Comedy Cast

Today you'll be hearing from Welsh stand-up comedian Robin Morgan. Had a really insightful chat with Robin about comedy. Robin writes for the BBC Radio 4's The New Quiz, among others, so it was great to talk to him about the transition of going from writing his own material for his own shows to writing material both with other comedians and for them. We had a chat about Welsh comedy, moving up to London. Comedy advice from his parents, how he works on his stand-up routine and his flirtation with the Welsh Death Metal scene.

Today you'll be hearing an absolute belter of an interview with Scottish stand-up John Scott. John's such a talented comedian, mixing the big issues of the day with the normal banality of life all the while ensuring that there's a solid and warm connection with his audience. The interview was recorded the morning after Donald Trump won the Presidential election in America so, of course, that popped up. We also spoke about Brexit and the Scottish Independence Referendum, being a Scot living in Northern England. We spoke too about going back to college, comedy as a default defense mechanism, his influences, dying on his arse for the first time, his punk ethics and how he works on his act.

Today you'll be hearing from British stand-up comedian Meryl O'Rourke. Meryl has been doing stand-up for about ten years now and has found a loyal following on the scene thanks to her particular style of humour and frank delivery. It would be unfair to call her 'one of the lads' but she'd make all your male friends blush with her anecdotes and two seconds later have them howling with laughter. We spoke about her love of comedy, how it was passed onto her by her mother (bringing her to see Morecambe & Wise at the age of 5) and her love of comedy writing too. Comedy wasn't the only thing she inherited from her mother; indeed a few years ago she won over many an audience and critic with her successful show "Bad Mother." A show that dealt hilariously with the anxiety she'd inherited and how she came to terms with it when she started her own family.

Today you'll be hearing from Hull-based British comedian Gina Jenkinson. When I first saw Gina's stand-up show I was sure she was going to eat me alive on the show; she's known for being controversial and a bit aggressive on stage, but all fears were quickly washed away. Gina was incredibly lovely to speak to and she quickly opened up about her childhood. In 2015 she made headlines with her Edinburgh Fringe show "Desperately Seeking Attention" a show about how she dealt with her tumultuous upbringing. While researching I read it had been quite bad but what she revealed in the interview was quite shocking. Thankfully Gina has a common trait among comedian; the will to succeed. She hasn't let her past dominate her and when parenthood and marriage didn't quite deliver the satisfaction she thought it would she set herself the goal of becoming a stand-up comedian. To be so open and honest on stage with material that's pretty horrific at times and to make fun of it and to get other people to laugh both at and alo

Today you'll be hearing from Irish stand-up comedian Danny O'Brien. Danny's not all that long on the comedy scene but he's certainly rising up through the ranks and gaining new fans quickly. We had a chat about why he got into comedy, his part in The Comedy Crunch, one of Dublin's most talked about stand-up comedy shows, held on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday nights in The Stag's Head. We also had a chat about his comedic influences growing up, how he works on his sets for different audiences, and it wouldn't be right for two Irish lads to chat and not talk about oral sex.

Today we have a very special Comedy Cast interview. A few weeks ago while researching potential guests I came across a Facebook post about a stand-up comedy course being held in Belfast; and with Belfast being such a hotbed of comedic activity in recent years I had to find out more. Graeme Watson runs the course and just by sheer luck on my part it turned out that Graeme is one of the guiding hands behind Belfast and Northern Irish comedy, for shame I hadn't heard of him before, but in my defense, I'm still new at this comedy game. Graeme performs stand-up still but his main focus is in running comedy clubs and gigs, being one of the organisers of the Belfast Comedy Festival, running an annual stand-up comedy course and generally being an all-round good guy to comedians in Northern Ireland. I loved talking to Graeme, I think in the future we can definitely talk again and I was over the moon to hear him talk so passionately about the thriving Belfast comedy scene and just his love for comedy and for helping

Welcome back to The Comedy Cast; today we have a very special guest, Ben MacLean, a Canadian stand-up comedian making a career for himself in Germany’s capital city, Berlin. Ben MacLean was bitten by the comedy bug a while ago and even though he didn’t delve in immediately, choosing to take his time and perfect … Continue reading The Comedy Cast Interview with Ben MacLean

Today you'll be hearing an interview I did with Northern Irish comedian, Paddy McDonnell. Paddy's been on the stand-up scene for a few years now and if you're familiar with the burgeoning Belfast stand-up comedy scene. So, of course we had a chat about why Belfast is going through something of a comedy boom at the moment; what it was like growing up in west Belfast during the 1980s and living on a daily basis with The Troubles. Of course we spoke about his style of comedy; how he perfects his act; his ambitions for the comedy world; how he got the nickname Dagger and to finish off we have our usual True/False Challenge.

Today you're going to be hearing from an American stand-up comedian who is making a name for himself in the UK. Erich McElroy dabbled in stand-up and sketch comedy before moving to the UK 16 years ago and when he arrived fancied his chances on the up-swinging UK stand-up comedy scene. Fast forward a few years and Erich is a much in-demand political satirist, his special subject is or course American politics but he's not afraid of confrontation; he was the only comedian at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2016 who opposed Scottish Independence (a brave man in my honest opinion). We had a great chat about the state of American politics, of course Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton made an appearance too and then we had a natter about comedy; why he got into it; his influence and heroes and of course at the end our True False Challenge.

Today we'll be hearing from a new, up-and-coming Scottish stand-up comedian, Gary Faulds. Gary's passion for comedy is nothing but infectious, after the interview I felt like I could take on the world while giving it a big hug. I don't know if it's because he's new to comedy and still all starry-eyed with wonder and confidence but I loved chatting to him. I don't for a second really think that though, he's just a mega fellow, very funny and a really sound man. We had a chat about his life before comedy, his time in the British Army and returning to Glasgow to man the family business. We speak about his interesting family history and of course we natter about his comedy, his influences and why he got into the dog-eat-dog world of stand-up comedy.

Today you're going to be hearing from an English stand-up comedian, Tom Ward. Tom's still pretty new to the world of comedy but he's already making waves and has been winning over audiences to his unique style of comedy since he started out. His observational humour is really top class and the way he mixes bizarre observations of the mundanity of modern life really cracks me up, be that his jokes on boiling water, his three favourite types of silence, or his ex-girlfriend's fringe, his live act is something special and Tom Ward is destined for greatness. Of that I have no doubt.

Today you'll be hearing from American comedian Tim Trueheart. Tim's being doing stand-up comedy for a few years now and is the kind of guy that uses his talents in many areas, including: acting, art, voice acting, broadcasting, sketch and of course, stand-up comedy. Tim's clearly a multi-talented guy and a great story teller so we had a great chat about all things comedy, how he got into it and who his influences were, we also talk about his vlogs, the podcast he's involved with (The JellyFish Show Podcast) and how he nearly got stabbed while teaching.

Today you'll be hearing from Irish comedian Robbie Bonham. Robbie will be well-known to anyone that follows the Irish comedy scene, he's been gigging for many years now and is renowned for his honesty and his dealing with personal issues while on stage. This was a real education for me; to speak to a comedian in a time of real transition, as someone who has to deal yet again with alcoholism, relationship difficulties and depression, while also re-entering education as an adult and trying to re-find his place in comedy.

Today you'll be hearing from one of Scotland's most hotly-tipped comedians, Jamie MacDonald. Jamie's a Glasgow man who's pretty new to comedy, only starting a couple of years ago, something we can thank the global recession for. Jamie had just had a really successful stint at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival so we had a chat about that, his comedic influences, why he got into comedy, being labelled a British sex symbol, the Scottish referendums and his new puppy.

We have a very special episode today the current President of the Lafta Republic; President Obonjo. Hello and welcome back to The Comedy Cast. President Obonjo is an outrageously-funny character developed by Benjamin Bello, we had a great laugh together for the interview with some of it being done in character. We spoke about Benjamin's comedy career and about how it all came together when he came up with the character of President Obonjo of the Lafka Republic. We also chatted about his influences and why he got into comedy in the first place. We spoke too about being an emigrant in the UK and how that has had an effect on both his career and character, what he misses from Nigeria and how he stays in touch with his culture. We had a wee natter about the President's plans for world domination and close with the question; what the worst piece of advice he could give new stand-up comedians.

Today you'll be hearing from an American stand-up comedian, Karen Rontowski. Had a great laugh with Karen, not only about comedy, but also about what she likes to do in her spare time; reading tarot cards and ghost hunting. Of course, we also have a chat about comedy; why Karen got into the business, her influences, clean comedy and her appearance on the David Letterman show.

Ryan will be well-known to anyone that has ever seen any of the Facts videos; where Irish people give their reactions to eating or drinking crazy food from around the world, or their reaction to watching something strange from other countries, usually America for some bizarre reason. Had a great chat with Ryan about the Facts videos, about his love for comedy and in particular his special type of comedy, his time at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, his influences growing up and what the future holds for him.

Today you're going to be hearing from English comedian Penelope Solomon, who in her own words ticks all the boxes of 'northern-female-jewish-comedian' Penelope's background is in sketch comedy and acting so we had a great chat about sketch comedy and also her time working on Goodnight Sweetheart an award-winning BBC comedy staring Nicholas Lyndhurst (of Only Fools and Horses fame) from the 1990s. We also had a chat about her successful time at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with her latest show "I Was a Penis"

Today you're going to be hearing from a man who isn't afraid to go where most comedian are, Rahul Kohli. A comedian who made a big slash at this year's Edinburgh Fringe festival. Rahul had just come back from a very successful stint at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival so we chatted about that, we also talked about Brext, and not giving a fuck about it; growing up the son of emigrants in Newcastle; political correctness; Rahul's fearlessness in tackling 'difficult' subjects and a wee chat about the state of the England football team.

Hello and welcome back to The Comedy Cast; Today we have an interview with Eric Lalor one of Ireland’s most well-loved stand-up comedians. Eric is well-known to the vast majority of the Irish population thanks to a 10+ year career as a stand-up comedian. He has also appeared on the Dublin soap opera Fair City … Continue reading Comedy Podcast | The Comedy Cast Interview with Eric Lalor