Arthur Smith’s show My First 75 Years In Comedy will transfer to Pleasance London in March 2023. Following a sold out and acclaimed run at the Edinburgh Fringe this year, London audiences will be able to catch up with Arthur as he reminisces about his many years visiting the Fringe, his stand up career and the adventures he has had along the way.
This is Arthur Smith’s love letter to the world of comedy and the playground of the imagination that is the Edinburgh Fringe which celebrated its 75th anniversary this year. He tells the story of the great city and its festivals, his life on the London comedy circuit and recalls some of the triumphs, disasters, love affairs and arrests along the way.
Hamlet, Colditz, Leonard Cohen, Dante, dementia, Gary Lineker and the Leith Police all feature in this moving hour of revelations, songs, poems, and gags.
Arthur Smith said: “Ever since they chose to name Arthur’s Seat in my honour, I have felt obliged to study this glorious city and delve into the history of its ridiculous and brilliant Festival. It led me to doing shows all over Britain and abroad and I am proud to tell you all about my years of making people laugh.”
Arthur Smith has been a comedian for a very long time and is also a successful playwright with both An Evening with Gary Lineker and The Live Bed Show transferring to the West End. His autobiography, My Name Is Daphne Fairfax, was published to critical acclaim in 2009. Arthur is a regular presenter on BBC Radio 4 and 4 Extra, has appeared on Have I Got News for You, QI, Grumpy Old Men, The Unbelievable Truth and The One Show. He does the commentary on the hit BBC series Money for Nothing and his recent book is called 100 Things I Meant To Tell You.
He also performs stand-up all round Britain and beyond. In 2008 he won the Edinburgh Festival Spirit of the Fringe Award and continues to host his legendary and increasingly surreal late-night tours of the Royal Mile. He spent the pandemic delving into the long and glorious history of the Edinburgh Festival and writing a joke about Deliveroo. He is the recipient of the Bath Plug Award at the Bath Comedy Festival and has won 2 (imaginary) Oscars.
ARTHUR SMITH LISTINGS
Arthur Smith
My First 75 Years In Comedy
16, 17, 18 March 2023
Pleasance, Carpenters Mews, North Road, London N7 9EF
020 7609 1800
Picture: Steve Ullathorne
