“Filthy silly”: Hot Department make their triumphant return to the stage with ‘Open for Business’
Words by Joanne Brookfield
Netflix, where are you? Give them a series. Now!
Purveyors of the most glorious filth, surrealism and laugh-out-loud-until-you-hurt hilarity, Hot Department are destined to be major international comedy stars.
Calling themselves a “sexually dysfunctional comedy duo with deep trauma and a validation addiction”, what is most remarkable about Honor Wolff and Patrick Durnan Silva, apart from their glaringly obvious talent, is the alchemy of their on-stage relationship.
Their chemistry is undeniable – a unique treasure in a creative partnership such as this. So, how did they first meet?
Aaron Chen’s “twisted ideas”, the human condition and why he’s ‘Sorry Forever’
Words by Andrew Brassington
The show that sold “70 billion” tickets.
Sydney-based comedian Aaron Chen makes his return to the stage for Melbourne International Comedy Festival 2021, to share some of his “bad thoughts” and “twisted ideas”.
His new show, titled
Sorry Forever, sees the comedian reflecting more on himself, his interactions with other people and the objects that surround his life.
“This is my most personal show yet”, says Chen. “As of today, I feel no guilt at all. A big burden has been lifted off my shoulders by saying sorry.
The iconic Upfront comedy showcase returns with another lineup of fierce and funny women Celia Pacquola
We chat with Upfront participant and comedy legend Geraldine Hickey ahead of the event.
Upfront is a one-night-only show that’s long been a pivotal part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. The show features some of the best female comics plucked from the festival at large and put into one stellar lineup to bring the house to tears (of laughter).
Since it’s conception, the regular festival show has given audiences a chance to see some of the best bits of their comedy favs, along with getting a taste for some newer acts they might not have seen before.
When the much loved music quiz show Spicks and Specks returns to Australian screens later this month for a 10-episode run, it will be like welcoming an old friend back into the living room.
Host Adam Hills, team captains Myf Warhurst and Alan Brough - and their endless roster of musician and comedian guests - have been delighting audiences with music trivia and inventive games on and off for more than 15 years. And, like the seasoned professionals and old friends they are, the trio and the behind-the-scenes team of writers, producers and technicians have made it look easy. Alan Brough, Adam Hills and Myf Warhurst on the set of the new season of Spicks and Specks.
Meet Melbourne’s rising stars set to battle it out at the RAW Comedy National Grand Final Prue Blake
Like superheroes, stand up comics have their own unique origin stories.
For Prue Blake, it was two years ago when she was in a pizza cafe in Copenhagen, by chance listening to a Danish cover of Gloria Gaynor’s ‘I Will Survive’, when a text came through. It was her ex-boyfriend, after they broke up only a few days earlier.
“Something about that just clicked something in me,” she recalls.
“We broke up on a Friday. I booked flights that day, left on the Sunday, went to Copenhagen for a week and then came back committed to stand up comedy,” she says.