Angelos Epithemiou and Friends: Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh, 2011
Always Be Comedy: The Tommyfield pub, Kennington, London, 2018
Big Funny Fest: The Old Deer Park, Richmond, 2019
First appearing on TV’s Shooting Stars, character actor Dan Renton Skinner has acquired a lot of surreal daftness from Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer with his enjoyable former burger van owner and sometime stand-up comedian Angelos Epithemiou. The character starred in his own show Angelos Epithemiou and Friends which I saw at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2011.
As he shuffled onto the stage, the plastic bag carrying misfit commanded the stage. Epithemiou’s psychotically oddball friends are mentioned only in passing and for all his slipshoddiness, the show held together and was funny.
Epithemiou made a guest appearance at Always Be Comedy in May 2018. The shambling, anorak-wearing persona appeared to take over the room with withering yet very funny outlooks on a hopeless life. The audience seemed to warm to him and trying to impress, he elicited laughs by creeping around in a silver body suit which like his whole act is endearingly ridiculous.
I saw Epithemiou again in June 2019 where he was the first act of the day at the inaugural Big Funny Fest at The Old Deer Park in Richmond. I went for the day on my own and I sa in the front row of a purpose-built Big Top. Epithemiou swaggered onto the stage looking lost with his little carrier bag and then jumped down from the stage to hake the hands of the front row. When he came to me, he announced ‘We’ve met before!’ which got a big laugh and then moved on. His act built and got funnier as he went along creating bizarre comedy to an encouraging audience.