A set-ruining act of boorishness, or a vital rite of passage for standups? Often it depends on who’s doing the heckling
In the Guide’s weekly Solved! column, we look into a crucial pop-culture question you’ve been burning to know the answer to – and settle it
Let us be clear: heckling used to be OK. Here is Jo Brand on the early days of famed London venue the Comedy Store: “You either got someone throwing up at your feet or subjected to abuse. To crack it meant that you could cut it as a jobbing comedian.” Heckling was once a standup’s rite of passage, the thing that set comedy apart from the snootier artforms. Theatre and opera had cachet and small, well-heeled audiences. No one took comedy seriously – but it was the art of the people, and the people were expected to get involved.