On Gordon Brown's Bigotgate

At Chortle's Fast Fringe

More Brendon Burns videos

Australian comic Brendon Burns has been performing comedy since the early Nineties and is known for his aggressive stage presence and controversial material.

He briefly hosted the 11 O'Clock Show and even more briefly the ITV2 spin-off show I’m A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here Now!, walking off after just three shows.

However it is live – and especially in his solo shows – where he has forged a reputation, with six live CDs to his name. He has also performed at Montreal and South African comedy festivals

He first appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe in 1996, hosting The Comedy Zone showcase of new acts, and performing in his debut solo show 6pm Time To Get Up For Work. He has returned to the Fringe every year since, except for 1999, and in 2007 won its top prize, the if.comedy award

A trilogy, Burnsy versus Brendon, which ran at Edinburgh in 2004, 2005 and 2006, examined his own life – culminating in his mental breakdown and drinks and drugs rehabilitation at the Priory.

The Wrestling
Live Review

Only in Edinburgh.

Max Olesker, of sketch duo Max and Ivan, decided he wanted to stage a real night of wrestling, in which genuine hardmen, built like brick shithouses, would share the ring with comedians, built like Wendy houses. And, in his words, ‘Somehow this has been allowed to happen.’

It was an audacious plan with every possibility of being a chaotic disaster – both metaphorically and physically – with 15 comedy acts joining wrestlers with names like Dan ‘The Hammer’ Head and Johnny Moss ‘245lbs of invincible muscle’, despite having little time to prepare. Never has the Fringe’s ‘let’s do this thing’ spirit been so sorely tested – and come up so triumphantly.

Most of the comics were, sensibly, used as managers, valets, ring announcers and the like in this battle of good versus evil – but that didn’t mean they escaped being in harm’s way.

On the side of the good, led by Bible-bashing Russell Kane, we had Mark Watson, Patrick Monahan dressed like Freddie Mercury, Abandoman rapping the entrance for wrestler Mark Haskins and Colin Hoult as The Mighty Thwor, God Of Thunder – or was it just a nutter from Leeds?

On the side of evil, led by Adam Riches, was Humphrey Ker, a Nazi bruiser nicknamed the Vinyl Solution; Tom ‘Explosenthal’ Rosenthal, dressed as a gimp; Jessica Ransom as a brilliantly deranged Russian mother, and a rather underused Rich Fulcher, boasting he had ‘more money than Jesus’s cock’.

Nick Helm was the perfect choice as the rasping, brusque MC; Matthew Crosby the roving reporter, bringing witty pre-match excitement from the lengthy queues outside as well as in the room itself; and Frisky & Mannish providing first-rate halftime entertainment, with a stirring version of Eye Of The Tiger given their own genre-bending twist.

Key to getting the atmosphere going were Andrew Maxwell and Brendon Burns commentating ringside on the side of good and evil respectively. If there’s a rabble to be roused, you couldn’t do much better than these two. Being a comedy crowd, the instinct was to go with the heels, but Maxwell, spouting delightfully pious aphorisms, rallied the sold-out 770-strong crowd with the unlikely chant: ‘Fair play and decency!’ and we swung on to the righteous path.

To a person, the mob brought into the idea; and for a shade under two hours yelled their support, booed the bad guys and aaa-hed every bone-crunching move. It’s impossible to describe the pumped-up atmosphere, but there’s not been a febrile, feral blood lust like this since the old Late And Live – but this time the threat of death was less metaphorical.

The wrestlers didn’t hold back, and the comics threw themselves into it as much as their puny frames would let them. The sight of Rosenthal in tight all-over rubber, gnawing away like a gerbil at his opponent is one that will haunt my dreams for weeks.

Attention-whore Monahan, who couldn’t bear not being the centre of attention, seemed to genuinely annoy one of the men-mountain, who started throwing chairs with apparently real disregard for audience safety, and chased the Geordie comic through the crowd. If the comedy doesn’t work out, Monahan will always have a career as a rodeo clown waiting for him. And his grandstanding antics thoroughly earned him that piledriver. Oh yes, this shit got very real.

Star of the show, though, was Max himself. He was once the youngest professional wrestler in the UK, and although now retired, he proved he’s still got the skills, taking a good old beating, only to make a remarkable comeback in a later bout with a jaw-dropping display of acrobatic talent. He won the day for the side of good (what are the odds?) but not without sacrifice. He ended up in A&E with what’s thought to be a fractured ankle.

But it wasn’t just wrestling, the comedy element lived up to the anticipation, too. With so many competitive, quick-witted performers in the room, the banter sparkled, with ad-libbed hilarious lines being thrown about like… well, like a wimpy comedian in a wrestling ring.

The result was a unforgettable night of guffaws, drama and a genuine fear for the safety of others. Edinburgh has not seen its like before – and when you consider what has happened in this city over the years, that’s quite an achievement. A truly awesome event.

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Saw him on I'm a Celeb Now last night, never seen such car crash telly in my life! The audience werent laughing, he can't read autocue, it was painful to watch - dont think his TV career is going to go far!

Luke Byrnes, November 2006

I just saw him at the garrick, he was funny in the way your mate is when he's descibing a good night out,but this wore thin. By the end, when he seemed to be proclaiming himself to be the greatest comedian of his generation, it was simply embarrassing.He needs to pull his head out of his arse and write some good material. I've heard some people comparing him to Bill Hicks, Thats like comparing Rolf Harris toLeonardo Da Vinci. No matter how personal or preachy Hicks got, he always had killer jokes to go with it,and it was this that made him the comedian of his generation. If anybody wants to see a great comedian go see Kitson or buy a Chris Rock DVD.

ian, October 2006

This guy opened the Cape Town International Comedy festival "Danger Zone" Fresh out of drug rehab, (London's upper class overpriced Priory). He misreads his audience, and portrays an even more arrogant and ignorant attitude and he exhudes all the pretentiousness of a wannabe comedian who has never hit the big time- and certainly never will. His overbearing, condescending and agonizing stage presence succeeded in only one thing...It took away the limelight from the other truly brilliant comedians and ruined the momentum of the show. Sure he might gain a few laughs, but he will never have an audience in hysterics- which was the whole advertised point of the venue. Bottom line is I cannot believe that the general public were conned into paying lots of money to hear him at the expense of other performer...T ime for him to hang up the mike and find a real job.

Peter O., September 2006

He just gets better and better. A complete legend. His show is so funny I think I peed a little bit. Unbelievably clever and on the mark at all times. Seriously intelligent, quick thinking and expressive. His abuse ranges from the crude and the rude to deeply involved diatribes - even if you are too slow to understand the astuteness underneath, you can still laugh at the surface rants. The mans brain must be like an information soaked spongy vortex that absorbs everything and throws it back out in the form of a hilarious observation wrapped up in a comedy genius bow. Funny as fuck

Cat, September 2006

Anyone looking for pointers as to the quality of Burns' comedy should refer to his little addendum to Ben Stevens' comment (below)

Dave, July 2006

Brendon Burns rocks! Saw him last night in Islington in a tiny sweat box of a venue, and he had me captivated for the whole hour despite the heat. He's the Aussie Bill Hicks, go see him.

Gaz, July 2006

A truly brilliant, very funny comedian when he's on form, kinda embarrassing when not.

Simon, July 2006

Seen Brendon many times in Sheffield and Edinburgh. He develops and tries out new material all the time .... 2005 Edinburgh was terrific ... he had so much material, and so much audience engagement, that, prompted by a heckler and in order to finish his set, we all followed him outside where he continued his set for another 45 minutes in the square outside the Gilded Balloon, to the amazement of passers-by. No-one left, some even missing their next show for him. He's not a lazy comic, and you should expect to be intellectually challenged as well as amused. Stay away if easily offended.

Goatfuckerheckler, July 2006

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