MARK BLACK

Our first guest will be Mark Black, a comedian who's made the rounds with not only his stand-up but featuring in online videos with his brother Paul, selling out shows at The Fringe and Oran Mor. Mark debuted his own hour 'Chindiana Jones' at 2022's Edinburgh Fringe under the Gilded Balloon banner, and we're honored to have him speak with us about what got him here and bringing his show to Glasgow on December 30th at the Classic Grand. 

Hey man! Thanks for being here, we’ll get right into it. What made you want to get into stand-up?

Speaking of comedy in general. I suppose by watching a lot of comedy growing up. Sketch shows, sitcoms, cartoons, and stand-up. However, stand-up was always the most fascinating to me. The idea that someone could have a whole room of people fits of uncontrollable laughter just by saying crazy shit in their head, out loud. I wanted to know what that sensation was like. That wall of laughter from strangers. Writing jokes and thinking of funny ways for a sentence to end, stimulated my ADHD and the more I wrote, the more I realized I was good at it. I have many funny characters in my family so being surrounded by them helped shape the comedic part of my brain also. Growing up, seeing people like Frankie Boyle, Kevin Bridges and Limmy, inspired me a lot. Watching Scottish acts succeed in England made me so proud to be Scottish and have comedians who had well-written and layered material rather than relying on lazy stereotypes. In terms of stand up.  Frankie Boyle is up there with the best writers of all time. He definitely was my biggest inspiration to get on the stage. 

 Since starting, you’ve made great progress doing weekend shows and a solo hour at The Fringe. How did you go about producing an hour’s worth of stand-up?

Starting off in comedy is hard because you only have 5/10 minutes to impress people. So, in the beginning, my strategy was to come out and hit the audience with a quick punchy delivery about random shit rather than spending 5 mins telling one anecdote.  I kind of enjoy starting my next joke before the audience has finished laughing at the last one, but still giving enough time for them to hear the next one.

Doing a full hour is different. I decided to take the good bits I have. And develop them into a longer bit, for example. I had a few short bits about football that lasted a minute but for my one hour show I turned it into a whole scenario at a football match that lasts about 5-7 mins. I made sure to try and keep the same rhythm with the punchy jokes and observations all the way through.

 What challenges have you faced in the scene and how have you overcame them?

Doing the gigs completely sober, initially was a bit hard but after about my tenth, I realized that not drinking made me perform much better. It was as simple as that. If I drink, the comedy will suffer. So I made a choice and almost every comedian will agree.  

Getting noticed can feel challenging at first but the key is persistence. DO NOT let up. No matter how bad a gig goes. The one thing you have to promise yourself is to never stop. Because everyone has bag gigs. The best comedians we've ever seen have bombed, somewhere. The only reason they got to the top was because they didn't give up. I would sometimes get down that I’m not getting this gig or that gig etc I had to be patient. If you just keep going to gigs, linking up with people, and doing the basics. Your comedy will shine through and people will take notice.

What advice would you give to anybody who wants to give stand up a try?

DO IT!  I’m gonna have to hit you with all the clichés. In particular, if you have a funny bone and people have told you this.  I say that everyone should try stand up. Whether you’re a plumber or a porn actor… or both. Doing stand-up is a very freeing and humbling experience. What I love about Scottish culture is that our whole lives we are surrounded by funny people. There are people I’ve worked with who are 100x funnier than me and some paid comedians out there.  My gran is the funniest woman alive. But the reality of getting on a stage is terrifying to most people. Of course, it will be scary at first. But if you know it's your calling. You’ve got to push through that. Honestly, the nerves diminish each time.

The main advice I'd give is to first write material that YOU find funny. Have confidence in your jokes. Sometimes some jokes just don’t land and it's fine. You learn to deal with that and adapt your act to improve it. Usually, I try a joke 3 times and if gets no reaction, I'll either bin it or try and improve it.

Be seen. GO to open mic nights in Soulsa bar Glasgow, Monkey Barrel in Edinburgh and apply for Red Raw at The Stand. Join Scottish comedy forum on Facebook. Be nice to people but don’t lick arses. Some People will give you great advice and some not so good. Take it all on board and make up your own mind. Just be true to yourself. Don’t look left or right and believe in yourself.