Comedy / Phil Ellis
Phil Ellis visits The Wardrobe Theatre with his award-winning ‘Excellent Comedy Show’
Phil Ellis is a standup beloved by comics, critics and audiences alike; a man who you’d be hard pressed to deny is funny ‘in the bone’.
He first came to the notice of many comedy fans in 2014, when his riotous Edinburgh show Funz and Gamez became the sleeper hit of the Fringe, with a number of comedians going back day after day for repeated viewings.
Ostensibly aimed at – but hilariously inappropriate for – children, the show won him the Edinburgh Comedy Award’s panel prize that year, and was later adapted for BBC Three.
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Since then, Ellis has made regular TV standup and acting appearances and has written and starred in three series of his Radio 4 sitcom, Phil Ellis is Trying, as well as taking a further two Funz and Gamez shows and six solo hours up to Edinburgh.
He is now touring with Phil Ellis’ Excellent Comedy Show (2023), which won him the Malcolm Hardee Comic Originality Award and an Edinburgh comedy Award nomination.
How did the kernel of this show start to take shape?
“Ultimately I just wanted to do a show that was a lot of fun for me to perform, and that would enable me to do lots of material as well as working on some ideas that I haven’t been able to do in comedy club gigs.
“I started looking at new ways to structure a show, working out how to present these jokes and set pieces in a way that the audience and I would find equally compelling.”
What were your initial expectations for how it would be received?
“I’ve learned over my 10 years at the Edinburgh Fringe that if you go into it with extremely low expectations, then it’s very hard to be disappointed. I’ve had so many highs over that time, but there have also been a couple of tough years where things haven’t quite clicked into place.
“This time I hoped that people would really enjoy the show and leave feeling like they’d genuinely had a really fun and mad hour of comedy. I also hoped that it would have some positive reviews and some critical acclaim, so it was such a lovely feeling when it really caught people’s imagination and started to draw in crowds.”
In terms of performance, you are throwing absolutely everything at this hour. To what extent is the physicality of your work apparent in the writing process, or does it evolve along the way?
“I’ve always enjoyed the performance side of my shows. I think that if you’re a 6’2” tall, lanky and gangly person, it would be a waste to just stand still or perch on a stool. Flail those arms and legs around as if you’re on fire or a banshee emerging from a thick wood. I love dancing like an idiot and throwing myself around and since I stopped chain-smoking two years ago, I don’t have to pause for three-minute periods of panting and gasping for air in between outbursts.
“From a writing standpoint, I just know I can make certain jokes land better with the way it’s performed but I like to just go with how it feels during the show. Some theatre audiences are a little more subdued so I will dial it down a little, while others have such big energy in the room, so going big and silly is what those gigs need.”
While exhibiting the characteristic Phil Ellis silliness, this show also touches on some more personal and emotive themes. Do you find it easier to express darkness through absurdism?
“Yeah, definitely. There’s been a few stories and thoughts that I’ve wanted to express in shows or on stage before and they’ve never sat well with an audience, or myself to be honest.
“It’s all about how you present yourself alongside the material for some ideas to really work. Coming in from such a ridiculous or unexpected angle has really helped me express some thoughts more confidently this year and most importantly, in a funny way that the audience can digest and enjoy.”
How have your audiences responded on the tour so far? What do you think that they most enjoy about your onstage presence?
“So far we’ve had some amazing responses. Obviously some people do just come along to any show that plays in their local theatre so you get an occasional couple who look shell-shocked, like they’ve just been dropped into a warzone – but they usually warm to the concept pretty quickly or at least accept their fate and suffer in silence.
“90 per cent of the audiences have been just amazing though and they’ve really got into the spirit of the show. It is a very silly, fun, high-energy and fast-paced show and once the ball starts rolling it gathers real momentum. Myself and the band have been loving the tour. It means so much when you know people have taken a chance on you to give them a good night out, and that’s exactly what we intend to do*.
“*No refunds if you don’t have a good night.”
Phil Ellis’ Excellent Comedy Show is at The Wardrobe Theatre on March 23 at 7.30pm. Tickets are available from www.chucklebusters.com.
All photos: Avalon UK
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