You could call Stephen K Amos a crowdpleaser without fear of a lawsuit dropping on your desk. He can get the most miserable of audience members laughing like a drain. It doesn’t matter how grim your day has been, going to a Stephen K Amos gig will cheer it up. Amos is one of the attractions of the all-star Balham Comedy Festival which runs from July 8 - 16. He is doing his own headline gig on July 9, tickets here. He then goes to Edinburgh in August where he will be doing not one but two shows – a talk show and a work-in-progress stand-up show. Catch him while you can.
1. What is the last thing you do before you go onstage (apart from check your flies and/or check your knickers aren't sticking out of your skirt and check for spinach between your teeth )?
I usually take a deep breath and make a grunting noise that I've never been able to replicate outside that scenario.
2. What irritates you?
Ill informed, knee jerk reactions, particularly on social media. People are entitled to an informed opinion and to voice it, but sometimes they should either research or think before putting it out there.... forever. How many times have you looked back on a friend's Facebook page from one, two or five years ago and thought 'What the hell were they thinking!?'
3. What is the most dangerous thing you have ever done?
I hadn't slept all night after final festivities at a festival in Melbourne. My friends decided to go for a skydive at 8am. The rational me would never consider the idea because it's a certain recipe for a self induced heart attack, however the jolly me was a very willing participant. Somewhere out there there is a video of me, face contorted, screaming like a wild banshee for five solid minutes attached to a man in the sky.
4. What is the most stupid thing you have ever done?
In an early job I had, I rang up my boss to call in sick, pretending to be my dad and putting on an 'older man's Nigerian voice'. To this day I'm not very good at impressions. I should point out, I saw and spoke to my boss every day so how I thought I would get away with it is a testament to the innocence/ stupidity of youth. Needless to say when confronted by my boss it took every ounce of my power not to deny the accusations in my dad's Nigerian voice. In fact I was speechless, then jobless.
5. What has surprised you the most during your career in comedy?
The sheer amount of new voices out there with stories to be told is constantly surprising and audiences are so much more sophisticated and comedy savvy: they won't put up with bullshit. I'm also surprised by the camaraderie between most comics who can be overwhelmingly supportive of each other. Don't get me wrong there's obviously the odd bell end out there, but we know who he is.
Interview continues here.
