DARREN HARRIOTT isn’t fazed by the prospect of a full month on the Edinburgh Fringe – far from it.
Many stand-ups would baulk at the idea of a lengthy run at the legendary festival but not the Black Country comic.
“What’s the secret of his fearlessness?” I hear you cry. Well, let me tell you, Darren isn’t afraid of anything after a month skating about in tight trousers in front of a TV audience of millions.
“I’d done live TV but before Dancing On Ice I’d never done a live show where you have to perform like a sportsman,” says Darren.
“Standing in my ice-skates with my partner 30 seconds before going live on ITV in front of millions, your family, your friends, the whole country watching…
“After doing that six or seven times, I feel like I can do anything – the Edinburgh Fringe sounds easy because, you know what, you’re not on blades on ice!
“I watch Strictly now and I think, ‘Yeah, that’s good but can you do it on ice?’! That show made me prepared for anything.
“Mind you, I’d never been on an ice rink before. I remember when I first walked in I thought, ‘Wait a minute, this is cold!’.
“It’s very hard and I now have so much respect for ice skaters. When you watch them, they’re so graceful and it’s close to ballet, so you don’t realise, ‘Oh, yes, this is an extreme sport’.
“You’re on blades, on ice. Everyone tells you to be careful of the blades but you should be careful of the actual ice! Falling on ice is so much worse because what happens is you fall, it hurts like concrete but then you start sliding along the ice, you try to get up and fall over again!
“You start six months in advance – I’ve had relationships with less of a commitment!”
Darren’s new show is called Roadman. Now, as a middle-aged chap I’m not terribly up on the young peoples’ lingo but as a conscientious journalist (stop sniggering) I looked it up online. When I tell Darren that the only info I could get suggested it was mainly about black North Face puffa jackets and drill music, his shriek of laughter is deafening.
“North Face jackets and drill?! Yeah, let’s go with that! Nah, when I was growing up a roadman was kinda like the cool kid, the guy who lived on the streets but wasn’t homeless, they liked the outdoors in cities.
“Everybody knew them and when I was growing up I wanted to be like that but as I’ve got older I’ve realised I’m not that cool person at all, I mean I’ve got four pairs of Crocs!
“I liked the idea of being a cool roadman because you always wanted to be the popular kid but the problem is, some of the roadmen I knew in high school are still living outside on their streets, even though they’re now in their mid-30s and still living with their mums!”
While he was breaking into comedy Darren worked as a bouncer including stints at the Apollo which, when he first appeared there as a comic on Live At The Apollo, confused the head of security at the Hammersmith venue who thought Darren had mixed up his shifts!
“Getting to perform at the Apollo, and later host the show, when I used to work there is such a great full-circle moment. It’s one of my proudest-ever achievements,” nods Darren, who has also been a team captain on four series of comedy quiz show Guessable.
“There aren’t that many comics who were bouncers, maybe because they’d find it difficult to go onstage, tell a joke, get heckled and not put someone in a chokehold!
“But a lot of the skills I learned as a bouncer, like conflict resolution, definitely have played a part in comedy when it comes to dealing with issues on stage and having that commanding presence, knowing you can defuse situations.
“It’s pretty old school to do a full run now,” says Darren. “Everybody seems to be doing half a run but I’ve always enjoyed the Fringe, it’s always been good to me so I figured, ‘Why not?’.
“Mind you, by the end of week three, not only have the comics had enough of comedy, they’ve had enough of themselves and everyone around them!
“They just want to go into a tiny hole and just exist for a bit because it becomes a war of attrition. Who’s got the most energy? Who’s been using their time wisely? I think, especially in that first week, a lot of comics lose their minds – they party, they drink, they don’t have to look after their kids or worry about a job they’re just ‘Yeeaaah!’.
“Then by the time you get to week three they need a berocca and a vitamin drip.
“It’s such a range of emotions the Fringe for a lot of people, and quite the journey. I’ve done it a few times before so I know, ‘Pace yourself a bit, man!’.”
Darren’s not only an old hand at the Fringe, he’s a two-time nominee. In 2017 he was nominated for Best Newcomer and two years later got another nod as the first black male comic to be nominated for Best Show. So is third time the charm?
“I dunno! I think I’ve had all the Edinburgh accolades I’m gonna get – not many comics get a third nomination! Obviously it would be amazing but my main thing at the Fringe is to have fun, make sure the audiences are having fun and not put any pressure on myself.”
Darren is introducing his new show in Edinburgh before taking it out on tour, and while some people don’t like the phrase “work in progress” he’s quite open about using the month to hone his material.
“Definitely, 100%. The Fringe is a big showcase so you’ve got to showcase what you can do and what you’re about. Also, when you go to the Fringe, don’t rest on your laurels and say, ‘Well, this is the completed show’. Work on your show every day. What I do is add a new joke every day and every time I add a new joke, I get excited and end up with 15 minutes of extra material.
“And the show from week one to week four is a very different show, much stronger, much more instinctive and the Fringe is the perfect environment for that.
“Mind you, it sounds like I’m saying, ‘Come and see the show two weeks in, it’ll be great!’.”
Darren Harriott: Roadman is at the Pleasance Courtyard – Beneath at 7.40pm from August 2-27 (except 14).
