Abandoman has previously won Hackney Empire New Act of the Year, Best Comedy Newcomer at the Adelaide Fringe, headlined comedy stages at Glastonbury, Latitude, Reading and Leeds, performed in the house band for Alan Carr’s Happy Hour on Channel 4 alongside Craig David, played the part of Dictionary Corner in 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, as well as supported and toured with pop behemoth Ed Sheeran.

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QUOTES

“Flight of the Conchords meets 8 Mile. Nothing short of genius.” – Chortle

“Truly innovative” – The Guardian

“The most original act we’ve seen in a long time. Go and see them.” – Maxim

“Killer punchlines. Note-perfect, lyrically mind-blowing hip-hop improv. Genius!” – The Stage

“A star of the future!” – Time Out

“A freestyle talent that is unparalleled anywhere in the market. No two shows could ever be the same as they pick out audience members and freestyle about them, with comedic timing and witty rhyming that’s so impressive it could’ve been scripted.” – The Independent

“Abandoman are awesome; the next big thing in Irish comedy.” – Andrew Maxwell, Comedian

“Stole the show…a revelation and a first in live comedy” – Evening Herald, Ireland

“As inspiring in its simplicity as it is mind-blowing in its complexity: a must see.” – Spoonfed.co.uk

“An incredible rap featuring my friend Siobhan and Toby” – Daisy

All of which is why he has his own series on Radio 4.

As well as pleasing his die hard fans, the radio series aims to bring the full flavour of Boothby Graffoe to an audience who do not know his work.

Boothby Graffoe is a skilled performer, expert with an audience, so it is recorded as live at the Drill Hall. He has a lovely singing voice, so each show has at least one song. He tells great gags, ranging from the political to the silly and surreal and delivers great anecdotes so all are included in the show.

And this year the gag count is even higher as writer Jim Miller (Jo Brand: Through the Cakehole) joins the team.

With Boothby Graffoe on stage are his small team of regulars: accomplished actor Stephen Frost, and fab guitarist Antonio Forcione. A guest actor also joins each week, Paul Zerdin, Debra Stephenson (star of Bad Girls) and Art Malik are all looking forward to being part of the show for a night.

QUOTES about Boothby Graffoe:

“Sings songs that are both beautiful and funny” – The Guardian

“…it’s not fair to call them comedy songs, they are much more than that, there are some i would dare to call genius.” -The Times

“Buy two copies of his cd because you’ll want to share but you won’t want to give it away.” -The Scotsman

“No more music maestro, please!” -The Independent

Chris McCausland is a British stand-up comedian and actor from Liverpool.

Chris is blind, has been performing stand-up since 2003, and has long been firmly established at the very top of the UK’s live comedy circuit. He performs all over the country, including regularly at the world famous Comedy Store in the heart of London’s West End.

He has performed all over the world, including India, Singapore, Malaysia, across the Middle East, and throughout Europe.

Chris has taken seven different stand-up shows to the Edinburgh Festival for full run

Quotes about Chris McCausland:

“Chris was brilliant and brought to life what was otherwise a pretty dull day of policy discussions. Thanks!” NHS Scotland.

“Thank you for sending Chris over to help with our training day.  Everybody is still talking about it.  I’ll never look at another crow the same again” – LOCOG (Olympic organisers)

“Always excellent – A must see!” – The Sunday Tomes

“Chris McCausland proves that funny is funny whether you can see it or not” – The Guardian

“Proper stand up, honest straightforward and balls-out funny” – Chortle

As seen on…

8 out of 10 Cats Does Countdown – Channel Four 2020.

Have I Got News for You – BBC One 2019

Would I Lie to You? – BBC One 2019

Twice on Live at the Apollo – BBC Two 2018 & 2019

Three series of Comedy Central at the Comedy Store for Comedy Central and Paramount Comedy

Jimmy Carr’s Celebrity Deal or No Deal for Channel Four

ITV Stand-up HeroUnwrapped with Miranda Hart for BBC2

The Comedy Club Interviews with Arthur Smith for Radio 4

Comedy on the Boat for Radio 4

Loose Ends with Clive Anderson for Radio 4

Multiple shows across BBC and Commercial radio, alongside the likes of Rob Beckett, Bob Mills, Russel Kane, Hawksby & Jacobs, and Gethin Jones

For the past ten years Derren has created TV and stage performances that have stunned audiences, debunked the paranormal and encouraged many to improve and enhance their own mental abilities. His first show appeared in 2000, Derren Brown: Mind Control, and followed with Trick of the Mind, Trick or Treat and a series of Specials including the controversial Russian Roulette and the hugely popular Events.

Derren is a keen writer and has penned four books to date. Whilst his first two books, Absolute Magic and Pure Effect, are both out of print his third release Tricks of the Mindspent over 30 weeks on the Amazon best-seller list. His fourth release Confessions of a Conjurer was released in October 2010.

Derren has consistently stunned audiences across the nation with his live stage shows, earning him a string of award nominations. He has won both the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Entertainment Show, and a Silver Rose d’Or for Variety. A 2011 tour is planned as well as a possible broadway run.

While his performances create the illusion that he has some kind of paranormal powers, Derren is a prominent sceptic and a pronounced atheist. The Blogis a repository of news items that explore these facets of Derren’s persona. The articles are submitted by visitors to the Blog and discussed in the comments sections. A diverse range of topics are covered, encompassing Science, Technology, Art, Magic, Religion and some good old-fashioned silliness.

In addition to his award-winning performances on stage and television, Derren is also an accomplished artist. Specialising in a unique style of caricatured portraiture, Derren’s work has been exhibited at the prestigious Rebecca Hossack Gallery in central London as well as being published in a collected volume of worksin which Derren also writes about his passion for the medium and his development as an artist.

“Binns has his character absolutely nailed, and mines the comic seam ruthlessly to create top-quality entertainment with practically universal appeal.” – The Guardian

He has been acclaimed by critics and audiences as being ‘unbelievable’. If you want to really wow your guests with something different, then book him today and see for yourself why he’s so popular. He could be suitable for private parties, weddings and corporate events alike.

Ian D Montfort Awards

Chortle Award Nominee 2011

Edinburgh Comedy Award Nominee 2007

Best Comedian Nominee Adelaide Fringe 2010 and 2011

Top 50 Most Memorable Gigs of the Decade, Chortle 2000-2010

Top 10 Fosters Comedy God 2010

Winner – The Press Critics Choice Award ‘Best National Artist’ World Buskers Festival 2012

Javier Jarquin spent the last 4 years working as a professional comedian in New Zealand. After winning the 2007 `So You Think You`re Funny` competition in Christchurch He played and headlined in some of the biggest clubs in NZ and Melbourne, on television and was a core member of New Zealand`s longest running comedy show: Scared Scriptless. He`s been to the NZ International Comedy Festival 3 times and in 2010 won Best Show Wellington and opened for Pauly Shore on his NZ tour.

Since moving to the UK in August 2010 he has established himself as a circuit regular and headline act. He has performed on the same bill with top names such as Jimmy Carr, Stewart Lee, Jo Brand and Paul Daniels.

He was a finalist (4th place) in the prestigious Hackney Empire New Act of the Year Competition and has also performed in Croatia, Romania, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovenia. He is based in London.

He is also well known for his CARD NINJA act.

QUOTES

“He’s gonna be a star” – William Burdett-Coutts (Producer of Black Books / Artistic Director of Assembly Theatre)

“Jarquin is seriously talented when it comes to working a crowd” – The Stage

“Brilliantly entertaining performance” – The Edinburgh Reporter

“Fresh, funny and unique” – The Press (NZ)

“Tight, cohesive and extremely well executed” – Theatreview (NZ)

Lee Ridley AKA Lost Voice Guy may not be able to talk but he definitely has something to say and his comedy will leave you speechless.

Lee won Britain’s Got Talent in 2018 and the BBC New Comedy Award in 2014. Lee’s other credits include America’s Got Talent: The Champions(NBC), Live At The Apollo (BBC Two), The Royal Variety Performance (ITV),  I Just Called To Say… (Sky Arts), Comedy Central At The Comedy Store (Comedy Central UK) and two series of Ability (BBC Radio 4) which he co-wrote with Katherine Jakeways.

Lee went on a massive nationwide tour of the U.K in 2019, performing 103 shows and selling out venues up and down the country. He’s also performed at the Edinburgh Fringe, Latitude, Comedy Central Live, Galway Comedy Festival, Brighton Fringe, Glasgow International Comedy Festival, Leicester Comedy Festival, Nottingham Comedy Festival and Liverpool Comedy Festival.

Lee’s first book, I’m Only In It For The Parking, was published in May 2019 by Transworld.

Lee has told jokes/given motivational speeches for a range of charities and organisations including Sainsbury’s, Barclays and The Royal College of Nurses. He is also an ambassador for Scope as well as being a patron of Smile For Life, Find A Voice, Communication Matters and The Sequal Trust.

Individually they have a massive back catalogue of work in some of the UK’s biggest comedy shows: The IT crowd, peep show, Nathan Barley, Call me Graham Norton. As a group, their debut show at the Edinburgh festival was a complete sell-out and they are currently working with various production companies with a view to creating their own TV show.

They have received rave reviews across the board and have just released their first sketch on the BBC comedy website. “What do women really want”

They are currently appearing in venues across London. Shows can be made suitable for any audience and tailored to your requirements!

QUOTES:

“what pedigree of a cast..their timing is excellent..and they have off-kilter sensibilities in performance as well as writing..cracking jokes and blindsiding non-sequiturs in the punchy script” – Chortle

“The members of this troupe are no strangers to success and ample praise..fast-paced and constantly evolving from character to character and sketch to sketch, these seasoned professionals never drop their game and complement each other like ham and mustard. Their dexterity and timing are, in fact, second to none..” – Edinburgh Festivals Magazine

“The pace of the show never flagged, the scenes were slick and the performers were really enjoying themselves. ‘Men of War’ was certainly up towards the very top of the sketch comedy genre.” – One4Review

“Men Of War is a bastion of comedic traditionalism, and the set is one of old-fashioned sketch formats set to modern themes – think the two Ronnies – All are splendid comic performers, able to switch character, accent and demeanour perfectly, and there are moments of biting satire and occasionally sublime absurdity.” – Three Weeks

“A new sketch group with a consistently high hit rate, Men Of War are a late-night treat brimming with ingenious setups, performed by a seasoned cast wringing maximum laughs from their skits” – Fest Magazine

Since starting stand-up comedy in 2007, the talented and enthusiastic Nick Helm is quickly gaining attention from across the industry for his unique, powerful and above all hilarious blend of one-liners, stories, poems and songs. In addition, he is also a strong, energetic compere.

In 2010, Nick headed up to Edinburgh in two shows. He was seen at the Big Value Early Show at Just the Tonic @ the Caves. He was also doing his second solo show ‘KEEP HOLD OF THE GOLD’ Downstairs at the Tron, which became one of the must-see shows of the festival, garnering huge attention from across the industry and rave reviews from the press. This year, Nick can be seen performing at the Glasgow Comedy Festival and will be taking a new show to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Alongside his solo stand up, he is also half of the double act ‘Helm & Taylor’ (with our very own Paul F Taylor) and reached the final of the Laughing Horse Competition 2009.

He is the creator of the innovative ‘My First Gig’: a live comedy night where stand ups dissect their first ever performances. My First Gig has recently enjoyed a stint on Resonance 104.4 FM radio and has just been given a second series. Alongside all of this, Nick is also a regular contributor to the Fix Magazine as the Film Editor.

In 2001 Nick formed Bad Ash Productions and has since written, directed and performed in several plays under the Bad Ash name, as well as writing and performing in a couple of poetry and music shows in the Edinburgh festival.

STAND-UP COMPETITIONS

LAUGHING HORSE 2009 – FINALIST (HELM & TAYLOR)
LAUGHING HORSE 2009 – SEMI-FINALIST (SOLO)
AMUSED MOOSE 2008 – SEMI-FINALIST (SOLO)
LAUGHING HORSE 2008 – SEMI-FINALIST (SOLO)
SO YOU THINK YOU’RE FUNNY 2007 – SEMI-FINALIST (SOLO)

QUOTES

“Nick Helm will be the breakout act of this Fringe – or at least he ought to be if there’s any justice. …. It’s a real blast.” – Chortle

“…a brilliant and frequently hilarious hour of entertainment… Helm demonstrates he is fast becoming a master at his art with a clever and brave routine … It’s impressive… excellent entertainment value… leaves the audience on a massive high…This is worth every penny.” – British Comedy Guide

“Big presence… charming, very funny and a fine showcase for this young comic’s burgeoning career…. very subtle wryness to his humour… touching, original.” – Fest

“…as skilled with a witty one-liner as he is with a poem or a song” – Edinburgh Spotlight

“…a strong, accomplished hour about finding life’s positives, featuring gravel:voiced songs and inventive audience interaction” – Time Out

“The real star of the show was Nick Helm, who was, in the best way possible, an excited 12 year old on stage, nervous, energetic and a fan of pointless games.” – Three Weeks

“Has a freshness and originality about it… Must be seen to be believed.” – The Scotsman