‘Strayan Comic Sam Simmons Takes Out World’s Biggest Comedy Gong

In the world of stand-up comedy, the most important dates on the calendar are the Big Three international comedy festivals. The year kicks off right here in Australia with the magnificent Melbourne International Comedy Festival that takes place from late March right through April. Then there’s the juggernaut-like Montreal Just For Laughs festival in July. And that is immediately backed up by arguably the most important of them all – the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, held annually throughout August.

EdFringe is by far and away the largest arts festival of its kind in the world, with some 3,000-odd shows being crammed into the festival’s 25-day run each year.
The Foster’s Comedy Awards are dished out each year at the festival – one to the Best Newcomer, and one to the Best Comedy Show; the big gong, the main kahuna, the official cheese.
And it was ‘Strayan absurdist, funnyperson, and all around comedy savant Sam Simmons who took home the gravy at this year’s awards.
His show, Spaghetti for Breakfast, already received acclaim locally, taking out the prestigious Barry Award for Most Outstanding Comedy Act at this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival. And now he can add the Edinburgh gong to his already bang-up, A+, 2015.
The man who a lot of you might have seen in last year’s ABC series Problems pockets a cool £10,000 cash prize, as well as an invitation to perform in next year’s Just For Laughs festivals – in Montreal, Toronto, and Chicago.
The field of nominees at this years Awards was notably Aussie-heavy, with former Novacastrian Sarah Kendall, along with elastic Kiwi-cum-Aussie Trygve Wakenshaw also nominated for the Best Comedy Show prize, whilst Tom Ballard was nominated for the Best Newcomer award that wound up going to English comic Sofie Hagen.
In winning, Simmons becomes the fourth Australian to take out the award, following Brendon Burns in 2007, Lano & Woodley in 1994, and Los Trios Ringbarkus way back in 1983.
The list of winners of the award features names like Dylan Moran, David O’Doherty, Demetri Martin, Daniel Kitson, the Garth Merenghi crew featuring Richard Ayoade, Steve Koogan, and the Cambridge Footlights crew which featured Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie among others.
Way to bloody go, Sam!
For those of you unfamiliar with his whackadoo work – or for those that want a refresher lol on a Monday morn – cop this performance from Simmons’ appearance on Conan last year.

Photo via Twitter.

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