byrne

<<<Ed Byrne>>>

(Taken from his website)
"I started in comedy on November 3rd 1993 on the opening night of The Comedy Cellar. It was a comedy club I started up in a pub called, "The 13th Note", on Glassford St, in Glasgow. The other comics on the bill were David Iannucci (brother of Armando), Alan Tayler (now Alan Tyler of Scot FM) and Kenny Harris. I was the host. There was nowhere else for me to try out so I had no other option but to start my own club. It ran fine for three months with varying degrees of success. After I felt I had cobbled together enough material I headed south and carved my way round the comedy clubs of London.
In August 1994 I went to Edinburgh and entered the newcomer's competition, "So You Think You're Funny". I didn't even get into the final. That year I did, however, manage to win the Glastonbury Festival New Act of the Year Competition and The Hackney Empire All-Comers Talent Quest. In the final of the latter I had to beat off such stiff competition as a 13 year old rapper and an eight year old girl singing, < I>"Baggy Trousers".
1995 saw me performing at the Edinburgh Fringe again this time as part of the Irish package, Young, Gifted and Green with Kevin Hayes and Andrew Maxwell. We got one review. It was 5 stars. We also all got picked to go to Australia and I got to perform at the Adelaide and Melbourne comedy festivals in early 1996. This resulted in my Stand up TV debut on, "Hey Hey It's Saturday". I've never looked back.
In 1996 I peformed my first one man show at the Edinburgh Fringe. It was called, "A Stand Up in the Making", and was on at Backstage 2 at the Gilded Balloon. It sold out every night, due mainly to my performance on LWT's "Big, Big Talent Show", the week before the festival.
In 1997 I returned to Australia for the Melbourne comedy Festival and then also went to New Zealand to perform at the ASB bank Laugh festival in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. In Christchurch I went sky diving. At the Edinburgh fringe that year I performed a one man show called, "Psychobabble". It was on in Backstage 1 at the Gilded Balloon and sold out every night. I also co-starred with Brendon Burns in a play we wrote together called, "The Act", which was about two stand ups working at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Where do we get our ideas from?
1998 was a pretty good year all in all. I went to America and performed on American television for the first time including two appearances on NBC's, "Late Night with Conan O'Brien". Performed at the Aspen Comedy Festival and New York Comedy Festival. Did sell out shows in Melbourne, Sydney and Auckland comedy festivals, and also went to Edinburgh where my one man show, "A Night at the Opera", sold out the Main Theatre at the Gilded Balloon every night and earned me a Perrier nomination.
1999 was quite an eventful year. I got to play at the Just for Laughs Festival in Montreal and so achieved an ambition I've harbored ever since first taking the mike. After another mighty run at the Edinburgh fringe (where, apparently, I was the highest selling act) I set off on a proper tour of Ireland and the UK. Unfortunately I had to postpone quite a few gigs in order to film a series entitled, "World Cup Comedy", in Australia for Channel 7 and Sky 1.
I branched out into movies in 1999 as well, securing my first motion picture role. Rat, from Universal pictures should be out in October or thereabouts. I play 'Rudolph'. I'll say no more than that.
1999 was rounded off nicely with a nomination for Best Live Act on the British Comedy Awards. Also List magazine named me their comedian of the year and I was voted No. 2 in their readers' poll awards (Eddie Izzard was number 1). Not too shabby."