FUNNY BUSINESS

20,000 people can't be wrong. Well, if you consider that the Comedy Cellar has been running for close on five years and has had packed houses pretty much from the word go, then something 20,000 punters have got their laughs there. Of course, Barry Murphy might be joking about having such a fine record but the fact was that tonight, the 'House Full' signs were up before nine o'clock, and a queue of twenty or so were turned away. And, of course, the first joke is that the venue is located upstairs.

These comedians don't need stereotypes to get their laughs. They don't need racism, sexism or politics. They don't need anything except their wits. They improvise: lining up like dutiful workers, waiting for the audience to throw a subject at them, then throwing a joke about it back to be met with either a painful groan, or more usually, a burst of laughter. They get strange subjects: sandwich toasters, avocados, colostomy bags. They improvise again, asking for a plot. They end up in a shoe shop, with the sales clerk trying to sell shoes to a religious freak. He doesn't make the sale but he does make you laugh.

There's poems. One's called 'Christy Moore, You're A Bastard': "I was in the Isle of man and the craic was shit." There's a 'I Hate It' poem: "I hate it when you're in bed and you let a big fart/And you look under the blanket and see your legs have been blown off." Then they introduce a 'real' poet, who has a poem called 'The Day The Foolish Snail Crossed The Frog Spawn'. Or something like that; he keeps changing the title. It's funny and even funnier when he discusses it and informs the rapt audience that only four people can truly understand it - and he's two of them.

CHRIST HAMMERED

Christ comes in for a hammering but it's nothing like what his father gets. "No wonder the world is in the mess it's in. It was created by a serial killer." Then there's music and they mime to it, making faces that make laughter, having wigs that fall off at the wrong time and that too becomes part of the act. The jokes and funny movements pile up and everybody is surprised at how fast two hours can go. It was a good night and Barry Murphy, Mark Staunton, Kevin Dardis, Ardal O'Hanlon and Gail O'Keefe can feel proud because they worked damn hard for every laugh. And there was plenty.

"It's the longest running comedy club in Ireland," Barry Murphy explains, as he relaxes after the show. "It was set up by Mr Trellis. [Barry Murphy, Kevin Dardis, Ardal O'Hanlon.] The other two mainstays are Dermot Carmody and Alex Lyons."

The Comedy Cellar is what happens when a group of friends see a need which is not being filled and instead of moaning, fill it themselves. The need as Mr Trellis saw it, was for comedy which did not depend on putting minorities, classes or sexes down to achieve a laugh. Barry sees the Cellar's humour as being unique; taking something inspiration from the Alternative scene of the Eighties, but being very much their own. "It's a quirky, observational, introspective slant." He doesn't believe that the comedian has to 'say something' politically or socially : "You don't have to express your beliefs on anything to do the style of comedy you find funny."

Barry is proud of the Cellar's Irish flavour, but disappointed by the lack of sponsorship and support for a native scene. He believes that the lack of interest from those with money is because.Irish humour has had no real historical base, with the exceptions of people like Hal Roche and Brendan Grace. However, he is certain that there is now a large audience out there if someone is prepared to fund the infrastructure. He is hopeful that this will happen soon, suggesting that a Mr Trellis sit-com which has been commissioned by Central Television and RTE, should add to the momentum.

FUNNY GOODS

Comedy is a psychologically taxing job as many of the comedians who have ended up as alcoholics or spent time in Mental Hospitals will verify. However, as far as Barry is concerned, the real problem in Ireland is the small population. "There is a certain pressure with coming up with new material every week. Because, unlike England, where you can have one ten-minute set and you can live for two years off it, you have to come up with something new here every single week, because you'll always have 10% of the audience who'll come back again and again."

Very few regular venues are turning punters away at nine o'clock. Even fewer are doing this five years after they've been set up. Ok, so the humour is off-beat and wouldn't be to everybody's taste but there wouldn't be any audience if the Comedy Cellar didn't produce the funny goods. Barry: "We've never, ever done a bad show. Which I think isn't bad in five years. Never has anyone walked out and said 'That was shit'."

The Comedy Cellar is on every Wednesday in the upstairs of the International Bar, Wicklow Street. Other similar venues include: The Comedy Zone, Thursdays, John B's Bar, Gaiety Theatre; Comedy Improv, Mondays, International Bar and Dermot Carmody, Wednesdays, The Oak Bar, Dame Street.