How Denis got his break

Denis Leary says he has Baddiel and Skinner to thank for his comedy success.

The Unplanned duo persuaded the US comic to perform at the Edinburgh Festival while he was in London in 1990.

He decided to give it a go, and wrote what was to become No Cure For Cancer - the show that made his name.

Leary said: "I had a seven-month period when I had nothing to do [in England].

"I bumped into and became friends with Frank Skinner and Dave Baddiel and they said 'We're going to the Edinburgh Festival, we'll get our manager to give you a spot. Why don't you write a show?'

"I just sat down and started putting the pieces together, and by the time I went to Edinburgh, the thing was a hit. It's fortuitous that I ended up there."

His comments come in a new comedy magazine Crackin, which will be launched with London's Evening Standard tonight.

The interview promotes his new BBC Choice comedy The Job, set in the New York Police Department.

The show has been hugely acclaimed in the US, and its success means Leary has no plans to return to stand-up.

Preview of Crackin' magazine

Published: 5 Jul 2002