When he started popping up outside high street shops dressed as a 1930s matinee idol, Milo McCabe expected to be thrown out or arrested.
But his creation Troy Hawke proved irresistible – and films of his good hearted exchanges with a bemused public have amassed millions of views on Tik Tok, Instagram and Twitter.
Dressed in a satin smoking jacket, with a pencil-thin moustache and slicked-back hair, Troy Hawke brings a touch of much needed romance to Tesco, Poundland and WHSmith.
“It’s like he’s a creature who exists in a time warp,” says his creator.
Milo McCabe, who performs as Troy Hawke at comedy clubs around the UK, won best show at Leicester Comedy Festival this year for his show Sigmund Troy’d – which is a deep dive into the character. He drew on his own experience as a psychotherapist to uncover the secret springs behind his creation.
“Troy was home schooled by his mother, who was a control freak. The only way he could get her attention was to build himself into exactly what she wanted him to be – and she was in love with David Niven and Errol Flynn.”
“He’s very garrulous, very curious, with a lot of energy. He sees himself as a man of the people but the causes he chooses are generally on a small scale.”
McCabe, who was originally a straight stand up, isn’t entirely sure why Troy Hawke, who was originally intended only a sketch, has taken over his life to the extent he has.
“Whenever I write as Troy Hawke I always find I have lots of things to say. And although to begin with people were confused now a lot of other comics really enjoy the character, which is lovely.
“I think people like the silliness and the nonsense of it.”
When he pops up outside Wilco or Home Bargains, Troy Hawke exchanges pleasantries with passers by, giving and receiving compliments and introducing himself as a representative of the Greeters Guild.
Such is the mysterious charm of Troy Hawke that his presence is rarely questioned.
“We can go on location and eight times out of ten we won’t be challenged and the management will accept that we are supposed to be there.”
“Wilco’s even got in touch to say they had been playing the videos and wanted me to appear at their staff party.”
In Sigmund Troy’d, McCabe, who often uses video clips and recordings in his one man shows, decided to subject Troy Hawke to psychological analysis.
“Troy reacts to it very badly – and finds more and more reasons why the therapist is wrong – using his own brand of strange logic. He’s determined to win the audience over onto his side.”
Among the tools in his protective armour is his own self-created conspiracy theory -which uses the values on Scrabble tiles to uncover the hidden meaning of the universe.
“There’s a lot of scrabble in this show,” says McCabe.
“I personally think that people who invest themselves in these theories are driven by a fear of randomised chaos. They prefer to think that someone is in control – even if it’s a nine foot lizard.”
Whatever life throws at him Troy Hawke’s eccentricities, obsessions and wonky belief systems are a seemingly endless source of laughter. But it is perhaps his unfailing politeness, positivity and charm that make him such a refreshing presence on stage and on the high street.
McCabe describes himself as a people pleaser, which is something he has in common with his hilarious altar ego. But there’s also a great advantage to performing on stage as a character.
“I also love the fact that I can take off the jacket, ruffle my hair and wipe off the moustache and no one recognises me.”
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/troy-hawke-sigmund-troy-d
