Brendon Burns has credits on The 11 O’ Clock Show, performed across the world, and in 2007 won the prestigious if.comedy award for his show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Now, the Australian comic is touring all across the UK, performing anywhere but comedy clubs in an attempt to live ‘Outside the Box‘. Louise Jones talks to him about podcasts, angering Scousers, and fake edge.

What exactly led you to doing the Outside the Box tour?

I did the Free Fringe this year, and my venue wasn’t quite where it was listed in the Fringe guide, so people had to work to find me. It was just die-hard fans, and in that environment I didn’t have to deal with anyone with folded arms, and anyone going “I f**king hate this guy, and it isn’t for me.”

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The atmosphere in the Courtyard bar before Brendon Burns’ gig feels similar to waiting in the queue for a roller coaster: there’s a distinct feel of people who are excited for what they know is about to happen, and people who’ve never seen Burns and are bloody terrified. The location is certainly different: a student union bar as the venue for an award-winning international comedian. It’s all part of Burns’ latest tour, Outside the Box. Following in the footsteps of Doug Stanhope and Neil Hamburger, the tour deliberately avoids large arenas and opts for secluded or intimate venues, off the beaten track of the comedy circuit. What follows is a unique night of comedy unlike any other I’ve seen in York.

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