Is the future of comedy really doomed by over-regulation? Are broadcasters so afraid of offending the public that edgy spontaneity has been extinguished? Is there life after the media savaging of Russell Brand and Jonathan Ross? The former hidden camera show comic Dom Joly has answered these much mulled-over questions in a video at funnyordie.co.uk and let's just say the future of comedy is looking efficient.

He kicks off the grimly monikered Dom Joly's Blatant Camera Show (tinyurl.com/5qdojs) by approaching a woman on the street, telling her who he is and asking if he can play a prank on her. Explaining where the cameras are and that the gag will involve him sneaking up and blowing a foghorn in her ear, he checks his health and safety box by handing her a pair of sound-minimising headphones and a fluorescent safety vest. Next, he elicits her signature for a legal waiver and counts down a ten-second cooling-off period. And then, finally, tediously, the joke.

Depressed yet? Well, head to the American version of Funny or Die (funnyordie.com) for reassurance that comedy hasn't been legislated to death just yet. In fact, even that seemingly serious soul Kevin Bacon, he of such gloomy films as Sleepers, The Woodsman and Mystic River, is showing his droll side on Will Ferrell's site.

In his first posting (tinyurl.com/5ny35e), the actor has launched the Kevin Bacon Movie Club. For $20 per month you receive a new Kevin Bacon DVD every 30 days, complete with a signed movie poster and certificate of authenticity. But wait, there's more: he'll even deliver the movie to your door in person. Demonstrating the benefits of the club, the actor is seen showing up at the pristine address of a mild-mannered young couple and eventually wreaking havoc. Let's just say that even a movie star can't make drinking copious amounts of alcohol and eliciting pleasure from farts attractive. A must-see video.

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