Comedian Benny Shakes speaks out about disability discrimination, even at the Edinburgh Fringe

I’ve spent more than 40 years explaining that I’m not drunk. 

I have cerebral palsy. Because of the way I walk and speak, I’ve been laughed at, refused service and treated as though I can’t look after myself.  One incident might seem small, but when it happens throughout your life, it wears you down.

The more I go out gigging, performing children’s shows and visiting shops, the more discrimination I seem to experience. Sometimes I wonder: what’s the point? 

I’ve even avoided eating or going to the toilet for an entire day so I can finish a show and get home without another awkward conversation. I shouldn’t have to avoid basic human needs just to avoid being judged.

I’ve performed comedy since 2019. Disabled Cants, the compilation show I co-created, won the ISH Edinburgh Comedy Awards Panel Prize in 2025 and the Neurodiverse Review Disability Champions Award in 2023. My solo show has received four-star reviews. On paper, I look pretty bloody good!

But I once applied for a job at a sofa company and was told they wouldn’t employ me because of the way I walked and spoke: they didn’t think their customers would take me seriously. Not because I couldn’t do the job, but because of how they thought others would react to my disability.  I’m not saying every rejection is discrimination, but experiences like that make you wonder.

Comedy has given me the confidence to apply for more opportunities, including work in the arts supporting people with learning difficulties. Whether it’s theatre, gardening, retail or comedy, I want to be judged on what I can do, not how I look or sound. Though Disabled Cants, I've worked hard to give disabled comedians a platform and show that we belong on the comedy circuit.

The Edinburgh Fringe has been an important part of that, but this year I felt the festival was different. I found myself yet again being judged because of the way I walk and speak.

Several times I felt my cerebral palsy was mistaken for drunkenness, including encounters involving a shop worker and contracted venue security.

On my final Saturday at the Fringe, I went for a burger with a friend and once again felt my speech was being mistaken for drunkenness. After weeks of performing, I was physically exhausted and fatigue can make the effects of my cerebral palsy more pronounced.

I've spent my whole life dealing with these assumptions, but experiencing them somewhere I love, while doing the job I've worked so hard to build, was particularly upsetting.

As part of my work, I’ve created Blue Badge Bunch, a disability awareness game show. My business partner Susanna Clarke and Joe Dickens, who helps design the games and handles the tech, are part of the team that brings my ideas to life. Non-disabled people have managers, producers and technicians. Yet me needing support means I’m judged  for needing assistant. differently when you’re disabled? 

I also work on a therapeutic farm and create artwork and woodwork. I want to work and become financially independent, but I still need adaptations and support.

There’s a better way: education, understanding and conversation. That’s why my team and I deliver disability awareness training through Blue Badge Bunch, one corporate gig at a time. 

I’m asking for respect, not special treatment. If someone walks differently, don’t assume they’re drunk. If they struggle to speak, give them time. If they need help, don’t assume they’re incapable. 

Please don’t judge me because of the way I walk or speak. Give me the right adaptations, give me the opportunity, and let me show you what I can do.

• Benny Shakes's website is at  bennyshakes.com 

Published: 1 Oct 2026