Noble: 'There is a lot of bland comedy'

Stand-up Ross Noble has claimed that there has been a lot of "bland" comedy on TV following Manuelgate.

The Geordie comic also said that the Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross Radio 2 scandal has left TV producers "wetting themselves".

"There are a lot of comics around now whose main focus is just to wear a suit and stand there - and a lot of their material is just bland," he told the BBC.

"There does seem to be a trend of comics going back to the old, observational stuff because they know that grandmas are going to like it."

However, Noble also argued that there has been an improvement in the standards of stand-up comedy in recent years.

"What doesn't get talked about is how even the most middle-of-the-road comics today have come up with their routines by themselves, you know?" he said. "Before alternative comedy, a lot of comics relied on writers."

Ross Noble's Australian Trip will air on Five later this month.