Trustpilot£8.79
Save 12%
Only 5 In Stock - Order before 7:30pm for same day dispatch
Only 5 In Stock - Order before 7:30pm for same day dispatch
Over a hundred more available within 4 days
Buying for a school or church? Upgrade to a FREE Eden Advance AccountInterested in how humour works?
A light look at laughs, and what happen when a joke goes very wrong
James Cary offer a unique insight as a comedy script writer
Anna Hockley
Eden Christian Books Specialist
Every few weeks a politician, pundit or soap star causes a media storm by making a gaffe or tweeting a joke that some people do not find funny. Comedy is very hard to get right and yet we think it's important to have a sense of humour and not take yourself too seriously. On the other hand, a sense of humour failure can lead to losing your friends, your twitter account, your job, your career and, in some cases, your life.
James Cary knows about this. He is a sitcom writer who's written jokes about bomb disposal in Afghanistan (Bluestone 42), defended comments about Islam by Ben Elton on Newsnight, been on a panel with radical Muslim cleric Anjem Choudary, sits on the General Synod of the Church of England and somehow managed to co-write episodes of Miranda. An odd mix, but one that makes him very readable. This entertaining, breezy book, explains how comedy works (with jokes and quotes) and gives much-needed insights into the controversy surrounding humour.
Author
James Cary
Book Format
Paperback / softback
Publisher
SPCK Publishing
Published
January 2019
Weight
182g
Page Count
160
Dimensions
12.8 x 19.7 x 2.1 cm
ISBN
9780281080922
ISBN-10
0281080925
Eden Code
4786024
Foreword by Milton Jones
Preface
Instructions
Part 1: A Good Sense of Humour
1. It's funny becuase it's true
2. An Englishman, an Irishman and a Scotsman...
3. How jokes work (without killing a frog)
4. How jokes go wrong
5. Punched by a punchline
6. Where's the line?
7. Why jokes are no laughing matter
8. Rules of Engagement
9. Leaping from a car to car
10. Comedy at Ground Zero
Part Two: Comedy and the Church
11. Do Christians have a sense of humour?
12. The problems with jokes
13. The Philippians 4 manoeuvre
14. Holy crap!
15. No laughing messiah
16. The Supreme Being walks into a bar...
17. Was Jesus funny?
18. Why Christianity is an easy target
19. Why don't comedians make jokes about Islam?
20. Why you shouldn't start a sermon with a joke
21. Notes for readers
Part 3: Advanced Joking
22. Betrayed by laughter
23. Springtime for pug dogs
24. Jerry! Jerry! Jerry!
25. Jerry and the lawmakers
26. Careful now
27. All-American prophet
28. What's so funny about Easter?
James Cary is a BBC sitcom-writer (Miranda, Bluestone 42, Another Case of Milton Jones) and theologian. He’s also a member of the General Synod for the Church of England, and has spent a lot of his life watching jokes (some of them his own) go horribly wrong.
He runs a touring theatre company and performs. He has just produced a 64-date tour of the UK of a show about Martin Luther and 95 Theses, called A Monk’s Tale, which ran for two weeks at the Edinburgh Fringe. There are very likely to be future, perhaps even bigger, tours in 2018-9.
James is married, with two children and lives in Somerset.
Over 14,000 churches and schools have upgraded to an Advance Account and we‘d love to welcome you into this free program. We know that church volunteers and school teachers often use their own money, then have claim it back on on an expense form. We can take all of that hassle away by invoicing your church or school directly and delivering your order straight away.
Opening an account is quick and easy, with most accounts being approved and setup within a few hours of filling in the form below (on weekdays, not weekends). As soon as we‘ve approved the application we‘ll send you an email to let you know that its done.
Upgrade to a FREE Eden Advance AccountFor you
Free delivery on orders over £10
Bought together
Free delivery on orders over £10
