...and on, and on, and on ...

Comics are planning to shatter the world record for the longest ever stand-up show – with a 36-hour marathon.

More than 150 comedians from across the UK will take part in One Big Laugh, breaking another record for the most acts on the bill.

The existing world record for a continuous, uninterrupted live comedy show is just over 32 hours, but organiser Michael McEwan is confident that record will fall.

He will also be compering the entire gig, which starts at one minute to midnight on March 30 and ends at midday on April 1.

McEwan, a 20-year-old journalist who has been performing comedy since he was six, said: “I’m not sure how it is going to go. I’ll just need to stock up on Pro Plus a week beforehand, I reckon.”

The gig, in Edinburgh’s Three Tuns pub, will raise money for Depression Alliance Scotland.

McEwan said he chose the cause specifically because of his own battle with depression following a sustained period of bullying at school.

He added: “With luck, One Big Laugh will help to promote the illness a little better and challenge people to question the stigma that is so cruelly, albeit unintentionally, associated with it.

“It is important for people with the illness to realise that is nothing to be ashamed of, and for society in general to accept that depression is an illness and not just a state of mind.”

Published: 24 Jan 2005