In 2023 comic Alfie Brown saw his world collapse after an eight-year old routine re-emerged on social media and he was accused of being racist. He lost gigs, lost his agent. He was seemingly unbookable.
This year he’s back at Edinburgh Fringe to tell his side of the story. He talks to Kate Copstick.
It is just as well for me that Alfie Brown has the intellectual capacity, so comprehensively lacking in those who have done their best to destroy his career, to recognise when a contentious term is being used not in prejudice, to shock, or in violence.
He remembers our first meeting …
“You walked up to me after my show 11 years ago, one year after you gave me a one star review, and you said to me, ‘I’ve worked out why you’re a cunt.’
“I said, ‘oh good do let me know…’
“And you did, in that year’s two star review (quite an improvement), I read it, and learned from it, as I do all reviews.”
I won’t go into the details of his egregiously punitive treatment at the comedy hands of Those That See An ‘Ism or a ‘Phobia In Every Utterance. He deals with it in this year’s show. Which will be worth seeing. He might be a c**t, but he is a seriously talented c**t.
I have always thought of Alfie as, in many ways, Jack Whitehall’s very badly behaved brother. I felt he made an art out of arrogance. And it became increasingly impressive to watch.
“Stand-up or any performance is perhaps inherently arrogant,” says Alfie and then pauses, “maybe that is an arrogant response? I’m not sure I have an exaggerated sense of self-worth or importance. But to be onstage requires an honesty and command of the space that certainly presents as arrogant. Especially when you’ve a theatre posh voice.”
But he does connect with his audiences … posh or no …
“I have a respect for the audience, and choose to speak to them in a familiar way like you might speak to a close friend, but I also wind them up like you would a close friend.”
His parents – Jan Ravens and Steve Brown – are, if not comedy royalty, at least funny aristocracy. So, has that helped?
“I am indeed a nepo-baby (a slightly confused modern phrase), but so was Tolstoy, I don’t see it as a problem, not comparing myself to qualitatively Leo either. I celebrate my parents and count myself very lucky.”
And, growing up in an hilarious household … was this what young Alfie always wanted to be?
“Yes, I think so. Which is to say, I’ve always loved stand-up. I have wanted to be the funny one since my first years at primary school. My Dad bought me stand-up DVDs every Christmas and birthday. As a teenager I watched stand-up after school and later work. I was 18 when I first did it, I was appalling even for someone doing their first gig – I was bad. But I took risks I suppose, and that’s not nothing.”
It is not nothing. But do you think we could be losing stand up as a real live skill? As everyone seems to be either rushing or being pushed to TV?
“I believe if anything is killing stand-up as a proper exciting live skill” says Alfie, “it is Tik-Tok and Instagram. Finding your voice, new modes of delivery, exciting and different ways to be funny, all these things come from risk and experimentation. Risk, experimentation and a sense of play are all totally anathema to quick success on Tiktok and Insta. It homogenises. There are exceptions, I’m aware of the exceptions, I would go as far to say that I’d like to be one of the exceptions.”
I cannot see that being out of the question at all.
Alfie Brown: Open Hearted Human Enquiry, 23.35 Just the Tonic, until August 25
https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/alfie-brown-open-hearted-human-enquiry