Viv Hardwick talks to Darlington club owner Rachel Smith about her decision to launch comedy nights using BBC3's Comedy Club

NORTH-EAST bar owner Rachel Smith has raised the level of night-time entertainment in Darlington by signing a deal with Essex-based The Comedy Club to provide stand-ups featured on BBC3 for a ten-week contract.

The Wednesday night events bring names like Steve Day, Anvil Springstein, Simon Bligh and emerging female talent such as Chambers and Nettleton to the Indaba in Gladstone Street up until the middle of February.

Rachel says: "We felt that on a Wednesday night in Darlington there wasn't very much for people to do and attract them out of their houses so we thought that comedy was really worth a try.

"Until now, people have had to travel to Newcastle or waited for a monthly comedy night around the area and we decided to team up with The Comedy Club because most of the acts have appeared on BBC3."

The bonus for the Indaba is that its weekly guests organise the events, which started last week and filled the venue's downstairs area.

"The response has been very good and we've had a lot of people phoning up to book tables," she explains. The format of the nights requires that ticket-buyers sit at tables and order drinks via a table waiting service to ensure all attention is on the comics rather than on getting to the bar.

Capacity at Indaba, which means Impulse Meeting Place in Swahili, is around 400 with shows being broadcast on the internal TV service so that guests don't miss a gag. The premises opened in June and refurbishments included a roof terrace and improved car park security. Each night provides three acts with Martin Beaumont, Steve Day and Valentine Flyguy making up the trio for next Wednesday's line-up.

Rachel says that the club does have the final say when it comes to performers but the venue is aware that The Comedy Club also has a reputation to maintain in terms of standards.

"We're aiming at the 25-plus market and we know that the stand-ups will play to the type of sophisticated atmosphere we're trying to create," adds the owner who is looking to add a meal service on the club nights approaching Christmas.

But as for the impact of the comedy on the owner herself she freely admits: "To be honest I didn't even hear a joke on the opening night because I was too busy running around trying to sort everything out. It will be part of the fun to stand and listen to some of the routines in future but it was more a case of first night nerves.

"We want to create a show which develops into a night-out experience rather than have a comic telling jokes in a corner of the room. We do have a philosophy that we'd rather be half-empty with nice people rather than full with ones only interested in drink promotions which might lead to trouble. We're hoping that comedy will attract an up-market audience."

l Simon Bligh, a Time Out Comedy Award winner and Perrier Award nominee is on the stand-up list for January 17 with emerging Northern female act Chambers and Nettleton booked for January 31.

Indaba's ticket hotline is 07788647580, tickets cost £3. For more details on The Comedy Club and line-ups for Darlington go to www.hahaheehee.com