you're planning on having a few drinks after work, this classic police video will help remind you of the perils of drink driving. Even after you're arrested, you might hurt your head.

Thanks to Mike, Peter and Alexandra for the links.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 9:59 AM
• Comments (4)

Last Laugh: It's a beat-up

If you've ever been given shoddy service at a restaurant, bar or shop, you may appreciate the latest news from China. Reuters reports that the Rising Sun Anger Release Bar in Nanjing allows customers to trash the place and beat up the staff.

Apparently the bar employs 20 "specially trained" young men who will happily take a beating from anyone who fronts up and pays the fee of between 50 and 300 yuan (between $8.23 and $49.35 Australian). They'll even dress up as your boss!

Is this a good idea? Would you like to finish off the day with a drink and a few punches to the head of some poor slob who gets beaten for a living? It seems a bit, well, unhealthy to me. On the other hand, if the anger is worked out during the evening, it might prevent drunks from getting into serious fights out on the street at the end of the night. At the very least it could be a place Russell Crowe could hang out.

What do you think?

• by Craig Platt at 7:41 PM
• Comments (10)

Last Laugh: Bigger and beefier

Remember 2004? Jet was the biggest band in the nation, Princess Mary won our hearts and a film by the name of Super Size Me was released.

In it, filmmaker Morgan Spurlock became very unhealthy when he ate only McDonald's for a month. The film helped spur McDonald's into adding healthier options to its menus and focused both the US and Australia on our expanding obesity problems.

Well, the Yanks seem to have forgotten about all of that.

• by Craig Platt at 8:21 AM
• Comments (66)

Last Laugh: Whacking Wikipedia

The Wikipedia, that huge, wonderful net-based encyclopaedia that anyone can contribute to, has a bit of a problem.

Yes, it's very useful and has been lauded for being more up-to-date than Britannica. On the other hand, letting anybody contribute means that the countless idiots who roam the internet looking to cause trouble can have a field day.

• by Craig Platt at 11:14 AM
• Comments (69)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

Another dose of funny links to keep you occupied as you count down to the weekend. Starting with...

1. Shakira's Hips Don't Lie is currently sitting at number one on the Australian charts. I'm not sure whether it's the song or the video that is giving it such appeal. However, you may never look at Shakira the same way again once you watch this "re-imagining" of the clip. As Homer Simpson once exclaimed: look at that blubber fly!

2. Here is a must-watch. It's a promotional video for America's Appalachian State University. Apparently it was made a couple of years ago and the university are now attempting to stop it being distributed on the net. So watch it now, while it's still hot, hot, hot!

3. Can a week go by without some new Star Wars-related parody hitting the net? The answer is no. Here's a mash-up of Star Wars and Monty Python.

There's also new episode of Chad Vader online. And last but not least, here's another Vader video that's just plain stupid, but I couldn't stop laughing.

4. Can't watch web videos at work? Try looking at pictures instead. Here's a collection of Calvin and Hobbes comic strips with commentary from a dedicated fan.

Thanks to Jai, Michael and Ben for the links.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it (even if it doesn't feature Darth Vader).

• by Craig Platt at 9:44 AM
• Comments (3)

Last Laugh: Giving a spray to sport

Satirical sports site The Bladder clocked up 300 editions this week. If you're not familiar with it, it's like an Australian version of The Onion. "Oh, like The Chaser?" you ask. Yes, except it focuses solely on sport and the AFL in particular.

• by Craig Platt at 9:56 AM
• Comments (2)

Last Laugh: Child protection

Last week I wrote about Russian politicians being fined for using the word "dollar". Now Malaysia is also getting into the language wars by issuing a list of names that are unacceptable for children.

According to AFP, Malaysia's National Registration Department has drawn up a list that covers offensive names for the countries three main cultures - Malay, Chinese and Indian. These include names list Zani (male adulterer in Malay) or Woti (sexual intercourse. The Chinese name Chow Tow is also banned - it means "smelly head".

Fair enough, you might say. But the NRD's guidelines actually state that children cannot be named after colours, animals, insects, fruits or vegetables.

Yes, this means that no Hollywood star couples will ever be able to have children in Malaysia. And neither will I - nothing will upset my plans to name my first-born Cabbage Platt.

Any names you wish were banned here in Australia?

• by Craig Platt at 10:26 AM
• Comments (78)

Last Laugh: Hip to be cubed

Picasso is in town. Which is to say, an exhibition of the artist's work is in town. The National Gallery of Victoria's exhibition is the largest collection of Picasso's work yet seen in Australia.

But you don't need to visit the gallery in order to enjoy great cubist art - you can create your own on the web. Just visit Mr Picasso Head and you too can create masterpieces like the one I did above.

The site keeps your works to display in a virtual gallery. Mr Picasso Head makes sense. After all, stick a few pieces in the wrong places and Mr Potato Head can become a Picasso-esque work of art too.

Thanks to Danny for sending in the link. Danny also sent in his own take on where Picasso's inspiration came from.

And for those readers with a broader interest in art, here's a video about an artist with an unusual technique. His name gives a hint - it's Pricasso.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 10:50 AM
• Comments (2)

Last Laugh: Rapt in plastic

Fan fiction is nothing new - the internet features thousands of stories set in the worlds of Star Wars, Star Trek, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Buffy and other fictional worlds. Hardcore fans love to imagine new stories featuring their favourite characters (occasionally straying into Mills and Boon territory).

What to make of this site, though? It's a fan fiction site dedicated to stories about Roy Orbison being wrapped in cling wrap. Yes, you read correctly.

• by Craig Platt at 11:03 AM
• Comments (4)

Last Laugh: End-of-the-week funnies

It's the end of the working week, which means we're all looking forward to the weekend and nobody is concentrating on our jobs. Right?

With that in mind, here are few things to keep you distracted for the day:

1. Are we sick of Brokeback Mountain parodies yet? No? Then check out this locally-produced video. As simple as the puppets are, they've somehow gotten John Howard's eyebrows just right.

2. A popular site doing the rounds is Cats That Look Like Hitler. It's popular because, as everyone knows, cats are evil. Dogs, on the other hand, are cute and likeable, especially when you dress them like this.

3. Here's a blog dedicated to the world's weirdest public statues. Some are strange, some are funny, some are rather rude. And, yes, a selection of Melbourne's CBD works make the list.

4. This blogger doesn't find golf funny. He or she is also very upset that so many newspaper comic strip writers think golf is hilarious. The site is dedicated to collecting golf-related comic strips and pointing out why they're not funny. It's kind of funny.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 10:16 AM
• Comments (0)

Last Laugh: Hands-on television

Yesterday Last Laugh reported on the sad case of kids' TV host Melanie Martinez, who was sacked by American network PBS because of a satirical sex education video she acted in seven years ago. Most readers seemed to agree this was an over-reaction by puritanical management.

Today, we go from one extreme to the other. Britain's Channel Four is planning to broadcast a documentary about a mass masturbation for charity, the Guardian reports. The progam has the working title Wank-a-thon.

That's a (turkey) slap in the face to anyone who wants the excesses of TV curbed.

Such has been the hype surrounding Channel Four's announcement, the station has decided to go further with a "Wank Week". Only one other
show has been announced so far - a doco about compulsive wankers (so many names spring to mind). They're currently searching for a second participant in the documentary. The first is a 20-a-day man. (What could this man possibly do for a living? Besides work in commercial radio?)

You are unlikely to see this program being picked up by PBS.

Channel 10, over to you...

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 9:54 AM
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Last Laugh: Technically, you're fired

Working in the media is a dangerous game - it's one of the few industries where your body of work can be consumed, disseminated and, crucially, preserved by your audience.

Work you did years ago could come back to haunt you, and that's exactly what's happened to TV host Melanie Martinez. Until this week, Martinez was the host of American TV network PBS Kid Sprout's The Good Night Show. The show is aimed at getting tots off to sleep with soothing stories and cartoons. Kind of like a laid-back version of Play School, I guess.

But, the Associated Press reports, Martinez got fired this week after the network discovered that, seven years ago, she featured in some satirical public service messages known as Technical Virgin.

• by Craig Platt at 12:40 AM
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Last Laugh: Dollar falls in Russia

Are you sick of the Americanisation of English? (Or should that be Americanization?) The Russians are. Reuters reports that the Russian parliament is introducing a bill that will fine government ministers if they use the word "dollar" when they could have used "rouble". Apparently the rouble has become unpopular in recent years and Russians have embraced dollar as their term of choice.

This is something I'd like to see introduced here in Australia, and not just for parliamentarians (Mark Latham would have copped it for his infamous "skanky ho" comment). There should be language inspectors out on the streets giving out fines for anyone who uses the phrases such as "I was like", "my bad", "'sup", "little help" and, to my mind the worst of the lot, "so not".

Any other expressions you'd like to see people fined for using? Post a comment and let us know.

• by Craig Platt at 11:09 AM
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Last Laugh: Only the lonely

Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer are three young American guys who've managed to get themselves comedy careers through hard work and savvy use of the internet.

Plenty of You Tube users are spruiking their wares on the site, trying to get interest from TV networks (Last Laugh has reported on a couple of Australians doing this). Andy, Akiva and Jorma, who collectively call themselves the Lonely Island, are living the dream.

After developing a huge following online for their collection of comedy videos, the trio was offered a gig with legendary US TV comedy Saturday Night Live.

• by Craig Platt at 11:22 AM
• Comments (7)

Last Laugh: Darth gets a day job

Have you ever felt your boss was a megalomaniac? Or a power-hungry sadist who loves lording it over you? Well, just be thankful you don't work at this supermarket. Lord Vader is the worst boss since David Brent.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 10:40 AM
• Comments (3)

Groping the Chancellor

Not content with being recorded talking about the Middle East as 'shit' and proving that the pollies are as weird as the rest of us ('Yo Blair'???), George Bush has decided to push the boat out even further by massaging the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel.

• at 12:27 PM
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Last Laugh: Comedy gets spaced out

Reuters reports today that My Space, the networking site so popular with teenagers these days, has moved into the world of comedy. Already successful at helping unknown bands find an audience, My Space is now making room for comedians to promote themselves on the site.

Comedian profiles include gig dates, blogs and video clips, letting you get a feel for the comedian's work before you fork out your hard-earned.

It looks like Aussie comedians are already embracing My Space too, with the likes of Carl Barron, Tom Gleeson, Rodney Rude and Eddie Perfect among those who've got a space.

Is this the new frontier for comedians? Do you think we'll see Arctic Monkeys-style popularity explosions for unknown comedy acts?

• by Craig Platt at 7:12 PM
• Comments (2)

Last Laugh: The 'T' stands for talking

Mr T, star of '80s action TV show The A Team, is returning to TV. T is currently filming a Dr Phil-style talk show where he will dish out advice to audience members. The show's called I Pity The Fool, and T gave the Associated Press a taste of the sort of comments he's going to dish out. "You're a fool if you don't take my advice," he said.

• by Craig Platt at 2:15 PM
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Last Laugh: Paint it white

If you happen to be renovating your house, bear in mind this important rule: never, ever, leave your paint where your kids can get to it. Otherwise, you could end up with a situation like this.

Note the self-satisfied grin.

UPDATE: Seems the original link broke some time during the day, but I've uploaded it to the blog. Apologies if you've had trouble viewing it.

Thanks to Simon for the link.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 10:40 AM
• Comments (4)

Last Laugh: Get up your goat

Two simple things can inspire someone to create a bizarre and very funny website. These things are:

1. A goat

2. A pole

Put them together and what have you got? Goatonapole.com. The website has developed a whole philosophy (which is veeeeeery long) and iconography around the magic of a goat on a pole being perfectly balanced.

The goat on the pole is "an eternal thread of unfathomable cosmic significance, a point of reference in which all opposites dissolve into a unity of infinite breadth, a universal truth underlying the very fabric of existence".

If ever you wondered about the veracity of the phrase "as sure-footed as a mountain goat", wonder no more.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 12:05 PM
• Comments (2)

Last Laugh: Hassle-free holidays

Want to take a trip to an exotic location but don't have the money to get there? Can't be bothered with the hassles of vaccinations, visas and customs dramas? Hate long-haul flying or foreign food? But still have an insatiable desire to lord things over your friends and colleagues?

Fear not, Russian travel agency Persey Tours has the answer. For just $500 you can have the holiday of your dreams - sort of.

Persey Tours offers a fake holiday service. According to a Los Angeles Times report, the travel agent will provide clients with everything they need to pretend they've been on holiday. Ticket stubs, hotel receipts, even fake Photoshopped holiday snaps can be provided. It's just like the premise of Total Recall, except for the memory-implant thing.

I've always wanted to pretend to have a holiday in Antarctica. How about you?

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 12:15 PM
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Last Laugh: Lowering the Boom

You may have read this week that hugely successful videoblog Rocketboom has lost it's perky, ultra-cute host Amanda Congdon. Fear not! As promised, Rocketboom has found another cute and perky host to take over as anchor of the show.

• by Craig Platt at 11:15 AM
• Comments (0)

Last Laugh: Why go out for milk...

Forget the controversy about gay marriage, Russian President Vladimir Putin has more vexing issues to address. According to Russia's MosNews, a farmer emailed Putin during a webcast to ask for permission to marry a cow.

"All girls have left our small village and moved to the city, so I cannot find a woman to be with," the farmer's question apparently read. "But I see the solution to the problem. I love animals very much and want to ask you when it will be allowed in Russia, as it is in Holland, to marry domestic animals?"

Putin received more than 160,000 questions during the webcast, so it's believed he sidestepped this one. I think Age blogger Jack Marx, on the other hand, would say go for it.

I note that the farmer's question doesn't actually make reference to a cow, so he may not have been talking specifically about a bovine bride. Maybe the email went into more detail. Surely MosNews wouldn't have just, say, made the story up?

I'm not sure about the farmer's claim that inter-species marriage is A-OK in the Netherlands, either. But I will say that, although the US government is vehemently against gay marriage, people over there have been marrying animals since the mid-1990s.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 10:34 AM
• Comments (17)

Last Laugh: Global gaming

Here's one for the gamers* out there. A fan of Where the Hell is Matt? has come up with their own version of the globe-trotter dance adventure, using characters and locations from the game Guild Wars.

The may have better figures than Matt, but they don't have his dance moves.

Thanks to Marcus for the link.

*or nerds, call them what you will.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 1:27 PM
• Comments (1)

Last Laugh: World Cup betting smells fishy

Need further evidence that all the expert analysis in the world is useless when it comes to predicting the outcome of sporting events? The Guardian ran a competition during the World Cup to see who could win the most money betting on the event - the Guardian's readership or Der Kaiser, the office fish. Guess who won?

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 2:07 PM
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Last Laugh: Lawrence and Kim

An LA-based Aussie, Tim Schildberger, has been in touch to tell us about his net-based comedy TV programs.

Lawrence of America is a fish-out-of-water show featuring reports from LA by English documentary-maker Lawrence. It falls somewhere between Ali G/Borat and the work of Louis Theroux. Actually it's very similar to Theroux's work though more exaggerated.

• by Craig Platt at 11:55 AM
• Comments (2)

Last Laugh: Ricky meets Homer

Tune in to Ten tonight to catch the long-awaited Simpsons episode written by and starring Ricky Gervais. According to TV reviewer Larissa Dubecki, it's quite a disappointment. Judge for yourself at 7.30pm.

The Simpsons does seem to be struggling a bit lately, but to paraphrase a good line from an otherwise forgettable movie - The Simpsons is like pizza: even when it's bad, it's still pretty good.

UPDATE: Well it turns out that Ten held over this episode to show even more Big Brother. Apparently it will air next week. Unless there's some kind of urgent need to give the Carnival of Idiots* more airtime.

*Jim Schembri's apt description of the show.

• by Craig Platt at 10:47 AM
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Last Laugh: World Cup consolation

So the World Cup has come and gone, and Australia is left to rue it's loss again eventual champions, Italy.

Never mind, we can take some consolation in the fact that we've just take out the "World Cup of beer", run by Britain's Off Licence News. A sparkling ale from South Australia's Coopers beat out the competition from the other World Cup countries.

I wonder what Togo beer tastes like?

• by Craig Platt at 3:22 PM
• Comments (1)

Last Laugh: Onion peels back 10 years

One of the funniest publications on the web, The Onion, is this week celebrating 10 years online. If you haven't yet discovered this hilarious satirical newspaper, then what are you waiting for?

Since its inception, The Onion has produced many memorable fake headlines, such as "Drug use down among uncool kids" and "Posters of Naked Women Fail to Draw Real Naked Women to Dorm Room". The opinion pieces are also great ("Somebody Should Do Something About All the Problems" By Edith Heare).

• by Craig Platt at 1:46 PM
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Last Laugh: Simon Cowell's got talent

Simon Cowell has himself another hit. After Pop Idol/American Idol/Australian Idol and The X-Factor (successful in most places except Australia), Cowell has created yet another talent show that's knocking 'em dead in the states.

• by Craig Platt at 11:47 AM
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Last Laugh: Dive free zone

With Italy progessing to the World Cup final, it's worth reflecting (yet again), on the dodgy penalty that saw the Socceroos kicked out (pun intended) of the World Cup.

Fans across Melbourne were outraged, and one result has been these signs (pictured) popping up around town. They've been seen in Lygon Street, Flinders Street and Argyle Square.

Bitter? Who's bitter?

Thanks to Pete for sending them in.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 4:07 PM
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Last Laugh: From Little Britain to France

Little Britain star David Walliams (the tall, handsome one) has set himself quite the charity challenge - he's swimming the English channel. Yep, the man behind the "computer says no" woman and the world's least convincing transvestite is braving the chilly waters to raise money for charity Sport Relief. He'll be swimming a whopping 33.8 kilometres, covered in goose fat to keep warm.

It may be surprising to learn that Walliams has the swimming talent to attempt a crossing, but he's a might fit fellow. He recently completed an eight-hour qualifying swim in Croatia.

The official site for Walliams' swim has plenty of info about his training as well as a message from Little Britain co-star Matt Lucas.

Weather permitting, Walliams is going to set off today. Check the official site for updates.

UPDATE: Walliams has entered the water and is on his way to France. We wish him luck.

UPDATE 2: He made it! In a swim of 10.5 hours, Walliams has made it across the English channel, raising 432,000 pounds for charity in the process.

• by Craig Platt at 12:33 PM
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Last Laugh: Flanimal house

Ricky Gervais has signed a deal for his third TV show - his first outside the BBC. The Beeb reports that ITV will produce an animated series based on Gervais' children's books, Flanimals and More Flanimals.

The books feature weird, made-up creatures such as the Offledermis ("Born completely inside out. Lives inside itself to avoid its own smell.") and the Glonk ("Does absolutely nothing and dies").

Six half-hour episodes will be created featuring Gervais doing a David Attenborough-style voice over.

The Office, Extras (plus US and French versions of The Office), record breaking podcasts and now Flanimals the TV series. Does this man ever put a foot wrong?

• by Craig Platt at 11:25 AM
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Last Laugh: Dancing in the street and other places

This video is quite amazing. It's been up on You Tube for just over a week and has had over one million viewers so far. It features former Brisbane resident Matt Harding (now living in Seattle) on his second worldwide dancing adventure. This time a chewing gum company paid for the trip. Certainly looks like a fun way to fund a holiday.

Find out more about Matt here.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 11:38 AM
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Last Laugh: So long, farewell, auf weidersehen, goodbye

What's the best present you've ever received when leaving a job? Gold watch? Perfume? A card signed by everybody (even people who don't know you)?

But the gift for Manual Battista, an ad salesman for a magazine in Banstead, England, puts them all to shame. As a parting gift, his colleagues at Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Magazine (sounds like a riveting read) have recorded a fully orchestrated song: Hasta La Vista, Manuel Battista.

What's more, so many people are downloading it, the song is racing up the online music charts, according to the BBC.

Have a listen to the rather catchy tune here. Better than Crazy Frog, that's for sure.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 1:49 PM
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Last Laugh: Celebrity egos inflated

Before the internet and, specifically, You Tube, if you wanted to get a TV series going you had to submit to the rigours of pitching to a network and hoping the execs liked your idea. Or, at the very least, you had to slog away on Channel 31 hoping to one day make the leap a commercial station (see Rove, Bloke's World).

• by Craig Platt at 1:42 PM
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Last Laugh: Australia v Italy replay

You may well be sick of all the discussion regarding the controversial penalty awarded against Australia on Tuesday morning match with Italy, but here's one more contribution to the debate you should check out.

If you watch this replay closely, you can see what really happened. I'm not sure who is responsible for it, but I'm glad they managed to clear things up.

Click here to watch the replay.

Thanks to Yas for sending it in.

UPDATE: There's a rumour circulating that this footage is from Fabio Grosso's early career. I'm not so sure, but judge for yourself.

Thanks to Tassy.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 10:33 AM
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Last Laugh: Meaning of Life, just $5!

Yep, you can buy just about anything on eBay. People have sold friendship, dinner dates, dirt, pieces of burnt toast, naming rights for a baby and a soul (eBay stepped in and put a stop to those last two).

Now an American eBay seller is offering The True Meaning of Life (no, not the Monty Python film) for sale.

Scarlet00100 (whose page has a creepy animated character that looks like Storm from the X-Men) describes the item rather mysteriously: "Does life have meaning? Would you like to know what purpose you have in this world? Now you can stop wondering. Life and the living has purpose. One half of the proceeds go to charity. Please give your self the opportunity to know the answer. What the true meaning of life is."

• by Craig Platt at 9:34 AM
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Last Laugh: Perrier award no more

Tim Minchin will be the last Australian to ever take out the Edinburgh Festival's coveted Perrier Award. The reason? Perrier's sponsorship deal has ended after 25 years, so the award's name will be changing to the Eddie. No, it's nothing to do with THAT Eddie, as good as he is at arranging sponsorship deals. Instead it's Eddie for Edinburgh.

• by Craig Platt at 11:40 AM
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Last Laugh: Bon appetit

News from the wonderful world of competitive eating: Sonya Thomas, dubbed the "Black Widow" of eating competitions, has claimed another title, AP reports. Thomas, who weighs just 45 kilos, ate 60 ham biscuits to win an eating contest at the 16th Annual Virginia State Harley Davidson Owners Group Rally.

• by Craig Platt at 2:00 PM
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Last Laugh: Watch out England

While Australia celebrates the Socceroos advancing to the final 16, England should be getting nervous about facing Ecuador in the knock-out round. Ananova reports that Ecuador's witch doctor Tzamarenda Naychapi (he's also been referred to as "a priest who practises magic") has put a spell on the England team.

• by Craig Platt at 11:29 AM
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Last Laugh: Pay no attention...

More from the files of live TV stuff ups, this time from Russia's NTV. During the network's evening news bulletin, make-up artists rushed on to the set and started working on anchor Anton Khrekov. The artists, of course, didn't realise the hosts were still on air.

• by Craig Platt at 3:55 PM
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Last Laugh: Ninja secrets revealed

Here's some more You Tube action worth checking out. Ask A Ninja is a series of short comic videos created by a couple of American comedians. The show, if it can be called that, launched late last year and has become quite a hit.

• by Craig Platt at 4:36 PM
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Last Laugh: AO-Hell

How hard is it to cancel your ISP account? Sometimes, very hard indeed. Blogger Vincent Ferrari had some trouble trying to cancel his account with AOL. Showing a strange level of forethought, he decided to record the phone call. Have a listen here - it's both funny and frustrating. Ferrari uses the phrase "cancel the account" 18 times in under five minutes.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 11:43 AM
• Comments (0)

Last Laugh: Toilet tunes

The iPod phenomenon continues on its merry way and non-Apple companies will stop at nothing to get a piece of the action. Nike has designed iPod compatible running shoes, and now US firm Atech Flash Technology has created an iPod compatible toilet roll.

Yes, there's no need to worry about pesky pockets and headphones when you can simply slot your iPod into the roll and move to the music, so to speak. It's fine, I guess, provided you pay attention when you're reaching for the roll. You wouldn't want to wipe your iPod*, after all.

There's been stacks of compilations along the lines of "best driving songs", "best drinking songs" and "best party songs". Could we see a "best bathroom" compilation hitting the shelves at JB Hi-Fi soon? But what type of music is good for the smallest room in the house? Classical or rock? Delta or Gwen? Anything by Squeeze? Or Wet Wet Wet? Suggestions welcomed.

*pun warning

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 2:10 PM
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Last Laugh: Confucius reigns

The Chinese know how to take all the fun out of bloodline mysteries. In their own real-life version of The Da Vinci Code, they're tracking down the modern day descendents of the regularly misquoted philosopher Confucius.

There are no murders, albino monks, hidden messages in paintings or even police chases involved. Instead, Reuters reports, all you have to do is fork out 1000 yuan (A$169) for a DNA test. The Beijing Institute of Genomics, who conduct the test, has not revealed how they managed to source Confucius's DNA, but surely we can take their word for it?

If only Dan Brown had opted for this simple method in The Da Vinci Code - it could have saved so many people from his agonising prose and Tom Hanks's blandest performance ever.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 12:21 PM
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Last Laugh: The Office hits again

The original was a hit, the US version is a success (in the US, at least) and now the French version of Ricky Gervais's The Office has won plaudits from the critics.

This Guardian report has a round up of what the French TV reviewers are saying about Le Bureau, including naming it "the funniest series of the year". Guess it goes to show that no matter what the culture, everyone can relate to The Office's workplace humour.

• by Craig Platt at 10:49 AM
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Last Laugh: Melbourne's lift crisis - could be worse

Reports have been coming in from all over the city today from people who have had bad lift experiences. This follows the news that two rather scary incidents have occurred at the twin towers at the top of Collins St.

But it's not just a problem in Melbourne - according to a Reuters report, a German hospital patient was trapped in a lift for three days (!). And in an ironic twist, the trapped man was a former elevator technician. He pushed the alarm many times, to no avail.

Let's hope the Socceroos are sleeping on the ground floor in their German hotels.

Seen something funny on the web? Email Last Laugh and tell us about it.

(Yes, I'm aware the above story isn't funny in a ha-ha kind of way)

• by Craig Platt at 2:30 PM
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Last Laugh: Evil twins

Has your child ever wanted to carry around a miniature version of themselves? Yes? Then this site is for you.

Rather than customising the doll to match your child, wouldn't it just be easier to customise your child to match the doll? Don't worry, My Twinn has thought of that too - they also, conveniently, sell matching life-size outfits to go with the doll's clothes.

• by Craig Platt at 1:35 PM
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Last Laugh: Rebel knitters

What do you get when you mix grandma behaviour and American gangsta culture? Well, you might get that excruiciating rap scene in The Wedding Singer, or you might get this old Budweiser ad.

But the latest merging of these disparate cultures is Knitta - a gangsta crew who "tag" public monuments and objects, just like graffiti artists, except for one difference: they do it with knitting.

• by Craig Platt at 10:57 AM
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Last Laugh: World's funniest joke

The writer of the world's funniest joke has been identified - the late Spike Milligan. According to this story the former Goon created the joke that was voted the world's funniest by Laughlab, an online experiment from a few years ago. The joke goes like this:

• by Craig Platt at 2:41 PM
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Last Laugh: Sympathy for the cane toad

Cane toads may be a plague on our nation, spreading further south and west every year, but is it wrong to feel just a little sorry for them?

I mean, they're universally hated, they're the ugliest creatures on earth (with the possible exception of the naked mole-rat) and now they won't even be able to get a little lovin'.

• by Craig Platt at 1:38 PM
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Last Laugh: Nerds outdo Lucas

The internet has given rise to the following indisputable equation: Geeks + Spare Time + Film Editing Software = Endless Series of Star Wars/Star Trek/Lord Of The Rings/Buffy fan films.

• by Craig Platt at 12:27 PM
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Last Laugh: TV comedy news

All the news in TV comedy is coming from Ten at the moment. Tonight, Thank God You're Here wraps up its short run. Working Dog has promised a second series, but don't be surprised if it takes a year to turn up on screens again.

Meanwhile, Ten's late-night sketch show The Ronnie Johns Half-Hour will be returning for a second season (though the official website for the show claims not to know whether it will be back or not).

In other news, the second episode of the poorly received sketch show The Wedge aired last night. It did seem to improve a little, with a few genuine laughs. But already some characters' repetitive gags feel tired. Repetition can work (look at Little Britain), but only if the gag is very strong to start off with. Viewers haven't deserted the show, but the audience did drop by about 18 per cent. Will it last?

• by Craig Platt at 2:46 PM
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Last Laugh: The fourth fifth Beatle

News today that musician Billy Preston, who performed with the Beatles, has died after a long illness. The news report names Preston as a "fifth Beatle". Another fifth Beatle? Just how many fifth Beatles are there?

• by Craig Platt at 11:00 AM
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Last Laugh: Stickman v creator

This animation is a lot of fun, if rather nerdy. It's quite reminiscent of that old Looney Tunes cartoon featuring Daffy Duck being tormented by an animator. This time the animation fights back.

Watch it here.

Seen something funny on the web? Post a comment and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 12:05 PM
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Last Laugh: I want to believe

For many years, Jesus, God and the Virgin Mary have been seemingly making contact with folk here on earth via a number of odd methods. These include, but are not limited to, a piece of burnt toast, a rock, a freeway underpass and, at the Napier Hotel right here in Melbourne, in a frying pan.

Aliens, on the other hand, have chosen more direct methods of communicating, usually involving kidnapping rural folk and subjecting them to rather indelicate internal explorations.

• by Craig Platt at 1:25 PM
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Last Laugh: Pain anyone?

My attention was drawn to the latest catalogue from Jaycar electronics yesterday. Featured within is this "game". It might be called Electric Shock Reaction Game on the Jaycar website, but in the catalogue they make no bones about this device. It's called "The Pain Machine".

It's a test of reflexes for four players and the loser gets an electric shock. Unsurprisingly, Jaycar states the Pain Machine is "not recommended for children". If fact, I would suggest to Jaycar that if anyone comes in looking to buy a device called the Pain Machine for their children, they should call the police.

• by Craig Platt at 1:26 PM
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Last Laugh: Thin Wedge

Well it seems the overwhelming majority of Last Laugh comments about Ten's new comedy The Wedge were negative. A quick survey found 36 people thought it was terrible, six thought it was good and three gave it a mixed review.

It's interesting to read this piece on Tom Gleisner and Thank God You're Here from today's Green Guide, particularly this paragraph:

"What Australians can't stand, he says, is "being told when to laugh" by the kind of "stylised and overbearing laugh track" still heard on many American sitcoms."

Sounds like Gleisner is right on the money if reaction to The Wedge is anything to go by.

• by Craig Platt at 11:08 AM
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Last Laugh: Eng-a-land

I don't want to stray into Balls Up territory, but I would like to draw your attention to this unofficial World Cup anthem for England. Aside from the cute and funny video (German authorities will be hoping this is what England fans actually look like), I also love the way the backing vocalists turn England into a three-syllable word, Juan Antonio Samaranch style.

It's got a lot more chutzpah than England's official World Cup song by Embrace (who sound like a less edgy version of Coldplay - you read right, I said LESS edgy. It is possible.).

It's also more fun and less thrashy than our song for the Socceroos, as chosen by viewers of the SBS show.

Seen something funny on the web? Post a comment and tell us about it.

• by Craig Platt at 4:09 PM
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Last Laugh: Sockin' the suburbs

Channel Ten has taken a couple of risks with comedy lately. The first, commissioning a comedy series with a new, untested format, has paid off handsomely. But then again, with Working Dog at the helm, Thank God You're Here was a pretty safe bet.

Ten's second comedy show, The Wedge, debuted last night. Much has been made of the involvement of The Comedy Company's Ian McFadyen, but it's worth remembering that, apart from those Spring Valley ads, McFadyen's post-Comedy Company CV features forgettable sitcoms such as Newlyweds, Let the Blood Run Free and Bingles.

• by Craig Platt at 11:24 AM
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Last Laugh: Today today

Oh dear. Today's Jessica Rowe was caught off guard this morning when interviewing an Australian military commander in East Timor. When Rowe asked Brigadier Michael Slater if he felt safe, given he had armed soldiers standing behind him, Slater responded with: "Jessica I feel quite safe, yes, but not because I've got these armed soldiers behind me that were put there by your stage manager here to make it look good."

You can watch the clip here.

Of course, embarrassing moments are par for the course when it comes to morning television. Perhaps it's due to the lack of sleep.

• by Craig Platt at 1:57 PM
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Last Laugh: Would you trust this Sherpa?

With mountaineers either dying, almost dying, or disappearing in the Himalayas on a regular basis over the past week, one would think this is not the time for a Sherpa to engage in a crazy stunt.

Nevertheless, a Sherpa named Lakpa Tharke has decided to nude up at the summit of Mount Everest. The hiking group that employs Tharke is planning to file his "extraordinary feat" with the Guinness Book of World Records. Yep, he's the first person to do it.

• by Craig Platt at 12:26 PM
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Last Laugh: Doggie bag

Love handles? Why not put them on your dog? This doggy bag from German mob Intimsport will keep your dog warm while annoying the hell out of it whenever you lift its legs off the ground.

Honestly, what dog-lover, besides Paris Hilton, would torture their dog by carrying it around like this?

Based on the second promotional photo, it looks like the Doggie Bag is aimed at businessmen who enjoy jackets with pockets so large they can fit whole broadsheet newspapers in them.

I don't recommend Australia pet owners purchase one of these bags, since we're apparently in the throes of a pet obesity epidemic. Let the mutts walk!

Thanks to Gizmodo.

• by Craig Platt at 1:36 PM
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Last Laugh: Bruce Willis dumped

Sure, the Cannes Film Festival might look like it's all fun, frocks and frivolity, but it's not the case. No, sometimes the stars have to go to extreme lengths to promote their films and face the fury of mother nature. (Unless, of course, it's The Da Vinci Code, in which case no end of bad publicity or negative reviews can do it any harm).

Take a look at this clip of Bruce Willis promoting upcoming animated flick Over the Hedge. He gets a bit of a shock. Ooh-la-la indeed.

• by Craig Platt at 3:31 PM
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Last Laugh: Germans - efficient, disciplined... funny?

When I hear the words "German" and "comedy" one phrase springs immediately to mind: "Don't mention the war."

Thanks to John Cleese's goose-stepping turn as Basil Fawlty, it's difficult to think of anything else when it comes to making jokes about Germany. Over the years, with plenty of help from the British, the Germans have developed a reputation as a rather humourless bunch.

• by Craig Platt at 7:06 PM
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Last Laugh: Eurovision's sore loser

Hard rock monsters Lordi raised a few eyebrows and smiles by winning Eurovision 2006 for Finland, but there's one performer who was not amused.

Iceland's Silvia Night, who failed to make the final, was not impressed. Check out this video of her talking to the European press (Warning: lots and lots of bad language).

As amusing as the tantrum is, it's a little disappointing to find out that Ms Night isn't a real person, but rather an Ali G-style character created by actress Agusta Eva Erlendsdottir. I much prefer it when Icelandic popstars throw tantrums for real.

Turns out Night is a huge star in Iceland where she has a TV show.

My question is, when do we get to see Night's show here?

• by Craig Platt at 4:43 PM
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Last Laugh: Beeb blunder

You've probably read about the BBC News 24 program conducting an interview with the wrong guy this week. The full story is here.

But if you haven't actually seen the footage yet, you can watch the whole interview here. It's a must see.

Poor Guy Goma squirms uncomfortably in the first few seconds, before becoming increasingly confident as the interview goes on. Of course, it helped that the BBC journalist started by asking Goma if he was surprised. Was he surprised? You bet!

But Guy's 15 minutes aren't up just yet.

• by Craig Platt at 11:32 AM
• Comments (1)

Last Laugh: Last Laugh version 2.0

Last Laugh is back in a new form. While I'll continue to bring comedy news, reviews and issues, I'll also be digging up funny stuff on the web and in the news to (hopefully) give you some amusement each day.

So when you're suffering from the mid-afternoon malaise and breaking from work with a cuppa, drop by here and have a laugh.

And if you've discovered something hilarious on the web, tell us about it by posting a comment.

• by Craig Platt at 11:15 AM
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Last Laugh: The Barry is Demetri

New Yorker Demetri Martin took out the Barry Award for most outstanding show of the Comedy Festival last night.

Martin performed two shows this festival, Dr Earnest Parrot Presents and These Are Other Jokes, but Dr Earnest was the winner. Unfortunately, Martin was still doing his late show when the award was announced at the Town Hall. He slipped in a few minutes later, collected the award, posed for a few photographs and disappeared again.

• by Craig Platt at 1:08 PM
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Last Laugh: Is the Comedy Festival too big?

The festival is drawing to a close and there are reports today that this year Australia's largest cultural event is going to post a loss of about $100,000. This is being blamed on the Commonwealth Games, which forced festival organisers to spend more on marketing.

There were a record number of acts this year - more than 230 - but is this too many? Should the festival try to pull back and become a smaller, more affordable event?

• by Craig Platt at 11:45 AM
• Comments (27)

Last Laugh: Last-minute laughs

There are only a four nights of the festival left to go, so you can't possibly see all the great acts in the program. With that in mind, I've asked The Age reviewers to nominate one show each as a "must see" for these last few nights.

• by Craig Platt at 2:09 PM
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Last Laugh: To heckle or not to heckle?

The Comedy Festival isn't complete without its hecklers. If you've been to see a show on a Friday or Saturday night, especially a late one, chances are you've seen a drunk in the audience shouting at whoever's on stage.

• by Craig Platt at 1:52 PM
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Last Laugh: Small shows, big laughs

With just one week of the Comedy Festival to go, it's worth checking out some of the smaller names in the program, if only because the big names have sold out their seasons.

Here are a few shows worth considering.

• by Craig Platt at 1:43 PM
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Last Laugh: Noll v Anderson

Shannon Noll has finally gotten revenge on Wil Anderson. The host of the Glass House has been picking on poor old Shannon for a long time, but he went too far in this year's festival show.

Anderson's been doing gags about Noll's father - who Noll witnessed die in a farming accident. The gag was about Noll's father's name which, as it turns out, Anderson got wrong. Anderson was still doing this gag as recently as Sunday (while hosting the Raw Comedy final).

• by Craig Platt at 10:20 AM
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Last Laugh: Barry Award nominees announced

The nominees for the coveted Barry Award for Most Outstanding Show have just been announced. It's an interesting mix, with some old favourites joined by some young up-and-comers.

• by Craig Platt at 3:44 PM
• Comments (6)

Last Laugh: Raw and ready

The Raw Comedy grand final took place yesterday in front of a sold out crowd. For those who don't know, Raw Comedy is a national competition for comedy newcomers. Kind of like Australian Idol without the awful power ballads and awful Kyle Sandilands.

This year's finalists were consistently good and, despite the huge audience, none of them seemed to suffer too badly from nerves.

• by Craig Platt at 11:02 AM
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Last Laugh: Musical comedy - the easy way out?

Fiona Scott-Norman has a feature today claiming that musical comedy is the next big thing and pointing to the abundance of musical acts performing at the Comedy Festival.

Now, I'm not against musical comedy, but often it seems to me to be an easy way out.

• by Craig Platt at 1:37 PM
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Last Laugh: How Aussie is that?

Every year at the Comedy Festival a theme emerges. It's not a conscious, deliberate creation on the performers' behalves, but it becomes apparent that many comedians are mining the same vein in search of comedic gold.

• by Craig Platt at 3:52 PM
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Last Laugh: On the Level

With his first play, a dark look at America's thirst for oil, Comedy Festival veteran Rich Hall goes digging for black comedy gold.

Hall's a smart guy and his stand-up performances over the years have been consistently brilliant. But he's gone a bit too serious with Levelland. It's the same problem that afflicted Greg Fleet's overly dark look at the comedy scene, Die On Your Feet, last year.

• by Craig Platt at 11:15 AM
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Last Laugh: Plenty more reviews - including duds

With so many shows reviewed so far, you may be wondering: "What's happened to the duds?". It's true, the vast majority of shows reviewed thus far have received, positive, if not glowing, write-ups.

The past couple of days have seen 14 more reviews from The Age team of festival reviewers, meaning that almost one quarter of the shows at the festival have now been covered.

• by Craig Platt at 11:13 AM
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Last Laugh: Something new, something old

It may have been apparent to anyone who saw last night's Comedy Gala on TV that some comedians tend to trot out the same material over and over. While some performers might be able to get away it (Lano and Woodley for example, are calling it quits, so it makes sense that they would perform a "greatest hits" set) for others it can really damage a performance.

• by Craig Platt at 11:34 AM
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Last Laugh: This Wool isn't soft

The word "edgy" gets bandied about a lot when describing comedy. These days all you have to do is make a joke about Dubya being dumb or John Howard being short and the "edgy" label gets trotted out.

Glenn Wool, however, deserves the description. The Canadian dresses like an extra from Brokeback Mountain, has the wild-eyed look of Jack Black and does material few comics would have the guts to take on.

• by Craig Platt at 5:15 PM

Last Laugh: End of week one

It's been just over a week since the Comedy Festival kicked off and The Age reviewers have been busy. More than 30 shows have been reviewed so far and, for the most part, they've been good.

• by Craig Platt at 11:37 AM
• Comments (8)

Last Laugh: Judith Lucy commits professional suicide

Judith Lucy hasn't taking her sacking from Sydney's 2-Day FM lying down. No, she's taken it standing up - by using it as the basis for her festival show I Failed. Lucy outlined the difficulties she faced working in commercial radio in this piece she wrote for The Age.

She mentioned this article in her show, but assured us the jokes would be different. And, indeed, they were. There aren't many surprises in Lucy's show - she's still the acerbic, bitchy piece of work she's always been (and that's why we love her), even if she has scaled back the drinking and taken up yoga.

• by Craig Platt at 11:25 AM
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Last Laugh: Byrne out

If Wil Anderson had an Irish accent and fair hair, he could easily be mistaken for Jason Byrne. I'm not talking about the toned-down version of Anderson that appears on The Glass House, I'm talking about Anderson in stand-up mode, where his mouth barely seems able to keep up with his brain.

• by Craig Platt at 4:40 PM

Last Laugh: And now for something completely different...

Spymonkey are one of the acts creating a big buzz this festival. Cameron Woodhead today gives the physical theatre troupe's show, Cooped, a glowing review.

For the most part, Cameron is bang on the money. Cooped is something completely different from the typical festival show. It's a piece of theatre that mixes surreal moments, slapstick, prop gags, bad puns and the occasional shock into a delightful mess of a show.

• by Craig Platt at 11:25 AM
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Last Laugh: Truckload of reviews

The Age's coverage of the Comedy Festival has hit top gear with a truckload of reviews in today's edition. Eleven (count 'em) shows have been written up and you can find them all online here.

Unsurprisingly, festival veterans Rich Hall and Mike Wilmot get a glowing review for their Late Night Standup (though I'm not sure if reviewer Emma Westwood really meant it when she wrote "your sides will literally split" - a lot of audience members would end up in hospital). It's a shame they're not doing more shows.

• by Craig Platt at 11:55 AM
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Last Laugh: Two good reasons to see David O'Doherty

There are two good reasons to see Irishman David O'Doherty at the Comedy Festival. The first is simply because his show, Grown Up, is a lot of fun.

O'Doherty classifies his performance as "low energy musical whimsy" and the description is apt. He has two vintage keyboards on stage, but he doesn't rely on music to fill out his hour. Instead, we get a mix of traditional stand-up, anecdotes and musical comedy.

• by Craig Platt at 3:29 PM

Last Laugh: Arj Barker v angry mob

Arj Barker took on an angry mob last night - and won. Barker's show - due to start at 10.45pm - was delayed for over an hour due to earlier shows at the Capitol Theatre running over time. Given that some fans had begun queuing up to an hour before the scheduled start, Barker was greeted by a lot of tired, frustrated people when he finally took the stage.

And he knew it. The American festival regular made it clear from the outset that he appreciated the audience being so patient. He then treated us to an hour of excellent stand-up that demonstrated why he's so consistently popular at the festival.

• by Craig Platt at 4:16 PM
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Last Laugh: Dylan Moran - grumpy young man

Dylan Moran, that dishevelled, grumpy Irish star of TV series Black Books, opened at the Capitol Theatre last night for a short run of shows. Due to demand, he's moving to the Town Hall for the next three performances and then returning on April 25 for two shows at Hamer Hall (it's all sold out).

Half an hour before show time the queue already stretched down Swanston Street, around the corner and down Collins Street. Despite Black Books being a cult, rather than mainstream, phenomenon (plenty of people I know have never heard of it), it seems Moran has plenty of fans here.

• by Craig Platt at 11:49 AM
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Last Laugh: Comedy videos

The written word has difficulty coping with comedy. A line on the page can seem extremely lame but, put it in the marble-filled mouth of Daniel Kitson and it becomes comedy gold. Heck, I've seen Carl Barron make a room crack up just by saying "G'day".

So it's just as well that, along with the print and web journalists, theage.com.au multimedia team is also covering the Comedy Festival. You can watch video clips of some of the acts and judge for yourself whether they're worth seeing.

• by Craig Platt at 3:36 PM

Last Laugh - First reviews

The first reviews of the Comedy Festival have arrived and they're mixed. Dizney on Dry Ice gets a mostly positive write-up from Cameron Woodhead. It's a piece of theatre, rather than stand-up, at La Mama in Carlton.

Less positive is Tim Hunter's review of The Lion, the Bitch and the Closet. While he finds some good things in the show's three acts, he's not impressed with stand-up Christine Basil. "Unremarkable, unmemorable and not that funny, or bitchy," says Tim. Ouch.

So the positive versus negative review tally stands at one-all so far. Just 228 more to be decided.

• by Craig Platt at 6:48 PM
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Welcome to Last Laugh

Hello and welcome to theage.com.au's Comedy Festival blog, Last Laugh. Over the next three-and-a-half weeks, I'll be bringing you all the news, reviews and gossip from Melbourne's funniest event (and Australia's largest cultural festival - it's the same thing).

• by Ed at 12:26 PM
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