EdFringe Talk: Fearghas Kelly: Whooooooooooo!

Posted in *Written Interviews, EdFestivals 2024 by

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“Skyrocketing costs continue to squeeze out emerging artists, and silent discos remain staggeringly legal.”

WHO: Fearghas Kelly

WHAT: “Multimedia madness from one of Scottish comedy’s rising stars. Host of The Stand’s multimedia comedy night, Screen Time, and regular sketch contributor to lockdown-era Saturday Night Live at The Stand, Fearghas Kelly comes home for two shows only. BBC New Comedy Award shortlist 2021 and 2022. So You Think You’re Funny? semi-finalist 2022. ‘Hilarious’ (DeadlineNews.co.uk). ‘Slick’ (Scotsman). ‘Emerging talent’ (BeyondTheJoke.co.uk).”

WHERE: The Stand Comedy Club 2 – Stand 2 (Venue 5) 

WHEN: 14:50 (45 min)

MORE: Click Here!

Is this your first time to Edinburgh?

Once a beacon of artistic expression, it can be argued that the festival has morphed into a capitalist spectacle where the intrinsic worth of art and community is overshadowed by profit and client journalism, where skyrocketing costs continue to squeeze out emerging artists, and where silent discos remain staggeringly legal.

That’s why I’m delighted to be performing at my third Fringe, because some venues remain the vanguard and the Stand are certainly one of them. It’s my first time performing at this legendary venue, and I’m very excited and honoured.

As a punter, to be fair it remains a pretty unmatched day out if you have your prebooked-unplanned ratio just right. As a performer, you’ll leave stage-fit but exhausted, with a Chernobyl level of cholesterol and thighs the size of Luxembourg. It can be as enriching and exciting a place as it can be isolating and lonely. But then Graham Norton will walk past you, and you’ll go “that was Graham Norton!” and it will get you through the next three days.

What are the big things you’ve learned since 2023 and have you absorbed any of the lessons yet?

I think the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that there’s no point in waiting until you “feel ready”. Doing stand-up, doing the Fringe and doing a solo show is like driving or wondering whether you can do a backflip up a wall like that bit in the Matrix, you can only learn while attempting it, and they all risk significant accidental brain damage.

I had absolutely no business doing a 45-minute solo show last year, and it turned out to be an excellent decision: teaching me lovely lessons and horrible lessons; gunging me with champagne and forward flipping me into a paddling pool of dog shit.

Only my two pals turned up the first day (thus halving my likelihood of going viral for it), then I sold out the following Saturday, before nearly having to pull the Sunday before being rescued by two Americans (they love playing the hero). I put the same effort into all three shows, which I think is important.

I’m going into August with a base level of self-belief which, fragile as I admit it remains, simply didn’t exist this time last year because it was an unstumbled road. Let’s see, I guess.

Tell us about your show.

‘Whooooooooo!’ builds on these last few years gigging away, creating stupid sketches and generally being a big idiot. I host the Stand’s new multimedia night, ‘Screen Time’ (also coming to the Fringe! https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/fearghas-kelly-s-screen-time) which is an amazing opportunity to workshop projector-based nonsense. Come for the stories about a sensitive medical mishap, stay for my ingenious way of drinking on trains, and how my dedication to recycling glass bottles saved me from getting my head kicked in. I’m still working my way up towards a full hour – I guess I’ll know by Fringe’s end how close I am.

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

The Stand have a lineup of Scotland-based acts who are all (I think) performing at the venue for the first time, which I’m genuinely honoured to be a part of. I would pick up their brochure and try to cross off as many of us as you can like it’s an old war photo. In no particular order (sorry for missing anyone): Amanda Dwyer, Chris Thorburn, Jade Kelly, Kate Hammer, Michael Welch, Phil O’Shea and Thomas Elvin. Only one show of mine got cancelled last year. Because a man had a gun. Go and see Ralph Brown to find out more about that. My first Fringe stagemate, Paul McDaniel, is going to have a great festival I think, go and see him. And go see Material, Girl!

Mick McNeill was with Paul and I that year – you can catch him at the Beehive! And Erin McKinnie, whom I suffered that weapon-based cancellation with at the Waverley last year, is at Hootenanies. Kathleen Hughes, Chris Weir, Richard Brown and Craig Wilson are dotted about the city as well!

As a punter, my annual Fringe tradition is to see Simon Munnery and Paul Foot. When I was a lowly open spot (was?), I asked Mr Munnery to sign the first page of my notebook. He wrote, “Give up – and carry on!” We’re on the same page of the Stand’s brochure this year, which I’m so childlikely chuffed about. Mr Foot’s ‘Dissolve’ is such a special show. I saw it on tour at the Glasgow Stand and will most likely go and see it again.

If you only have one hour in the entire month, see Stuart McPherson. No question.

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