Stand-up comedian Tom Allen trained with National Youth Theatre; in 2005, he won So You Think You’re Funny and the BBC New Comedy Award. He has written and performed in shows for BBC Radio and Channel 4, and his film work includes Colour Me Kubrick, Starter for Ten and Tamara Drewe. He talks gigs, audiences and Edinburgh Fringe Festival...
I always loved Victoria Wood , Pete and Dudd and Carry On films, so the decision to do comedy was a natural one. I never thought, ‘‘wow, I’m funny”. I just wanted to tell stories.
My first gig was at Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club. I was on for about five minutes, there were some big names there and I was so nervous, but I got through it. Amazingly, people seemed to like it.
The thing about stand-up is that it’s so dependent on the audience. The best gigs are when everyone just wants to have a good time. TV and radio is much safer, though I’ve really enjoyed radio recently because you can build an intimate rapport with listeners.
You have to let things go with stand-up. Be honest. Tell a true story about when you felt most insecure – at 17 when you fell on your face at a party. Open up to the audience and they will like you. If they don’t laugh, let it go, put it down to experience. It really bugs me when people criticise someone for trying something new. It’s brave to try.
Andrew Maxwell said Edinburgh is like “exams for clowns”, and that’s about right. The atmosphere is electric and it’s amazing to get off the train and think, I’m doing this all on my own. It’s a real community, so share your fears and ideas with others, and remember there will be days when you don’t want to perform and you feel bad. Accept the bad times, you have to let go and just enjoy yourself.
The inspiration for my show that will be performed at Edinburgh, Tom Allen Toughens Up, came from an incident at a gig earlier this year. I went on stage and before I’d even said anything someone in the crowd shouted, “GAY!” It was an impossible heckle to deal with, mainly because it’s accurate.
It was as though this heckler went round the whole world labelling everything, and always accurately: woman, blonde – ridiculous! I started thinking about how I could toughen up. My natural default is to be nice, so it’s about me re-addressing that, “standing up” for myself.
Catch Tom’s show at Edinburgh Fringe at The Gilded Balloon from the 4th to 29th August. Book tickets here and find out more about him at http://www.tomindeed.com
