Farewell Squirrel Comedy

By Lisa Clark

So it’s probably time to announce that Squirrel Comedy is going into retirement. We made the decision last year and I may have been putting this off.

It all began in 2004 at Janet McLeod’s Local Laughs (Thanks Janet!), where a bunch of front row regulars got to know each other and were looking for ways to see more comedy and to promote stand up comedy as an art form that we all loved. I was pretty grumpy about the fact that I was seeing mind-blowing, and hilarious comedy at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival each year and the performers were not being given places in mainstream media to become famous, especially on TV. Some of my work colleagues thought that the Gala was the extent of the Festival.

My main thank you begins with Annette Slattery who initiated the idea of a website / zine about the Australian comedy scene, named it The Groggy Squirrel and wrangled a team of comedy lovers. The Groggy Squirrel ran from 2005 to 2009 with Annette as editor and became pretty well known and somewhat beloved.

In 2012, after a break, we refreshed and renamed as Squirrel Comedy, with me, Lisa, as Editor and Colin doing the well renowned gig guide (you have NO idea how hard it was to keep accurate, rooms come and go and it feels like some rooms/comedians just don’t want you to know they exist!) as well as reviews and all round supportive good egg.

Thank you in particular to Jayden who helped us set up the website and socials and taught us a bit about how to use WordPress. And thanks to those other Squirrels who helped with the change over and then to everyone else since, who has written and contributed over the years. All the writers who worked hard to get great interviews and fabulous reviews done in a timely manner, you often blew me away with your talent and skills. We all thank the many room runners, publicists and producers who organised tickets for us and respected us as part of the scene.

Thank you most of all to the performers who put aside precious tickets for us and hopefully weren’t too upset with our reviews. We always tried to be thoughtful and kind, but honest. I’ve only been asked to take down a review a couple of times and that’s OK, we’re not mainstream media, it’s fine. No one made any money out of Squirrel, we were there for the love of comedy, but we did not want to lie if a show had serious issues. We also had our readers’ trust in mind and did not want to let them down. Please forgive us if we couldn’t see or review your show, believe that we never stopped feeling guilty about it. There was only so much we could see.

This was always a hobby for me, with my Arts degree turning out to be pretty useless for anything else! I think my writing improved, though I was always more impressed with everyone else’s writing. Thanks to Squirrel Comedy, I’ve enjoyed laughing at an enormous amount of comedy. As well as Melbourne festivals (including MICF, Fringe and Midsumma), I’ve reviewed Comedy, interstate (at Adelaide Fringe) and overseas (New Zealand Comedy Festival, London and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival). I’ve also gotten the chance to meet and interview a lot of comedians I admire who have always been friendly and kind.

I’ve been reviewing comedy for twenty years and have had a fantastic time, it’s been a privilege watching all the performers grow and find their voice and their space in the biz, but it’s also been at times exhausting, organising it all, working out how MICF are going make us choose our shows this year (it seemed to become harder every year as the festival grew) and working on Squirrel Comedy through our work holidays. I became pretty ill during the last few Melbourne International Comedy Festivals and wasn’t able to complete my Squirrel commitments which was very stressful. Life has also become more complex and Colin and I decided that it was time to let it go.

We are very proud of our achievements in the past twenty years and hope we had a positive impact in the industry if only in a small way, particularly in being able to highlight the younger and independent artists.

If you’re reading this in Melbourne, I hope you appreciate how lucky we are to have the biggest and best comedy festival in the world on our doorstep, with many of the comedians performing here all year round. I’ve seen soooo much good standup here in Melbourne, before and during writing for Squirrel. And thanks to the late Dave Taranto (Molly Meldrum of Australian Comedy) for giving many of us a rounded education in comedy via The Cheese Shop comedy radio at 3PBS & 3RRR and the live show at The Prince Patrick Hotel.

Here’s a handful of the artists and their festival shows that have changed the artform and changed me, had me falling out of my seat with laughter, occasionally weeping, and raving about to anyone who’d listen.

Judith Lucy’s King of the Road,

Lano & Woodley Curtains,

Celia Pacquola’s Am I Strange?

Justin Hamilton’s Three Colours Hammo,

Tripod’s Lady Robots,

Tim Minchin’s Darkside,

Lessons With Luis’ The Kidney Kingdom

Geraldine Hickey’s Turns Out I Do Like Sun Dried Tomatoes,

Denise Scott’s Scotty & Son,

Watson’s Who’s Afraid of the Dark?

Zoe Coombs Marr’s Trigger Warning,

Hannah Gadsby’s Nannette,

Sam Campbell, Aaron Chen & Tom Walker’s Zanzoop: Feeble Minds,

Sammy J’s Hero Complex (you can see the newest version of this show at MICF 2026!)

Alasdair Tremblay-Birchall and Andy Matthews’ Teleport

and many others that will come to mind later no doubt. I will never take living in Melbourne for granted, as I’ve also often seen these shows being created in small stand up comedy rooms. Go out see comedy live, there’s nothing like it.

I’ll keep the website up and maybe social media, but I miss what it once was, when all the comedians were online bantering and joking and promoting their work.

So Long and Thanks for all the Laughs

Lisa Clark and The Squirrels

Nothing To See Here, Just A Totally Normal Comedy Show, Wouldn’t Worry About It.

By Colin Flaherty

Nothing To See Here, Just A Totally Normal Comedy Show, Wouldn’t Worry About It is the latest show by Jett Bond and Zoe Heim (with a special apearance by James Collopy). Known for their interesting, almost experimental, concepts, this is another work that subverts theatrical convention and cleverly blurs the line between the stage and outside world.

The Fringe program blurb spells out what happens but it’s done so kinda cryptically. This show is probably best experienced cold as the bulk of the humour comes from the many surprises in this roller coaster ride of a performance. Jett and Zoe have created a brilliant high energy story that sweeps up the audience into an almost cult like fervour.

This performance requires a great deal of audience participation to propel the plot forward. On the surface, the tasks assigned to the punters seem rather daunting as they seem to involve venturing past the safe confines of the theatre. We soon realise that we are in safe hands with a covert supporting cast to keep the interactions silly and fun for both participants and the rest of the audience.

There is a strong script at the heart of this show but the often ramshackle audience participation combined with very loose performances by both Jett and Zoe give the impression of a show that’s likely to fall apart at any moment. This sense of danger gives things a real spark that keeps the audience enthralled and rolling about throughout.

An extensive audio visual component drives this show using whiteboards, corkboards, pieces of paper and a projection screen. Their tech handles sound and lighting perfectly but curiously Zoe spends a fair chunk of the show tinkering on a laptop at side of stage to create the screen visuals. Some of this is in keeping with the story but it often leaves Jett alone with the audience to engage in some awkward banter that slows things down.

This is the first Fringe show that I’ve seen that creates a clear demarcation between paying audience and freeloading fellow performers. Whether this is a metaphor for the ticketing system or an attempt to stop other performers from upstaging them, both seem apt.

Despite its rough edges, this is an immensely fun and rather unique communal experience that fully embraces the spirit of the Fringe.

Nothing To See Here, Just A Totally Normal Comedy Show, Wouldn’t Worry About It is on at Theory Bar until October 19

https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/nothing-to-see-here-just-a-totally-normal-comedy-show-wouldn-t-worry-about-it

King of the Pigs

By Colin Flaherty

King of the Pigs was a one man sketch show featuring improviser Barney Pollock. Here we met a cast of hilariously grotesque characters and were dragged kicking and screaming into their unhinged realities. We met such individuals as the hallucinating pest exterminator, a strange lounge singer, the extreme helicopter parent and an insane Faerie on the English Moors.

These scenarios were a sequence of colourful characters who introduced themselves, told us of their wacky world view, subjected us to some slightly uncomfortable banter and then abruptly transformed into the next. Darting about the stage, often with a evil look in his eyes, he used great physicality to flesh out each of these creatures beautifully and keep us laughing at their eccentricities.

Being the only one on stage necessitated that costume changes were economical and sometimes haphazard to keep the action moving. His recycling of clothing between characters meant that his gestures and the odd prop did the heavy lifting in differentiating between one freaky creature and the next. Needless to say he pulled this off with ease.

Audience banter played a considerable part in this show. A lot of the time the punter wouldn’t have a clear idea of what exactly Barney was prompting/fishing for which led to some awkward silences. Although the audience eventually warmed to the shows’ premise, he did have some amusing responses up his sleeve for when people either didn’t want to play or were simply confused.

The sole exit to the theatre was located not too far from the stage. Unfortunately there was an almost constant stream of people exiting and re-entering the theatre (possibly to whet their whistles at the bar – perhaps some folks need a stiff drink to cope with this freakiness!) which became quite distracting for the audience and seemingly for Barney. He handled it quite well by freezing, casting a glare and making a quip in keeping with his current character.

A special commendation goes to his tech Caitlyn Staples who created a brilliant audio visual feast to flesh out this bizarre and often unsettling world. Audio cues were perfectly timed for Barney to react to and the lighting effects brought us into the troubled minds of these lunatics. The smoke machine certainly got a heavy workout.

Those up for an hour of David Lynchian strangeness will find plenty to appeal. This off the wall menagerie were immensely silly and had the audience roaring throughout.

King of the Pigs is on at Improv Conspiracy until October 18

https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/king-of-the-pigs

jks: a comedy(?)

By Colin Flaherty

Tom Ballard’s play jks: a comedy(?) is, as the Americans would say, very inside baseball. Set backstage at a comedy gig, it is filled with references to the Australian comedy scene which the comedy nerds will salivate over and a number of dark jokes that are normally confined to the safe space of the Green Room. Focusing on the thorny subject of percieved offence in comedy, it’s audience appeal extends beyond just those in the comedy world given our current culture wars.

This Green Room contained a range of characters immensely familiar to those who regularly see stand up in pubs. The cast, a mixture of trained actors and jobbing comedians, were all excellent in their portrayal of our quintet. Nicky Barry (playing the world weary Matriarch of the room) and Tom Ballard (as the “right on” SJW of comedy) seemed to be playing slightly tweaked versions of themselves so they pulled these roles off with ease. Kevin Hofbauer and Tiana Hogben were immensely impressive in their respective roles of edgy comedian and young clown. Aside from an impassioned speech near the end, Jordan Barr’s Rhi didn’t get a hell of a lot to do but her snarky comments peppered throughout were a joy.

It felt like a companion piece to Greg Fleet’s 2005 play (and subsequent television series) “Die on Your Feet”  which saw comedians talking shit to (and about) each other and pitted the old guard against the new school. Tom’s version features a more diverse cast (we actually have two females and one non-binary person, how’s that for progress over 20 years?) and really digs deep into how we consume and view comedy in the online world.

The two male characters dominated the script with their constant bickering about what type of comedy is valid. The others were mostly there trying to maintain sanity as tensions escalated to fever pitch. Laughs droped off as things got very shouty and serious – ramping up the pressure with the odd respite of a witty self aware quip to briefly release the pressure.  Tiana Hogben’s naive clown was an welcome respite adding much needed levity with the silliest of lines.

The staging was very bare boned with some chairs for our mirthmeisters to sit on when they weren’t pacing around. The audio design was well done with the sound from the “stage” encroaching the Green Room and affecting the comedians at appropriate moments. One letdown was the “audience on three sides” set up of the staging in the venue. This was fine when most of the cast wandered around but the often static character of May had her back to a large swathe of the punters throughout the performance.

A fascinating and hilarious exploration of the state of comedy in the year 2025. Bravo!

jks: a comedy(?)  is on at Trades Hall until October 12

https://www.melbournefringe.com.au/whats-on/events/jks-a-comedy

Emma Holland – Don’t Touch My Trinkets

By Bella Jones

Are you an adult who misses the experience of getting a lucky dip at your local fair? Unsure what exactly you were going to get but certain it would be something exciting? Emma Holland might just be the comedy equivalent of that.

Don’t Touch My Trinkets is a visit to Holland’s own personal art gallery, one where she is allowed to handle the exhibits as much as she wants. The audience follows her journey through some of the art mediums she tried before ending up in comedy. Holland is a master at combining the absurd with the ordinary, the result? An hour of comedy that ranges from physical gags, tech, and traditional storytelling, plus just about everything in between.

Emma Holland is in demand, appearing on and writing for The Cheap Seats, Have You Been Paying Attention? Most recently she wrote for the AACTAs. Her latest comedy show proves why her impressive CV is no surprise.

This show is intensely, cleverly written. It’s almost exhausting just how many jokes Holland has managed to fit in, as she ties together stories from childhood, casual sexism and genuine enthusiasm for nearly every form of art.

One of Holland’s most impressive talents lies in the fact that a quick dick joke feels perfectly at home next to biting social commentary. All building towards an ending that was a festival highlight for me. Unafraid to move quickly she easily keeps the audience on their toes with a determined passion and clear understanding of exactly what kind of performance she wants to give. Not that it’s hard to keep the room’s attention, Holland has a clear audience and sold out shows night after night prove just how much her niche is connecting with the right people.

Emma Holland’s brain seems like an incredible place to spend even an hour in, it’s always a treat to get to experience it.

Emma Holland performs Don’t Touch My Trinkets at ACMI til April 20

https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/emma-holland-don-t-touch-my-trinkets/

Adam Kay – This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor

By Lisa Clark

More of an author’s book talk than a comedy show, Adam Kay has taken out lots of his most shocking and amusing experiences from his personal diaries  to put into this show. The stories are often extreme and outrageous and more believable for it. I’ve seen similar medical stories told by other comedians and also from a friend at the end of working exhausting Saturday nights in Emergency at a major hospital. So although occasionally too graphic, little of it felt new or fresh to me.

The first couple of stories were so disgustingly off-putting, if I hadn’t been stuck in the middle of a row I would’ve walked out. If only for a breather. There was no warning from Adam (apart from the sign upstairs before you enter about upsetting content) about how gruesome and distressing he was about to become. It’s very early in the show, which might be his audience test for if your stomach is up for this, then stick around for the rest of the show. I certainly failed at finding humour in it, while others laughed in shock at their extreme repulsiveness.

My main problem is that I didn’t find most of these tales very funny or titillating or whatever he means them to be. These are people’s lives and I find it a bit weird that he’s still milking them for attention fifteen years after he’s stopped practicing. He’s a charming performer but provides no context, very little about his own life and there was no through tale or over arcing story. He just reads dates from his diaries and tells the anecdotes in a very matter of fact manner. Perhaps those who’ve read the books or seen the TV show based on the books would understand the context better, but the laughs in the audience are mostly sporadic and middling, meeting his rhythm or shocked laughter.

Kay’s show had the rhythm of a one-liner comedian, and realising that he needed to add a bit of colour and movement for the audience, he’s broken it up with some lame musical parody songs, despite not being a brilliant singer. One is a running gag where the audience gets to “guess the ailment” singing along to the tune of “Hallelujah” and the rest are all more of his anecdotes or medical facts put to the tunes of famous songs such as “Total Eclipse of the Heart”. It could be that my benchmark for musical comedy is fairly high but the audience were having a nice time singing along. Kay then ends the show with the tragic tale that took him out of the industry and advice for those in the audience who are currently in the industry to look after themselves and take real breaks when needed.

Stand up comedy about working in the medical industry has been around a long time. Jo Brand and Georgie Carroll for example are brilliantly funny storytellers and their experiences are full of the sort of gallows humour that the medical profession previously only shared amongst themselves. Kay’s brutal and honest anecdotes certainly entertained the crowd, and if you’ve got a stronger stomach than me, this might be for you.

Adam Kay performs This is Going to Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor at The Playhouse, The Arts Centre Melbourne until April 20.

https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/adam-kay/