

The Comedian's Comedian Podcast
Stuart Goldsmith
For anyone who writes comedy, makes comedy, loves comedy, or just has an interest in comedians and what makes them so annoying. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 5, 2021 • 10min
Mini Fringe Prelude
A ramshackle prospective who's who (also: when's when and where's where) for this year's ramshackle Edinburgh Fringe. Feels nice. Might see you there. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jul 23, 2021 • 1h 22min
380 - CK (Caimh) McDonnell
Crime fiction powerhouse and former circuit comedian, CK McDonnell is on the cusp of levelling further up, with a TV adaptation of his half a million selling “Dublin Trilogy” in the works.We talk about how to write fast, being calibrated for tough criticism, solving problems in the shower, and how to let characters evolve - especially Bunny McGarry who went from villain to his best loved creation.25 mins of extra content from this interview is available exclusively to the Insiders Club!We discover Caimh’s secrets of self-publication, learn about how he cultivates the fanbase that now flock around him, and learn why he won’t record his own audiobooks!Go to www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders for this and much more, including the exclusive Insiders Q&As with Nish Kumar, James Acaster and Fern Brady and the incredible “self-help for comedians” special with Amanda Donnet. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jul 16, 2021 • 1h 34min
379 - Fin Taylor
In an industry awash with “edgelord” comedians, Fin Taylor is the real deal. Erudite, thunderously funny, and provocative having done the reading first, he manages to annoy absolutely everybody.We talk about how his unusual schooling instilled in him an apparent license to infuriate; how his need to row back from the furthest possible point makes his new material gigs so painful; how he went turbo after an agent-shedding Edinburgh decision; and why he finds self-worth in his material not the audience’s approval…AND:35 mins of extra content from this interview is available exclusively to the Insiders Club!We discover an underground route for UK comics hoping to break America; how to bring a knife to a roast battle; Fin’s new focus on writing prose; and he continues to chip away at the omertà code of silence of the Bearpit Podcast Podcast…Go to www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders for this and much more, including the exclusive Insiders Q&As with Nish Kumar, James Acaster and Fern Brady and the incredible “self-help for comedians” special with Amanda Donnet.@FinTaylorcomedyfintaylor.comThis podcast is @ComComPod on twitter and instagramwww.comedianscomedian.comI'm doing Edinburgh!www.monkeybarrelcomedy.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jul 8, 2021 • 1h 18min
378 - Stevie Martin
Stevie Martin has been generating excellent material for years, and is now starting to break through due to her jaw-droppingly funny online videos, packed with punchlines and with a genuinely unique flavour.We talk about the huge amount of time and prep that goes into her work, as she battles to feel like a “proper comedian” in an industry that prioritises certain styles, backgrounds and looks.We also explore her brilliant former sketch outfit Massive Dad, and whether their aesthetic made them “unapproachable” as performers; the relative loneliness of stand-up; and trying to love Edinburgh in the way that it deserves to be loved…Insiders:35 mins of extra content available exclusively to the Insiders Club include Stevie on her murky past as an Edinburgh Fringe reviewer! She also shares some surprising insights about what works on Twitter and why, the inside editorial secrets of content creators, and we find out why her next Edinburgh poster might sell her in a very different way than previous years.Go to www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders for this and much more, including the exclusive Insiders Q&As with Nish Kumar, James Acaster and Fern Brady and the incredible “self-help for comedians” special with Amanda Donnet. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jul 1, 2021 • 1h 19min
377 - Paul Zerdin
Irrepressibly optimistic, utterly in love with his craft and very mentally robust, Paul Zerdin is the British ventriloquist who won America's Got Talent.We talk about his lengthy career working across different circuits -- from variety, cruises and holiday camps to mainstream comedy -- and discuss how he navigates the suspicions of the alternative comedy industry. Paul outlines in detail his pandemic pivot, the relentless energy devoted to TV pitches, how he planned his AGT set to build and build, as well as deception, illusion, and the modular nature of magic...~15 minutes of extra Insider content available, including Paul's drive to create a fourth-wall-breaking ventriloquist animation, world domination, and Vegas, baby!Go to www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders for this and much more, including the exclusive Insiders Q&As with Nish Kumar, James Acaster and Alfie Brown, and your invite to the forthcoming ones with Fern Brady and a “self-help for comedians” special with Amanda Donnet (MClinPsych)Find Paul here:paulzerdin.comIG: @paulzerdinTW: @paulzerdinFB: Paul ZerdinYT: Paul Zerdinwww.paulzerdin.comyoutube.com/paulzerdin@paulzerdin Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 24, 2021 • 1h 13min
376 - Josh Johnson
Josh Johnson doesn't put a foot wrong. This masterful young US comic never stops working and is reaping the benefits with a place in the Daily Show writers' room, and two brand new releases: his own music/comedy collaboration "Mixtape", and his debut special "# (Hashtag)".We encounter a really thoughtful approach to his art, and talk about his possibly unique combination of comedy and non-comic original music; explore embellishment; and how "playing to his weakness" serves his material...20ish minutes of extra content available exclusively to Insiders as Josh ruminates on vulnerabilities, approach, and how not even the most vexatious of Uber drivers can knock back the offer of free fried chicken.Go to www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders for this and much more, including the exclusive Insiders Q&As with Nish Kumar, James Acaster and Alfie Brown, and your invite to the forthcoming ones with Fern Brady and a “self-help for comedians” special with Amanda Donnet (MClinPsych)Connect with Josh Johnson: https://www.joshjohnsoncomedy.com/https://www.instagram.com/joshjohnsoncomedy/https://twitter.com/joshjohnsonhttps://www.facebook.com/JoshJComedyhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLuYADJ6hESLHX87JnsGbjA Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 18, 2021 • 1h 17min
375 - Jessie Cave
“A drill-sergeant not a perfectionist”, Jessie Cave enjoys simultaneous careers as an actress, comic, artist, and performance artist, all of which marry an extraordinary pragmatism with an attitude of artistic abundance. We talk about her relentless documentation of her life as a means of seeking permanence, the tragic death of her brother in 2019 - how she processed it, and the effect it had on her creativity - as well as her recent Soho On Demand special “Sunrise”, filmed in Corona to an audience of her sister BeBe, and her new novel “Sunset”.* Content warning: Sexual assault *15 mins of extra content available exclusively to the Insiders Club include Jessie on how her membership of the Harry Potter franchise has a legacy of fandom that isn’t always useful to her as an independent artist, and how the Cave Sisters Patreon has changed her relationship with elements of her following.Go to www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders for this and much more, including the exclusive Insiders Q&As with Nish Kumar, James Acaster and Fern Brady and the incredible “self-help for comedians” special with Amanda Donnet.Instagram @JessieCaveTwitter @JessieCaveWebsite: www.jessiedoodles.comFind Jessie’s debut novel “Sunset” here: https://linktr.ee/Jessie_CaveFind Jessie and Bebe’s podcast: “We Can’t Talk About This Right Now” on YouTube and podcast providersPatreon: www.patreon.com/cavesisters Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jun 10, 2021 • 1h 27min
374 - Piff The Magic Dragon (John Van Der Put)
How did a grumpy table magician find a way to turn “being pathetic” into 400 shows a year in his own theatre at Las Vegas? Only Piff The Magic Dragon knows!We’ll discover how a shop-bought dragon costume flicked the switch from sackable corporate table guy, to deadpan bulletproof performer and self-styled “loser of America’s Got Talent”. Along the way we’ll find out why the perfect show will never happen, and why a fear of failure turns most magicians into “hack copycats”…30 mins of extra content available exclusively to the Insiders Club include Piff on the invention of his own tricks, and how something new with a block of jelly has already cost him two and half years and over $70,000; how own bad magic and guilty shortcuts; his evangelist uprising; and what comics can learn from magicians.Go to www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders for this and much more, including the exclusive Insiders Q&As with Nish Kumar, James Acaster and Fern Brady and the incredible “self-help for comedians” special with Amanda Donnet. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 27, 2021 • 1h 28min
373 - Greg Jenner
If you thought wrestlers shared some of the tropes of comedians’ lives, wait til you hear about historians! Comedy-adjacent public historian, writer of “Dead Famous” and other superb books, and creator and host of “You’re Dead To Me” (BBC Sounds) Greg Jenner had factual oversight on every word of Horrible Histories ever recorded, and wrote some of the jokes too. He’s also a student of ComCom and probably our most learned ever guest…We talk about his creative process in constructing analogies that package and frame his research; learn about the pitfalls of generalising and the responsibility of the historian; and he shares his deeply personal struggle with mental health, anxiety and extraordinary insomnia, and they effect they still have on his fraught relationship with celebrity.30 mins of extra content available exclusively to the Insiders Club include Greg delving further into his anxieties, particularly those that accrete around social media and listener feedback; the joy of online kindness; “factoids” and his doomed quest to rid the internet of viral “fake facts”; and we learn about the hidden link between Rattus Rattus from Horrible Histories and Greg himself.Go to www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders for this and much more, including the exclusive Insiders Q&As with Nish Kumar, James Acaster and Alfie Brown, and your invite to the forthcoming ones with Fern Brady and a “self-help for comedians” special with Amanda Donnet (MClinPsych) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

May 20, 2021 • 1h 4min
372 - Rosie Jones
“Not a cute ragdoll, but a disgusting sex robot”, Rosie Jones is a triple-threat in ways of which you couldn’t dream if you hadn’t seen her act. Leveraging hugely punchy comedy from people’s constant underestimation at her sheer agency, we discover the precision comic timing borne of her cerebral palsy; her new political dynamism; and why she won’t drown, even though she can’t swim.40 mins of extra content from comedy’s Thanos, available exclusively to the Insiders Club include her *unmissable* insights from behind both production and performance sides of TV panel games; how and why her feelings about being viewed as an inspiration have changed; and why Nish Kumar is such a horrible man.Go to www.comedianscomedian.com/insiders for this and much more, including the exclusive Insiders Q&As with Nish Kumar, Alfie Brown and your invite to the forthcoming ones with Fern Brady (24th May) and a self-help for comedians special with Amanda Donnet (MClinPsych) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


