Picking the brains of professional funny people to find out how we can all be as creative as comedians

Hi, I’m Tim Reid. I write comedy and coach teams in creativity and innovation. And I think we can all learn how to be more creative by finding out how comedians and comedy writers think, behave and the methods they use for coming up with a steady stream of new material. So I’m getting inside their funny minds to see where their ideas come from. 

Today I’m talking to Andy Ford. Andy has been a successful stand up for over 20 years and has been described by Matt Lucas as the funniest man alive. And according to ‘The Stage And Television Today’ Andy is one of the top ten comedians in Britain. His big break came in 1997 when he appeared on the Big Big Talent Show hosted by Jonathan Ross, which led to a Royal Variety Show appearance later that year.

Here are three brilliant creative exercises you’ll hear about from Andy… 

• Using an old gag as a spark then building a story – form new tributaries, make it your own – take an existing idea then build a new world around it
• The list format. Two start points – the new car and the fur coat, could be your product and your consumer, then list what you know about them and cross reference to make new links, new ideas, new opportunities – new communication campaigns, new places where the product and consumer can meet, anything…
• Talking – like splurge, a way of pushing things from the back of your brain, your subconscious, to the front – talk for 4 minutes non stop about your challenge, see what comes out of your subconscious.