The Edinburgh Comedy Awards Show: Assembly Rooms, Edinburgh, 2009
Live at The Electric: Pleasance Dome, Edinburgh, 2012
Always Be Comedy Online (4 shows): Online: 2020
Collywobblers Comedy Lockdown V2 (2 shows): Online: 2020
Always Be Comedy Online: An Evening with Russell Kane: Online: 2020
The Confident Crow Comedy Club Online: Online: 2021
Always Be Comedy Online: Online: 2021
Happy Mondays Comedy Lockdown Live One Year Anniversary Zoom Special: Online: 2021
I saw comedian Russell Kane at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2009 and 2012. He was nominated at the Edinburgh Awards Show and compered Live at The Electric, a live special of the BBC Three late-night comedy series, featuring a different line-up of stand-up, sketch and musical comedy acts.
Manic and bi-lingual Kane cavorted about the stage like a natural clown playing up to the audience. The gifted comic was very flamboyant skipping around the stage describing childhood and puberty traumas. Kane was an intelligent comedian and was endearing and fast-paced in his delivery.
Kane has headlined Always Be Comedy on a number of occasions and as long as I have been going to the club, I have unfortunately missed his headline set due to illness. That is until I saw him headline Always Be Comedy Online for two shows during the virus epidemic lockdown in May, July and September 2020. Billed as a special mystery guest, I was delighted to see the comedy star and he did not disappoint. In fact, he was phenomenally good displaying hilarious mannerisms, wild impressions, and visual comedy. Talking about his experiences during isolation and the state that the country is in, as well as differences between living in the North rather than the South (with a wonderful story about a chip shop) as well as effortlessly chatting with the front row, he was hysterical good making me cry with laughter.
Kane returned again to online comedy in November 2020 where I saw him perform on two successive nights for Always Be Comedy Online and Collywobblers Comedy Lockdown V2 on two occasions in the same month. What was particularly impressive was that both sets were different. His character-driven improvisation and quick-thinking skills were extraordinary and he delivered a masterclass in how to play comedy to a zoom room of audience.
An Evening with Russell Kane for Always Be Comedy Online in December 2020 featured the comedian mainly in serious mode talking about his new book Son of A Silverback: Growing Up in the Shadow of an Alpha Male. The book is an extremely funny and very moving memoir of growing up under the instruction of a Silverback dad. What a story he had for the basis of the book which was inspirational as well as funny and I’m hoping to finally meet the great comedian in 2021 to get the book signed.
Kane was a special guest for The Confident Crow Comedy Club Online that I watched in February 2021, for Always Be Comedy Online in March 2021 and for the Happy Mondays Comedy Lockdown Live One Year Anniversary Zoom Special in April 2021 where once again he demonstrated his remarkable skill at making the audience continuously laugh with his visual humour and hilarious stories.
One of the greatest comic talents currently at work, I was so pleased to have seen him perform so well during lockdown.