"raises money for various charities such as the Red Cross and Amnesty International. Since 2005, the club has been able to raise money for these charities as the acts performing don't receive a fee and the money is then donated to the selected charity. The Stand's programme contains an event called Red Raw beginners' night, where new comics can request to be on the bill. When asked about changes to the club over the years the original founders have noticed that comedy has become more popular as thousands will now go out weekly to see a live show compared to"
"The Secret Policeman's Ball The Secret Policeman's Ball is the name informally used for the long-running series of benefit shows staged initially in the United Kingdom to raise funds for the human rights organisation Amnesty International. The shows started in 1976 featuring popular British comedians but later included leading musicians and actors. The ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" shows are credited by many prominent entertainers with having galvanised them to become involved with Amnesty and other social and political causes in succeeding years. There have been four distinct eras of the Amnesty benefit shows. The shows of the first era (1976–1981) yielded"
"The Secret Policeman's Ball (2006) The Secret Policeman's Ball 2006 was the title of the show staged as a benefit for human rights organization Amnesty International at London's Royal Albert Hall in October 2006. The show title was a conscious reprise of the title of the 1979 Amnesty benefit show that heralded the organization's breakthrough in public awareness and fundraising. The 1979 show ""The Secret Policeman's Ball"", organised by John Cleese and producers Martin Lewis & Peter Walker, led to greater participation by comedians and rock musicians in further benefit shows for Amnesty and other social and political causes. It"
"The Secret Policeman's Ball 2012 The Secret Policeman's Ball 2012 was the title of the show staged as a benefit for human rights organization Amnesty International at New York City's Radio City Music Hall on 4 March 2012, it was one of the long-running series of similar Amnesty benefits. Like its predecessors in 2006 and 2008, the show title was a reprise of the title of the 1979 Amnesty benefit show, ""The Secret Policeman's Ball"", which heralded the organization's breakthrough in public awareness and fund-raising. To celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Amnesty International, the show took place in the United"
"The Secret Policeman's Ball 2008 The Secret Policeman's Ball 2008 was a show in the ""Secret Policeman's Balls"" series of benefit shows for Amnesty International. In July 2008, Amnesty announced that it would present another show in its long-running series Like its 2006 predecessor the show was a single-night live event at London's Royal Albert Hall, on Saturday 4 October 2008. In common with other recent Amnesty benefit shows, the majority of the performers were British (or UK-based) and well-known primarily only in Great Britain, the one Canadian comedian Russell Peters appeared via a pre-recorded video-tape. Performers who were listed"
"skits and monologues, lyrics of songs, photographs, of the 1987 show. Publisher: Sidgwick and Jackson (1987) () Book containing transcripts of skits and monologues, lyrics of songs, photographs, of the 1981 show. Also features production notes and comedic observations about the show by Michael Palin and Terry Jones. Editors: Martin Lewis & Peter Walker Publisher: Eyre Methuen (1981) () The Secret Policeman's Ball The Secret Policeman's Ball is the name informally used for the long-running series of benefit shows staged initially in the United Kingdom to raise funds for the human rights organisation Amnesty International. The shows started in 1976"
"Secret Policeman's Ball"", the third in the series of ""The Secret Policeman's Balls"" fundraising shows for Amnesty International. Connolly was the first comedic performer in the series who was not an alumnus of the Oxbridge school of middle-class university-educated entertainers and he made the most of his appearance. Appearing in the company of long-established talents such as John Cleese and Peter Cook helped elevate the perception of Connolly as one of Britain's leading comedic talents. Lewis also teamed Connolly with Cleese and Cook to appear in the television commercial for the album. In 1981, John Cleese and Martin Lewis invited"
"the Pythons. Members of Python contributed their services to charitable endeavours and causes—sometimes as an ensemble, at other times as individuals. The cause that has been the most frequent and consistent beneficiary has been the human rights work of Amnesty International. Between 1976 and 1981, the troupe or its members appeared in four major fund-raisers for Amnesty—known collectively as the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" shows—which were turned into multiple films, TV shows, videos, record albums, and books. These benefit shows and their many spin-offs raised considerable sums of money for Amnesty, raised public and media awareness of the human rights cause,"
"with extra behind the scenes interviews with some of the performers. The show was presented by Jimmy Carr, providing voice-overs, as well as recorded links out of ads by various comedians. The Secret Policeman's Ball 2012 The Secret Policeman's Ball 2012 was the title of the show staged as a benefit for human rights organization Amnesty International at New York City's Radio City Music Hall on 4 March 2012, it was one of the long-running series of similar Amnesty benefits. Like its predecessors in 2006 and 2008, the show title was a reprise of the title of the 1979 Amnesty"
"The Secret Policeman's Other Ball The Secret Policeman's Other Ball was the fourth of the benefit shows staged by the British Section of Amnesty International to raise funds for its research and campaign work in the human rights field. It was the second of many shows to bear the celebrated ""Secret Policeman's"" title that became the iconic series known informally as The Secret Policeman's Balls. The show took place at the Drury Lane theatre in London on Wednesday 9 September 1981. It was a successor to the 1979 show The Secret Policeman's Ball. The show was directed by Monty Python"
"title had run its course and would not be revived. However, in October 2006, following a 17-year gap, the name was revived, and also used for shows in October 2008 and March 2012. The first four shows (1976–1981) and their spin-offs are credited by many prominent comedians, musicians, actors and producers with having galvanised them to become involved with Amnesty and other social and political causes in succeeding years. Rock stars Bob Geldof, Bono and Sting have all attributed their involvement in humanitarian issues to their exposure to the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" shows: Geldof, Sting and Clapton as participants with"
"is much like the infants’ Nativity play, successful in its own terms and not deserving of too much harsh scrutiny."" (The contrast was perhaps made vivid by the airing on Channel Four of the film of the 1981 show ""The Secret Policeman's Other Ball"" just a few days before the new show.) The Secret Policeman's Ball (2006) The Secret Policeman's Ball 2006 was the title of the show staged as a benefit for human rights organization Amnesty International at London's Royal Albert Hall in October 2006. The show title was a conscious reprise of the title of the 1979 Amnesty"
"under the collective Python banner. After a six-year break, Amnesty resumed producing ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" benefit shows in 1987 (sometimes with, and sometimes without, variants of the iconic title) and by 2006 had presented a total of 12 such shows. The shows since 1987 have featured newer generations of British comedic performers, including many who have attributed their participation in the show to their desire to emulate the Python's pioneering work for Amnesty. (Cleese and Palin made a brief cameo appearance in the 1989 Amnesty show; apart from that, the Pythons have not appeared in shows after the first four.)"
"which was the first ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" film. In 1984 he co-produced the first Comic Relief with Richard Curtis, and ""Look at the State We're In"" (BBC), a series of short satirical films on constitutional reform, with John Cleese, Hugh Laurie, Dawn French, and Anthony Sher. In 2005 he produced ""Remember the Secret Policeman's Ball"" for BBC Arena, directed by Margy Kinmonth. In 2015 he and James Rogan made ""Monty Python: the Meaning of Live"", for uktv following the final stage performances at The O2 Arena with archive of their earlier stage work. In 2016 It was shown at the"
"British comedic performers of the 1960s and 1970s, led directly to the 1979 show The Secret Policeman's Ball - which in turn triggered the involvement of major rock stars such as Sting, Bono, Peter Gabriel, Bruce Springsteen and Bob Geldof in working for the human rights cause. It set a precedent that would inspire many subsequent Amnesty galas, as well as Comic Relief. The concept was also the inspiration of similar events in aid of Amnesty International in countries around the world. The show took place on Thursday, Friday and Saturday April 1, 2, 3, 1976 as a series of"
"various fields include Sting, Bob Geldof, Eric Clapton, Phil Collins and Midge Ure. The performers in the stage production were: The Secret Policeman's Other Ball The Secret Policeman's Other Ball was the fourth of the benefit shows staged by the British Section of Amnesty International to raise funds for its research and campaign work in the human rights field. It was the second of many shows to bear the celebrated ""Secret Policeman's"" title that became the iconic series known informally as The Secret Policeman's Balls. The show took place at the Drury Lane theatre in London on Wednesday 9 September"
"a box office success in the UK and US in 1982 and also inspired a book co-edited by Lewis. The series continued through the 1980s and 1990s (though the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" name was not used after the 1989 show). In 2006, Amnesty revived the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" title for its fundraising shows and this prompted multiple press articles in Britain reflecting on the impact of the original shows - including the attribution by Bob Geldof that ""Live Aid"" had been inspired in part by the shows. A series of live, acoustic performances by rock musicians Pete Townshend, Sting, Phil"
"event titled ""Amnesty International Festival Of Youth"" at the 65,000 capacity Milton Keynes Bowl. The event was a massive failure and for the first time ever, one of Amnesty's fund-raising benefit events lost money. Only two more of Amnesty's benefit shows (in 1987 and 1989) carried a ""Secret Policeman's Ball""-related title. Between 1991 and 2001 Amnesty staged four more benefit events and though they were comedy shows in the same vein as their predecessors, none of them carried the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" title. When Amnesty staged a 40th anniversary show in 2001 it was stated that the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"""
"also led to the series of benefit shows that are informally known as ""The Secret Policeman's Balls"". The 2006 show was coordinated by British comedian Eddie Izzard. Internationally-known performers Izzard and actor Richard E. Grant were joined by locally-popular comedic talents including Russell Brand, Jon Culshaw, Al Murray, The Mighty Boosh and Omid Djalili. American comedic actor Chevy Chase made a cameo appearance in one skit. Music was supplied by The Zutons and The Magic Numbers. Singer Natalie Imbruglia appeared in a routine alongside David Armand spoofing her hit song Torn. The show also featured a series of computer-generated animations"
"teamed up (with Amnesty's new fundraising director Peter Walker) in 1979 to create ""The Secret Policeman's Ball"" - the first show to carry what became the iconic ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" title. ""The above item titles do not appear anywhere in the film but are the titles ascribed to the skits and songs on the cast album released by Transatlantic Records in 1976."" A Poke in the Eye (With a Sharp Stick) A Poke in the Eye (With a Sharp Stick) is the title of the first show in what later became the iconic ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" series of benefit shows"
"Amnesty International announced that it was reviving the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" title for its forthcoming benefit show – a one-night show to be held at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 14 October 2006. The name that had by then become the colloquially used umbrella title for all of Amnesty's fund-raisers. The 2006 show was coordinated by British comedian Eddie Izzard – who had coordinated the 2001 Amnesty show. The 13th show in the Amnesty series took place at the Royal Albert Hall, London, on 14 October 2006. Unlike the first (1976–1981) era of Amnesty shows featuring mainly internationally known"
"until Wednesday October 1 2008, just three days before the screenings which did not allow time for the event to be effectively promoted in Canada. The Secret Policeman's Ball 2008 The Secret Policeman's Ball 2008 was a show in the ""Secret Policeman's Balls"" series of benefit shows for Amnesty International. In July 2008, Amnesty announced that it would present another show in its long-running series Like its 2006 predecessor the show was a single-night live event at London's Royal Albert Hall, on Saturday 4 October 2008. In common with other recent Amnesty benefit shows, the majority of the performers were"
"sold fund-raising anti-heroin T-shirts at a series of UK Bruce Springsteen concerts and reportedly financed a trip for former Clash drummer Topper Headon to undergo drug rehabilitation treatment. Townshend's 1985–86 band, Deep End, played two benefits at Brixton Academy in 1985 for Double-O Charities. In 1979 Townshend donated his services to the human rights organisation Amnesty International when he performed three songs for its benefit show ""The Secret Policeman's Ball"" – performances that were released on record and seen in the film of the show. Townshend's acoustic performances of three of his songs (""Pinball Wizard"", ""Drowned"", and ""Won't Get Fooled"
"these was the June 1979 appearances by Pete Townshend at ""The Secret Policeman's Ball"", a series of benefit shows in London for human rights organization Amnesty International at which the usually electric guitar-wielding Townshend was persuaded by benefit producer Martin Lewis to perform his hits ""Pinball Wizard"" and ""Won't Get Fooled Again"" on acoustic guitar. The performances were widely seen and heard on the 1980 live album and the UK-only movie of the benefit and inspired other rock performers to emulate Townshend. In September 1981, Lewis produced a sequel benefit show ""The Secret Policeman's Other Ball"" that featured similar performances"
"British Section started a series of fund-raising events that came to be known as ""The Secret Policeman's Balls"" series. They were staged in London initially as comedy galas featuring what the ""Daily Telegraph"" called ""the crème de la crème of the British comedy world"" including members of comedy troupe Monty Python, and later expanded to also include performances by leading rock musicians. The series was created and developed by Monty Python alumnus John Cleese and entertainment industry executive Martin Lewis working closely with Amnesty staff members Peter Luff (Assistant Director of Amnesty 1974–78) and subsequently with Peter Walker (Amnesty Fund-Raising"
"Bono as an audience member. Bono told ""Rolling Stone"" magazine in 1986: ""I saw 'The Secret Policeman's Ball' and it became a part of me. It sowed a seed..."" In 2001, Bono described ""The Secret Policeman's Ball"" to an Amnesty audience as ""a mysterious and extraordinary event that certainly changed my life..."" In 1986, Sting told NBC's ""Today"" ""I've been a member of Amnesty and a support member for five years, due to an entertainment event called 'The Secret Policeman's Ball' and before that I did not know about Amnesty, I did not know about its work, I did not"
"A Poke in the Eye (With a Sharp Stick) A Poke in the Eye (With a Sharp Stick) is the title of the first show in what later became the iconic ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" series of benefit shows for human rights organization Amnesty International, although it pre-dated by three years the first show to bear that name.. The film of the show was titled ""Pleasure At Her Majesty's"" which is sometimes mistakenly thought to be the title of the actual benefit show. The landmark 1976 show starring the Monty Python, Beyond The Fringe and The Goodies teams and other top"
"films, television specials, home-videos, and albums that have since been widely seen and heard internationally. The three subsequent eras (1987–1989, 1991–2001 and 2006 onwards) have primarily featured locally popular British performers – and spin-off products have been released mainly in the UK. In March 2012, ""The Secret Policeman's Ball"" took place in the United States for the first time. The one-night show at New York's Radio City Music Hall on 4 March was part of Amnesty's 50th anniversary commemorations. The series was created and developed by Monty Python member John Cleese, Peter Luff (Assistant Director Amnesty International 1974–1978) and entertainment"
"TV shows, DVDs and radio programs. Arguably his most notable work has been co-creating and producing the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" series of benefits for Amnesty International (initially held 1976-1981) that brought together comedic talents (including Monty Python, Beyond The Fringe, Rowan Atkinson and Billy Connolly) and rock musicians (including Paul McCartney, Pete Townshend, Sting, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Phil Collins, Tom Robinson, Donovan and Bob Geldof.) In addition to producing the original stage shows, Lewis produced albums, TV specials and movies that documented the shows. The film of the fourth show of the series, ""The Secret Policeman's Other Ball"", was"
"live performances from Black Eyed Peas, Shakira, Alicia Keys, John Legend and Juanes, as well as an amazing blend of African artists including Amadou & Mariam, Angelique Kidjo, BLK JKS and Tinariwen. Most recently, Lily Sobhani executive produced the American reboot of The Secret Policeman's Ball at the Radio City Music Hall in New York on March 4, 2012, a celebration of Amnesty International's 50th Anniversary. The event was a tremendous success with a focus on comedy: Russell Brand, Jon Stewart, Rashida Jones, Chris O'Dowd, Jason Sudeikis, Paul Rudd, Catherine Tate, Noel Fielding, Jimmy Carr, Sarah Silverman, David Cross, Ben"
"focused on both newly recorded and historic comedy material. It has distributed recordings by the Portsmouth Sinfonia, alternative comedians such as Alexei Sayle, Rik Mayall, Ade Edmondson, Nigel Planer, Peter Richardson and French and Saunders of ""The Comic Strip"", the historic ""Private Eye"" recordings. Springtime recorded and released Alexei Sayle's first album ""Cak!"" in 1982. 'The label's most successful humour release has been the comedy album of Amnesty International's, 1981 benefit show ""The Secret Policeman's Other Ball"" which featured John Cleese and Graham Chapman of Monty Python, Rowan Atkinson, Barry Humphries, Billy Connolly, Jasper Carrott, John Bird, John Fortune, Tim"
"pin that one on him. But I thought it was quite funny."" Although the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" title was not used until the third show in 1979, the two preceding shows in 1976 and 1977 were retrospectively treated as part of the ""Secret Policeman's"" canon. Cleese and Lewis subsequently worked individually on other Amnesty projects. Cleese made brief cameo appearances in the 1987 and 1989 shows and co-directed the latter. Lewis produced two American films drawn from the first four shows (released in the US in 1982 and 1983) and then helped expand the participation of rock musicians for Amnesty"
"know about torture in the world."" Bob Geldof and Ultravox singer Midge Ure first met and worked together at 1981's ""The Secret Policeman's Other Ball"" which was the first benefit show that either of them had performed at. Geldof credits the ""Secret Policeman's Ball"" series with having inspired his own charity show endeavours. The earliest shows predated the proliferation of comedy and rock benefit shows that took place in the UK and US in the mid-1980s such as Live Aid, Farm Aid, Prince's Trust concerts, The Free Nelson Mandela Concert and Comic Relief. The Amnesty shows are considered to have"