Jongleurs is a chain of sixteen comedy clubs in the United Kingdom, established in 1983. Jongleurs is now owned by Regent Inns plc, the owners of Walkabout. It often twinned with Bar Risa to offer a twin style late leisure destination. A comedy club is a venue, typically a nightclub, where people watch or listen to performances, including stand-up comedians, improvisational comedians, impersonators, magicians, ventriloquists and other comedy acts. ... 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Regent Inns is the parent company of Walkabout and Jongleurs/Bar Risa chains. ... Walkabout (or sometimes The Walkabout) is a chain of Australian themed bars operating in the UK. The brand is owned by Regent Inns, owner of the Bar Risa/Jongleurs chain. ...

Ownership

Young drama teacher Maria Kempinska and partner John Davy established the first Jongleurs club in 1983 at an old rollerskating rink in Battersea, South London. They sold the Jongleurs chain of eight clubs to Regent Inns in 2000 in a deal that valued the company at £30 million. Kemplinska received £8.5 million and stayed on running the creative side of the clubs; as part of the deal, she retained rights to the name Jongleurs, but agreed not to open up in competition for at least five years.

Venues

There are currently 16 Jongleurs clubs around the UK with the Manchester venue having recently closed. In 2007 the Manchester venue will likely re-open in the same building as Walkabout while a new flagship venue is expected to open in Liverpool in the summer of 2007.

Television programmes

There have been several television programmes which have featured Jongleurs comedy clubs, including "Cabaret at the Jongleurs" on the BBC and "Live at Jongleurs" on ITV. "Live At Jongleurs" currently features on the Paramount Comedy Channel featuring performances filmed at the Camden venue in the mid 90's. The British Broadcasting Corporation, usually known as the BBC (and also informally known as the Beeb or Auntie) is the largest broadcasting corporation in the world in terms of audience numbers, employing 26,000 staff in the United Kingdom alone and with a budget of more than GB£4 billion... It has been suggested that Channel 3 (UK) be merged into this article or section. ...

Artists

Comedians to have featured on Jongleurs TV shows include:

• Jo Brand
• Rory Bremner
• Julian Clary
• Phil Cool
• Steve Coogan
• Jack Dee
• Lee Evans
• Peter Kay
• Ruby Wax

Joanne Brand was born 3rd May 1957 in Hastings, East Sussex. ... Rory Bremner FKC (born 6 April 1961, Edinburgh, Scotland) is a British impressionist and comedian, noted for his political satire. ... Julian Clary (born 25 May 1959) is an English comedian who is openly gay and known for his camp style, with a heavy reliance on innuendo and double entendre. ... Phil Cool is a British comedian from Chorley noted for his impressions. ... Steve Coogan (born 14 October 1965) is an English actor, impressionist, and comedian. ... Jack Dee (born September 24, 1962 in Petts Wood, Kent[1]) is an English stand-up comedian, actor and writer known for his sardonic, deadpan style. ... Lee Evans - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... This article does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Ruby Wax (born Ruby Wachs on April 19, 1953) is an American comedienne who made a career in the United Kingdom as part of the alternative comedy scene in the 1980s. ...

See also

• The Comedy Store

This article is about the club in the United States; there is also a Comedy Store in London. ...

External links

• Jongleurs official website
• Regent Inns
• Risa Birmingham's official website