Sounds Jewish ComedyLaughter in Jewish culture - Sounds Jewish podcast
More ways to listenMon 1 Dec 2014 06.49 EST First published on Mon 1 Dec 2014 06.49 EST
Alan Dein explores Jewish comedy through the stories of four Jews with a knack for making people laughHow to listen to podcasts: everything you need to know
Our award-winning podcast returns as Alan Dein focuses on the theme of laughter through the stories of four Jews with a knack for making people laugh: from Phil "Sergeant Bilko" Silvers to the ultra-orthodox wedding entertainer, via the wannabe comedians found around every Jewish kitchen table.
Story 1: My nan, the teller of dirty jokes
Writer and performer Nick Cassenbaum says he learned how to make people laugh from the tenderest age, when he'd overhear the dirty jokes and banter that were a feature of every Friday night dinner.
Story 2: My dad, Sergeant Bilko
Phil Silvers was a huge star in the UK and US: his creation, Sergeant Bilko, is part of TV comedy history, nearly 60 years on from its first broadcast. But was there a dark side to growing up with a comic genius? Silvers' eldest daughter, Tracey, speaks to Dein from Los Angeles.
Story 3: The jester
The ultra-orthodox Jewish community may be associated with the serious study of the Torah, but it has its funny men too. Yisroel Stern is a professional badchen, the jester who has been part of Jewish folklore for hundreds of years. He's in demand all year round, busy entertaining wedding parties in Yiddish with his mixture of humour, song and reflection. Dein visits Stern in his home in Stamford Hill, London.
Story 4: Tales of the unexpected
Arnold Brown was born into a working-class Jewish family in 1930s Glasgow and became an accountant - until he developed a taste for the surreal, becoming a central figure in the 1980s alternative comedy scene. Dein meets Brown in his old stamping ground, Hampstead Heath, in the hope of finding inspiration. An unexpected encounter with the police turns into a scene that could be a bizarre Arnold Brown comedy sketch.
Brown will be performing at JW3's Comedy Festival which launches on Saturday 29 November.
Sounds Jewish is made in association with JW3, the Jewish Community Centre for London.
) Support The GuardianThe Guardian is editorially independent. And we want to keep our journalism open and accessible to all. But we increasingly need our readers to fund our work.
Support The GuardianncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJuforqmutOiqp%2BqlZp8osHDoqZoamBmgXCwxJxmaWlfoa62s8etnKtlmprEqr%2FHZpqupKSqv6Z5z6ibnJmjqQ%3D%3D