Matt Rudge began his showbiz career young, providing voices to cartoons and radio programmes while still a child before going on to study at drama school.

While working as a runner at MTV studios after graduation, he was asked to keep a studio audience entertained while Ruby Wax was being hypnotized, starting his career as a warm-up act.

Presenting work followed, including fronting off-the-wall reports for The Wright Stuff on Channel 5, BBC News and ITN. In 2004 he was the voiceover and warm up act on Channel 4's Kings of Comedy.

He also claims he may be the only person to have died twice on Casualty, in two separate episodes as two different characters. Once by smoke inhalation, once by brain hemorrhage

Gadabouts - Fringe 2009
Live Review

It would be fair to say that The Gadabouts’ sketch show is of its time. That time being 11pm. The late night slot means the weaknesses of this show and the paucity of laughter and applause are not exposed in such a sharp contrast as would have been the case had if the show was on in the afternoon.

That’s not to say there aren’t good things here, though often they are in the form of filmed sketches rather than live work. Video snippets include Matt Rudge’s hapless driving instructor Larry Leonard, a character ripe for development, while Joe Bor’s French free runner, supposedly leaping from building to building, might also have promise if it is made a little more zany.

Too often, however, whether on stage or on screen, the duo’s sketches lack a pay-off and seem to be travelling along a straight line in terms of comedic invention. At the top of the show they joke that they are different from every other white middle-class male sketch duo on the Fringe – but the bar has been set high this year.

Premises such as a corkscrew meeting a cork he once penetrated without some clever wordplay to embroider it don't cut much mustard in this context and neither does a no frills, formulaic skit like Infection Idol, where various lame diseases try and impress a panel with their potential for pandemic.

While none of the sketches are inherently bad they all want for something and as the audience leave there’s a sense that they have been adequately entertained, a midnight snack which will keep their hunger for comedy at bay, but won’t impact upon their Fringe memory.  

Agree with the below. Saw Matt twice, in Cambridge and Norwich and was thoroughly impressed each time. Warm, friendly, but with a slight edge in his material at times.

Linda, June 2010

Saw him as a warm up act for Stewart Francis in Norwich very funny, would like to see more

James C, May 2010

I saw Matt supporting Stewart Francis in Bristol. He was by far the funniest support act I have seen, and I have seen a few!

becky, plymouth, May 2010

What fun Matt is! Well modulated delivery, a warm and inviting personality and funny as hell!

Pammy Dharling, May 2010

I saw Mat supporting Stewart Francis on his national tour and thought he was great! Some good gags and some excellent stories really got the crowd going.

Gail, October 2009

I saw this man compere at the Newbury Comedy Festival on three occasions and wasn't impressed.

Mel, Newbury., July 2009

Although performing early on in the evening, and with what he called a shorter than usual set, I think Matt took the honours at this Tuesday's XS Malarkey show. Justifiably confident, he reminded me of a slightly less geeky Russell Howard, although this might be down to the shared West Country background. He called back nicely to some of the audience banter initiated by compere Toby Hadoke and had everyone chuckling in the aisles within moments of his arrival and right up until the end of his set with plenty of sound material and apparent ad libs in between. In fact, I have to wonder whether it would have been a better night overall had Matt been headlining - because I feel that he would have been more able/willing to effectively to silence the drunks who fractured the headline act to the extent that the evening eventually became just a little too edgy. Regardless, Matt is thoroughly recommended and I hope to see his full show somewhere else before too long.

Ben, February 2009

Excellent stuff. Matt did an opening twenty at the University of Essex last night and got the evening off to a perfect start. His singing mum routine had my table in stitches.

Helen Bloomberg, June 2007