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The Herald Scotland
06-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
A wise man might even consider this comedy gold
The Monkey Barrel, Edinburgh Learning new facts at a comedy gig is always an added bonus. Someone who can simultaneously educate and entertain is undoubtedly a double threat. At the start of his show, Ayo Adenekan informs us that only around 2% of Edinburgh's population identify as Black. The 23-year-old Nigerian-Scottish comedian goes on to describe what it's like to be a Black, queer man growing up in such an overwhelmingly white city. There's a gentle ease to Ayo's story-telling. A laid-back charm. We're soon hanging onto every softly-spoken word. At primary school, he desperately wanted to stand out, not stick out. Tales of his auditions attempts for the Years 1-3 Nativity play would melt the hardest of hearts. A wise man might even consider it comedy gold. Read More: Difficult issues are dismantled with razor-sharp wit and class. At the barber's, Ayo throws shade on the fade as well as the accompanying casual racism. Activism is acknowledged and explored via the back seat of the school bus. It turns out the cool kids always have the best punchlines. A few stories need filled out and finished off, though. It would have been good to learn more about that distressing lads' holiday to Magaluf, for example. The individuality of much of Ayo's material is genuinely exciting. Many of his friends have recently become pet or baby parents. His take on trying to bringing them up to speed on his dating exploits adds some superb physicality to proceedings. This Leith local's come a long way in a short space of time. His first steps in stand-up were in 2023. Last year, he came third in Gilded Balloon's comedy competition, So You Think You're Funny? This year, as recipient of Brass Tacks Debut Fund, his Fringe costs for this much-anticipated first hour will be met by Red Bull UK. Here's a thing. During a show, I like to jot down my observations and comments. I do it old-school, using a pen and paper. I've noticed that the more I'm enjoying a performance, the less I tend to write. Looking back at my notes from one didn't take long. All it said on the page was, 'the real deal.' Here's another fact I learnt at the gig. Scottish comedy has a new rising star. Ayo Adenekan is appearing at The Monkey Barrel July 30-August 24.
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Scotsman
29-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Edinburgh Festival Fringe: The producer who contacted 100 firms for 'missing out' Scottish comedians
Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... A comedy producer has told how she contacted over 100 Scottish companies looking for Edinburgh Festival Fringe funding for local comedians 'missing out' on fame. Katie Palmer, of Brass Tacks, decided to create a fund to pay for the costs of performing at the Fringe after realising Scottish comedians were being under-represented at a national and international level, in part due to the rocketing costs of performing at the event. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad After sending out a sponsorship proposal to around 100 Scottish companies she believed might be a good fit to support local comedy, Ms Palmer heard back from only ten - with all of them refusing to fund the idea. Jack Traynor is from Cumbernauld but still felt he could not afford to perform at the Fringe. | Jack Traynor Eventually, she sent out a letter on spec to drinks giant Red Bull UK, which offered her £4,000. She has since managed to find match funding from Glasgow comedy club Blackfriars of Bell Street to allow her to sponsor two comedians Jack Traynor and Ayo Adenekan, who were among more than 50 applicants. 'We had over 50 applicants, which was incredible to see,' she said. 'But [it was] also devastating to see that 50-plus Scottish comedians felt like they could debut this year, but couldn't afford it.' The idea for the fund was born during last year's Fringe. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Ms Palmer said: 'It really came to light in my head during the Fringe last year of the lack of support for Scottish comedy. It just feels as though there's very rarely a Scottish comedian who will be nominated for any awards or get big TV opportunities off the back of the Fringe, despite the Scottish comedy scene being genuinely incredible.' Ayo Adenekan is to receive money from the Brass Tacks Debut Fund. | Colette Ms Palmer added: 'At this point, it feels as though the comedy industry in the UK should be over-represented by Scottish acts, but it's not. People who watch Live at the Apollo or go to comedy in London or Birmingham should be thinking 'how come so many of these people are Scottish?' Because we have the biggest festival in the world on our doorstep and Scottish comedians should be over-represented in that. But I think in many ways, it's the opposite, they're missing out.' Ms Palmer started Brass Tacks Comedy in January last year, and has produced a range of successful shows at the 2024 Fringe, including Amy Annette's sell-out run with extra shows added, and Grace Mulvey, who was named one of the top 12 shows of the Fringe by Rolling Stone. The producer said: 'The fact that Jack Traynor felt the Fringe was not on his horizon and he was completely priced out of it, despite living in Scotland, was unbelievable. He lives in Cumbernauld and he just wasn't planning to ever come here. It just wasn't - and couldn't be - in his plans.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Katie Palmer of Brass Tacks. | Katie Palmer of Brass Tacks. Mr Traynor said: "There's no two ways about it - if I didn't have the backing of Blackfriars and Brass Tacks, I wouldn't be doing the Fringe. 'The Fringe is a different beast and trying to compete with the finances … even though I live in Scotland, it's easy to just get left behind.' Mr Adenekan said: 'I applied because this was an amazing opportunity - being able to make my Fringe debut without having to bear the financial burden was a major factor for me. 'The fact the fund was created for Scottish acts, by a Scottish company, made me even more eager to apply because I feel the Scottish scene is often overlooked, even on our own doorstep.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad
Scotsman
29-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Edinburgh Festival Fringe: The producer who contacted 100 firms for 'missing out' Scottish comedians
Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... A comedy producer has told how she contacted over 100 Scottish companies looking for Edinburgh Festival Fringe funding for local comedians 'missing out' on fame. Katie Palmer, of Brass Tacks, decided to create a fund to pay for the costs of performing at the Fringe after realising Scottish comedians were being under-represented at a national and international level, in part due to the rocketing costs of performing at the event. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad After sending out a sponsorship proposal to around 100 Scottish companies she believed might be a good fit to support local comedy, Ms Palmer heard back from only ten - with all of them refusing to fund the idea. Jack Traynor is from Cumbernauld but still felt he could not afford to perform at the Fringe. | Jack Traynor Eventually, she sent out a letter on spec to drinks giant Red Bull UK, which offered her £4,000. She has since managed to find match funding from Glasgow comedy club Blackfriars of Bell Street to allow her to sponsor two comedians Jack Traynor and Ayo Adenekan, who were among more than 50 applicants. 'We had over 50 applicants, which was incredible to see,' she said. 'But [it was] also devastating to see that 50-plus Scottish comedians felt like they could debut this year, but couldn't afford it.' The idea for the fund was born during last year's Fringe. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Ms Palmer said: 'It really came to light in my head during the Fringe last year of the lack of support for Scottish comedy. It just feels as though there's very rarely a Scottish comedian who will be nominated for any awards or get big TV opportunities off the back of the Fringe, despite the Scottish comedy scene being genuinely incredible.' Ayo Adenekan is to receive money from the Brass Tacks Debut Fund. | Colette Ms Palmer added: 'At this point, it feels as though the comedy industry in the UK should be over-represented by Scottish acts, but it's not. People who watch Live at the Apollo or go to comedy in London or Birmingham should be thinking 'how come so many of these people are Scottish?' Because we have the biggest festival in the world on our doorstep and Scottish comedians should be over-represented in that. But I think in many ways, it's the opposite, they're missing out.' Ms Palmer started Brass Tacks Comedy in January last year, and has produced a range of successful shows at the 2024 Fringe, including Amy Annette's sell-out run with extra shows added, and Grace Mulvey, who was named one of the top 12 shows of the Fringe by Rolling Stone. The producer said: 'The fact that Jack Traynor felt the Fringe was not on his horizon and he was completely priced out of it, despite living in Scotland, was unbelievable. He lives in Cumbernauld and he just wasn't planning to ever come here. It just wasn't - and couldn't be - in his plans.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Katie Palmer of Brass Tacks. | Katie Palmer of Brass Tacks. Mr Traynor said: "There's no two ways about it - if I didn't have the backing of Blackfriars and Brass Tacks, I wouldn't be doing the Fringe. 'The Fringe is a different beast and trying to compete with the finances … even though I live in Scotland, it's easy to just get left behind.' Mr Adenekan said: 'I applied because this was an amazing opportunity - being able to make my Fringe debut without having to bear the financial burden was a major factor for me. 'The fact the fund was created for Scottish acts, by a Scottish company, made me even more eager to apply because I feel the Scottish scene is often overlooked, even on our own doorstep.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad
