EdFringe Talk: Tied for Second

Posted in EdFestivals 2023, Written Interviews by

“My takeaway and my intent for this year is what it almost always is: go in with the lowest possible expectations, don’t be rude, drink water.”

WHO: Zoe Brownstone and Dom McGovern

WHAT: “A split-bill comedy hour from two rapidly rising stars of the UK comedy scene. Dominic McGovern and Zoe Brownstone are two comedians with different styles, backgrounds, and approaches to comedy, but a shared biting wit, astute cultural observations, and ability to make audiences howl with laughter. Tied for Second is an hour of fast-paced jokes from two comedians from different religious backgrounds who somehow share the same God complex.”

WHERE: Just the Tonic Nucleus – Just the Sub-Atomic Room(Venue 393) 

WHEN: 16:30 (55 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

Zoe: This is our first at The Fringe with our own show. I went up last year for 10 days and was so blown away by the vastness, the ludicrousness, the hilariousness that yes I did start making up words because plain English doesn’t seem to cut it. As a comic you see a lot of things on stage that don’t always make sense, but the make up of the Fringe festival takes creativity to a whole other level, where the show just doesn’t end. Ever. It just rolls into the next hour of stand up, the next clown show, the round of drinks at the Pleasance tent, the Glaswegian taxi driver who has an insane story about meeting Stephan Fry in the early noughts. It’s everywhere all at once and the appeal to be a part of that is nothing short of mouth watering.

Dom: I visit the Edinburgh fringe every week in a recurring stress dream I have but other than that I’ve only been once. I spent a stressful month at the fringe working in production in 2019 so I’m excited to return as a performer, famously not stressful or burdensome in any way.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2022 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

Zoe: I had the incredible experience of sharing a flat with three comics who had (seemingly) dream Fringe experiences. The newcomer of the year (the delightful Lara Ricote), fellow nominee in that category (voice of his generation Leo Reich) and winner of best show at the Fringe (the inestimable Sam Campbell). So naturally from my point of view Fringe is a super fun and east month where you get reviewed by the Guardian, 5 stars from everyone and at the end either a big award or a SoHo run, that’s normal right??

I’ve been doing stand up long enough to know that’s not how it goes for 99.9999% of us at The Fringe or anywhere else in the performing arts. My takeaway and my intent for this year is what it almost always is: go in with the lowest possible expectations, don’t be rude, drink water.

Dom: like Zoe said, I’m going in with low expectations and even lower standards and my main aim is to have as much fun as possible without getting laryngitis.

Tell us about your show.

Zoe: Our show is called Tied For Second. It’s a split hour of stand up comedy from two almost winners. Dom and I met as contestants on a comedy competition sponsored by Only Fans (it was a comedy competition, not a sexy comedy competition much to our disappointment). The most gruelling 6 days of both of our comedy careers so far that ended in a live show at Hoxton Hall in London where both Dom and I watched as our fellow finalist Mary O’Connell won £100,000.

We also won some cash, we are not complaining. But not that kind of cash. Instead of writing our memoirs we decided to come together and work out a new half hour each of stellar stand up to bring to the festival. We are self produced, self funded and fully self conscious. Please come see our show. We will likely tour after Edinburgh before recording it in 2024 (for our mums to watch when they finally figure out how YouTube works)

Dom: We’re actually both really proud of the show; since we started working on it at the beginning of this year it’s come on leaps and bounds and our sort of opposite energies work well together across the hour. There’s really something for everyone.

What should your audience see at the festivals after they’ve seen your show?

Zoe: Mary is debuting her show Money Princess this year with the Pleasance, go see her! Meg Stalter is also coming this year which we are insanely excited for. Micky Overman never disappoints. Also very excited to see Mike Birbiglia’s Old Man and the Pool show toward the end of the month.

Dom: I can’t recommend Rosalie Minnitt’s ‘Clementine’ enough – she’s an insane genius. I’m so excited to see Mary O’Connell’s Money Princess, and spend an absurd evening with the boys of Stamptown.

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