Three months ago I attended a paid “workshop” in Bristol, which promised to help new comedians improve their chances of winning comedy competitions. One by one, more than a dozen of us got up and did seven minutes of material to each other, and were subsequently judged, X-Factor style, on our performances by a professional comedian and a left-wing comedy critic/booker.…
Leave a CommentEdinburgh Fringe – the largest arts festival in the world – runs throughout August every year, and is the ideal summer holiday for wannabe comedians wanting to turn their dreams of a standup career into reality. A year ago I was bored, unemployed and purposeless. Late one night, while browsing eBay, I found a coach ticket to Scotland for less…
Leave a Comment“And the award for funniest blind lesbian of the year goes to…” I won an industry award last week: “Breakthrough Act Of The Year”. It certainly came as a shock given I’ve been performing standup comedy for less than a year. Don’t worry. It hasn’t gone to my head. I’m not deluded into thinking I’m the greatest comedian in the…
Leave a CommentIn the last nine months, I’ve spent most nights of the week travelling up and down the country performing at open mic comedy shows to audiences big and small. During those 150+ gigs I have, as you’d expect, met hundreds of the nicest, most intelligent and creative people around. Unsurprisingly, given what an intrinsically eccentric hobby I’m pursuing, I’ve also come across…
Leave a CommentI’ve been involved in the world of comedy since the beginning of this millennium – mainly behind the scenes in various capacities. Earlier this year, I decided I would start performing stand-up comedy and treat it the way you would any full-time job. However, unlike most people starting out fresh on the circuit, I had the advantage of my experience…
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