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Going out-out again: Micky Flanagan’s irresistibly unreconstructed comedy comeback

After several years away, the cheeky cockney comic is doubling down on his good-old-days brand – but despite his geezerish nostalgia he’s no anti-woke crusader

M icky Flanagan was worried, he says, that audiences might have moved on. Fair enough: it has been half a decade since he last graced the nation’s stages, when the man who defined the difference between going “out” and “ out out ” was arguably the UK’s most popular comedian . But time waits for no standup, least of all when the intervening period has seen him hit 60, and seen the context change in which old-school, cheeky chappy comedy might be delivered.

And yet, his worries are without substance, if the opening night of his Hammersmith run was any gauge. These were the last warm-up gigs before Flanagan’s tour proper starts next week, and they found the east Londoner in evergreen form, and rapturously received by a crowd that still adores him. Watching it, one could believe the market may even be growing for Flanagan’s brand of comedy, which looks at poncy modernity with the sceptical eye of one who grew up poor and without sentimentality in the middle of the previous century. These are confusing times, and there’s something reassuring about the solid certainties from a simpler age that Flanagan brings – or at least there is when delivered with Flanagan’s fundamental unseriousness and sense of fun.

The new show, If Ever We Needed It, seems even older-school than I’d expect from the comic, whose best material is smarter and more slippery than the geezer stylings suggest. But this is back-to-basics Mick, with lots of material on ’er indoors, the sitcom On the Buses , no less, and the idiocy of much modern living. The “smart meter” is contrasted with Flanagan’s dad’s no-nonsense method of dodging energy payments in the 1960s. Rimming is expertly mined for every shovelful of its obvious comic value, much as pegging was when last Flanagan took to the stage. Part of the fun of this routine is the contrast our host draws with the days of his youth, when a blowjob seemed like the most exotic of innovations.

If this all sounds blokey, well, that’s part of Flanagan’s appeal. Not for him any modern sheepishness about masculinity: that’s not what they taught you, I imagine, at Billingsgate fish market, where young Micky plied his trade. Flanagan doesn’t pretend to be anything he’s not, whether that’s an enfeebled husband mouthing swearwords behind his wife’s back, or a domestic busybody laminating the bin rota and hunting down the right items to fit the right tins. That authenticity is his ally as a comic – but equally, the refusal to rein himself in can lead to missteps. A routine tonight envying “the Arabian man”, not least for the supposed docility of his womanfolk, is a bit too 1960s for comfort.

Does this – and Flanagan’s other material on the so-called culture wars – mean we should bracket comeback-era Micky alongside Gervais and co, as another middle-aged megastar flaunting his anti-woke credentials ? Not really. Flanagan lacks the ego to set himself up as a crusader for free speech, or anything else. Nor is he in the business of upsetting anyone: his detour into trans competitors in women’s swimming (“I was straight on the Ladbrokes app”) gracefully swerves wider debates about gender. And while some might take umbrage at routines waxing nostalgic about heavy breathers (so much more innocent, argues our host, than the sexual behaviours of our own era), Flanagan’s treatment is irresistibly comical and cynicism-free.

He’s breaking no new ground then, with this return after half a decade away. But Flanagan occupies his existing terrain with great authority, lightly worn. Performed this well, there’ll always be an audience for the unreconstructed comedy of marital grouches and hair-raising sex, “remember the good old days” and dismay at modernity. Far from moving on, audiences will likely flock back to Flanagan by the thousand.

Micky Flanagan is on tour until 2 June.

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Micky Flanagan adds more dates to his ‘If Ever We Needed It…’ tour

Comedian Micky Flanagan has added even more dates to his record-breaking ‘If We Ever Needed It…’ tour.

Following the success of his arena shows, Flanagan is set to bring his unparalleled humour to the more intimate setting of Theatres across the U.K. Tickets go on general sale Saturday 6 th  April at 10am via  LiveNation.co.uk .   The transition from arenas to theatres promises an even more intimate experience, with fans getting to see the comedian up close and personal. With his trademark cockney charm and infectious energy, Flanagan is sure to leave audiences rolling in the aisles as he discusses life since turning 60, growing older and reflecting on the changes in the world around him, as well as poking fun at his observations on life – it’s definitely for over 16s   Micky Flanagan’s theatre shows will showcase his signature wit, storytelling prowess, and unmatched stage presence.

The newly added theatre dates for 2024 are:   Friday 19 April – Canterbury, The Marlowe             Friday 26 April – Reading, The Hexagon Thursday 2 May – Newcastle, O2 City Hall Thursday 16 May – Ipswich, Regent Theatre Friday 24 May – Oxford, New Theatre Saturday 25 May – Oxford, New Theatre                    Friday 31 May – Plymouth, Pavilions Saturday 1 June – Plymouth, Pavilions   Tickets go on general sale Saturday 6 th  April at 10am via  LiveNation.co.uk

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Micky Flanagan

If ever we needed it.

• Date 11 May - 2 June 2023
• Venue The O2 arena
• Availability On sale now

Event Details

This event is a phone free experience. Upon entry your mobile tickets will be scanned and your seat details will be printed out on a paper ticket before your phone is locked away in a Yondr pouch. If you would like to transfer tickets to other members of your party, please do so before the event.

No mobile phones, smart watches/accessories, cameras or recording devices will be allowed in the arena at this event.  Upon arrival, all phones and smart watches/accessories will be secured in individual Yondr pouches that will be unlocked at the end of the show. Guests maintain possession of their phones throughout the night, and if needed, may access their phones at designated Yondr phone zones located on the arena concourses.

Age restriction:16+

Micky Flanagan is back with a brand-new live show ‘If Ever We Needed It…’, he’s been double busy writing and it’s already proved a hit with fans. He’ll bring his live show to The O2 for multiple dates in May and June 2023.

He’s the man who gave Britain the “Out Out” phrase, which was used by Piccadilly Circus tube to put a smile on commuters’ faces as we came out out of Lockdown and went on to be used by TFL to encourage people back into theatres, restaurants and clubs.  Micky cut his comedy teeth at these clubs and it clearly paid off. His routines online, including the Perks of Peeping, The Shits Abroad, The Crafty Cockney, Tomato Sauce and Chicken Children, have been viewed in the hundred millions, and are a huge hit on TikTok. He keeps us laughing through the tough times – and if ever we needed it, it’s now! 

Additional Ticket Information

Important Information - How to download your tickets on The O2 app

For this show, if you’ve purchased your tickets from theo2.co.uk or AXS.com you’ll need to display your ticket on your phone via The O2 app. Ticket purchasers will receive an email with news and information on  AXS Mobile ID tickets  and how you can download your tickets to your phone. 

If you’ve bought your tickets for this show via AXS then you can re-sell your tickets with AXS Official Resale   which gives you a safe, simple, and fair way to buy and sell tickets.

For more information on re-selling tickets from AXS and other ticket agents  click here .  

Please note:  If you purchase  resale   tickets for this show through any website other than via theo2.co.uk or axs.com, your tickets may not be valid and access to the venue could be refused.

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Micky flanagan if ever we needed it….

Performed at the lyric Theatre between 04 Oct, 2023 and 21 Oct, 2023

Performed at lyric Theatre between 04 Oct, 2023 and 21 Oct, 2023

Micky’s loved performing his new show If Ever We Needed It… so much so that he has added extra intimate London theatre shows.

His last tour An’ Another Fing… was the biggest stand-up tour in the world that year, without leaving the British Isles.

His routines online, including the Perks of Peeping, The Shits Abroad, The Crafty Cockney, The Demise of Fingering, Tomato Sauce and Chicken Children, have been viewed in the hundred millions, and are a huge hit on TikTok. He keeps us laughing through the tough times – and if ever we needed it, it’s now!

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IMPORTANT CUSTOMER INFORMATION

This event will be a phone-free experience. Use of phones, smart watches and accessories, will not be permitted in the performance space. Upon arrival at the venue, all phones, smart watches and accessories will be secured in individual Yondr pouches that will be opened at the end of the event. Guests maintain possession of their devices at all times, and can access them throughout the event only in designated Phone Use Areas within the venue. All devices will be re-secured in Yondr pouches before returning to the performance space. All pouches and equipment will be sanitized prior to individual use. Anyone seen using a device (phone, smart watch or accessories) during the performance will be escorted out of the venue by security. We appreciate your cooperation in creating a phone-free experience.

'Shakes the rafters with laughter'

Evening Standard

'The country’s most popular comic'

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'On the form of his life'

Culture | Comedy

Micky Flanagan at the O2 review: for precision-tooled laughs he’s still (out) out there on his own

It is five years since Micky Flanagan last toured and not a lot has happened to him during those years. As he joked to a packed arena, he mainly pretends to work in his office and watches Bargain Loving Brits. There was a pandemic too, he notes. Or as he puts in with typical Flanaganesque understatement, “we had a bit of aggravation”.

Anyone expecting a David Bowie -style reinvention might be disappointed by the tousle-haired Eastender’s new show If We Ever Needed It. He moans, for example, about the aches and angst of recently turning sixty, but he was having comparable comedic growing pains in his fifties.

Intimate bits of his body are be becoming leathery but his wit is as silky smooth as ever, even when the targets are low-hanging fruit. Big laughs are prompted by a veritable bunch of gripes, from fellow sunbathers on the beach who are more irritating than sand in your sausage rolls to society’s obsession with new teeth and cartoon eyebrows.

As in previous shows Flanagan has plenty to say about the uneasy truce he has with his wife over everything from division of household chores to communicating with each other in their unashamedly big house. A beautifully-observed running gag about the varying volumes of “caller” and “callee” is the closest thing here to his legendary Out Out routine.

Politics is largely skimmed over, although he does deliver arguably the world’s worst Boris Johnson impression. Worst in a good way, that is, so grotesquely exaggerated it is more like a living Hogarth engraving than an audition for Dead Ringers.

Cancel culture and gender politics are mentioned, but unlike certain stand-ups of his age he is not noisily anti-woke and stops well short of spouting the overused mantra of “you can’t saying anything any more”. Instead he uses the idea of being triggered to recall a memorable changing room encounter at his Bethnal Green comprehensive school.

As ever, Flanagan is happy to be the fall guy throughout, very much playing the blokey male stereotype who prefers shirking to working. At one point he reveals that he recently went to a musical to placate his wife – “torture!” – and wonders if there could be a market for a musical about The Krays.

He might be a little traditional at times, but Flanagan is a fantastic stand-up with an ear for a relatable yarn. Despite being under the weather he landed his punchlines with laser-guided precision, grinning and swaggering around the stage. When it comes to filling vast arenas with smiles he is out there on his own. Or maybe that should be out out there on his own.

O2, May 18, 19, 26, 27, June 1, 2. ticketmaster.co.uk

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How much are Micky Flanagan tickets? 2023 tour prices, full list of dates and when tickets are on sale

It will mark the comic's return to big-arena shows after a six-year absence.

Fans of Micky Flanagan are poised to snap up tickets for his latest tour titled If Ever We Needed It .

The last time the comedian took a big show on the road was in 2017 with his An’ Another Fing Tour , playing to more than 600,000 people across the UK and Ireland.

Here is what we know about the forthcoming tour and how to get tickets.

What can we expect from the new show?

According to the publicity, the over-16s show will cover – among other things – Flanagan turning 60, having sex with your glasses on and his high school alumni.

It continues: “He’s the man who gave Britain the ‘Out Out’ phrase, which was used by Piccadilly Circus tube to put a smile on commuters’ faces as we came out out of lockdown and went on to be used by TfL to encourage people back into theatres, restaurants and clubs. Micky cut his comedy teeth at these clubs and it clearly paid off.

“He keeps us laughing through the tough times – and if ever we needed it, it’s now!”

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When is the tour?

The tour starts on 15 March in Bournemouth and takes in Dublin, Birmingham, Glasgow, Leeds and London.

The tour dates are:

• 15 March 2023: Bournemouth – International Centre (Windsor Hall)
• 24 March 2023: Dublin – 3 Arena
• 30 March 2023: Birmingham – Utilita Arena
• 13 April 2023: Glasgow – Ovo Hydro
• 20 April 2023: Leeds – First Direct Arena
• 11, 12 & 13 May 2023: London – O2 Arena

How can I buy tickets?

Tickets will go on sale at 10am on 25 February. You can buy them via Flanagan’s website here .

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Micky Flanagan announces UK and Ireland comeback tour – here’s how to get tickets

It's the comedian's first tour since 2017

Comedian Micky Flanagan has announced a UK and Ireland comeback tour – you can find details on how to secure tickets below.

Titled If Ever We Needed It , Flanagan’s new live show beings its tour in Bournemouth on March 15, before heading to Dublin, Glasgow, Leeds and then finishing in London on May 13.

Full details of the tour schedule will be released closer to the date tickets go on sale, which will be at 10am on February 25 . In the meantime, fans can subscribe to the mailing list on his website to secure pre-sale tickets.

Hi all, due to impersonations, this is my official twitter. I’m afraid I won't be using it. For the latest news please join my mailing list at https://t.co/fPxqdXeC9a & subscribe to my youtube channel https://t.co/3exZGRQVWb — Micky Flanagan (@MickyF_Official) February 25, 2021

Per the official description, the show “covers Flanagan turning 60, as well as having sex with your glasses on, his high school alumni and his ballbag. It’s fair to say it’s for over-16s.”

It continues: “He’s the man who gave Britain the “Out Out” phrase, which was used by Piccadilly Circus tube to put a smile on commuters’ faces as we came out out of Lockdown and went on to be used by TfL to encourage people back into theatres, restaurants and clubs. Micky cut his comedy teeth at these clubs and it clearly paid off.

“His routines online, including the Perks of Peeping, The Shits Abroad, The Crafty Cockney, The Demise of Fingering, Tomato Sauce and Chicken Children, have been viewed in the hundred millions, and are a huge hit on TikTok. He keeps us laughing through the tough times – and if ever we needed it, it’s now!”

Recommended

The new show will follow Flanagan’s run of previously announced warm up gigs in Newcastle later in February, and Manchester and London in early March. The comedian last took a show on the road in 2017 with his An’ Another Fing Tour.

You can find the tour dates for his warm-up shows below:

February 21, 2023 – Newcastle Upon Tyne, O2 City Hall February 22, 2023 – Newcastle Upon Tyne, O2 City Hall March 1, 2023 – Manchester, O2 Apollo March 2, 2023 – Manchester, O2 Apollo Sun March 5, 2023 – London, Eventim Apollo Mon March 6, 2023 – London, Eventim Apollo Tue March 7, 2023 – London, Eventim Apollo

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Micky Flanagan announces new tour dates

Friday 17th February 2023, 1:36pm

• Micky Flanagan is embarking on a major new tour
• The first dates for If Ever We Needed It... have been announced today
• Tickets go on sale on Saturday 25th February

Micky Flanagan is going back on tour this year with new show If Ever We Needed It... .

Tickets go on sale next Saturday, 25th February, at 10am, and a first batch of eight dates have been announced today. They will be available to purchase through Ticketmaster .

Promoters tease: "The show covers Micky turning 60 - who'd have thought it? - as well as having sex with your glasses on, his school alumni and his ballbag. It's fair to say it's for over-16s."

Wednesday 15th March - Bournemouth, International Centre Friday 24th March - Dublin, 3Arena Thursday 30th March - Birmingham, Utilita Arena Thursday 13 April - Glasgow, OVO Hydro Thursday 20th April - Leeds, First Direct Arena Thursday 11th May - London, The O2 Friday 12th May - London, The O2 Saturday 13th May - London, The O2

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Micky Flanagan If Ever We Needed It…

About the show

Micky’s loved performing his new show  If Ever We Needed It…  so much so that he has added extra intimate London theatre shows.

His last tour An’ Another Fing… was the biggest stand-up tour in the world that year, without leaving the British Isles.

His routines online, including the Perks of Peeping, The Shits Abroad, The Crafty Cockney, The Demise of Fingering, Tomato Sauce and Chicken Children, have been viewed in the hundred millions, and are a huge hit on TikTok. He keeps us laughing through the tough times – and if ever we needed it, it’s now!

IMPORTANT CUSTOMER INFORMATION

This event will be a phone-free experience. Use of phones, smart watches and accessories, will not be permitted in the performance space. Upon arrival at the venue, all phones, smart watches and accessories will be secured in individual Yondr pouches that will be opened at the end of the event. Guests maintain possession of their devices at all times, and can access them throughout the event only in designated Phone Use Areas within the venue. All devices will be re-secured in Yondr pouches before returning to the performance space. All pouches and equipment will be sanitized prior to individual use. Anyone seen using a device (phone, smart watch or accessories) during the performance will be escorted out of the venue by security. We appreciate your cooperation in creating a phone-free experience.

Booking Info

Performance Dates Wednesday 4 October, 8pm Thursday 5 October, 8pm Friday 6 October, 8pm Saturday 7 October, 4pm & 8pm Wednesday 11 October, 8pm Thursday 12 October, 8pm Friday 13 October, 8pm Saturday 14 October, 4pm & 8pm Wednesday 18 October, 8pm Thursday 19 October, 8pm Friday 20 October, 8pm Saturday 21 October, 4pm & 8pm

Ticket Pricing

Running time, age recommendation, book tickets, 'shakes the rafters with laughter', evening standard, 'the country’s most popular comic', the guardian, 'on the form of his life', sign up for our newsletter.

Critically-acclaimed East End boy done good Micky Flanagan performs his sell-out nationwide stand-up tour

Micky Flanagan performs his stand-up tour, with tales of a working class upbringing where alphabetti spaghetti is a luxury, to the hilarity of the middle classes he's now among - who dip bread in oil

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