Danny and Craig’s best black comics
RICHARD PRYOR
AMERICAN Pryor is widely regarded as one of the greatest stand-up comedians of all time.
Craig says: “I had an album of his when I was a kid. When you just hear him, it’s just his use of language and his notions which are so funny. He’s the godfather of modern stand-up comedy.”
JOKE: You can tell a lot about a woman by her hands. For instance if they’re placed around your throat she’s probably upset.
CHARLIE WILLIAMS
HE enjoyed a long residence on TV’s
The Comedians from
1971 before hosting game show The Golden Shot.
“Looking back, you might think he belittled himself,” says Craig. “But he played the hand he was dealt, and played it really well.”
JOKE: Our vicar got up on Sunday, he said: ‘I’m sorry to tell you Mr Greenhill has absconded with the savings. We’re skint. So we’ll join together in Hymn 337, There is a Green Hill far away.’
LENNY HENRY
ONE of the greatest
British comedians, he appeared on New
Faces and the UK’s first all-black sitcom, The Fosters.
His Lenry Henry Show was much-watch TV in the 1980s. Danny says: “The more he began to tap into black culture, the more his sketch characters became comedy classics.”
JOKE: I’d stay away from ecstasy. This is a drug so strong it makes white people think they can dance.
FELIX DEXTER
A PIONEER in black
British comedy,
Dexter looked set for superstardom after coming to prominence in BBC comedy show The Real McCoy. But he died suddenly aged 52 from bone cancer in 2013.
Craig says: “Felix was the master at creating hilarious character comedy. His was a tragic loss to the comedy world.”
JOKE: I’d like to thank my father for not using a condom, and my mum for not having a headache.
GINA YASHERE
SHE shone on the
Lenny Henry Show, with her “I don’t think so” catchphrase. She was the first Brit to perform on Def Comedy Jam in the US and has starred in sitcoms.
Craig says: “She was one sister determined to do it for herself. She’s a rising star in the US.”
JOKE: African immigrant families have four choices of career – doctor, lawyer, engineer, disgrace to the family.