Biog Excerpt:

Imran Yusuf is renowned for his stinging, lyrical street-slang verbiage and super-high energy performance. Fast and furious yet charmingly endearing, his is a unique voice on the Comedy Circuit.

Born in Mombasa, Kenya and raised in the UK with a brief stint at school in the USA, Imran has travelled much of the world including Israel/Palestine, Jordan and Saudi Arabia during the Lebanon Crisis in 2006. His work has been inspired by this rich multicultural background, giving him a youthful, energetic and highly original voice that embodies the multi-cultural wealth that exists in modern Britain.

He seamlessly switches between styles with graceful fluidity, repeatedly delivering heavy-weight punch lines with enormous panache. His seemingly light-hearted satire is mixed with hard-hitting topical commentary on contemporary issues that culminate into a tour de force of comedy offering an all-embracing sentiment in his trademark styling. Read the full article

Imran Yusuf is represented proudly and exclusively by Comic Voice Management, a Comedy Club Ltd company.

New stand-up sensation Imran Yusuf has today scooped a Fosters Edinburgh Comedy Awards nomination for ‘Best Newcomer’ for his show ‘An Audience with Imran Yusuf’. The news is a remarkable achievement given that his show was solely performed on Edinburgh’s ‘Free Festival’.

The string of superlatives throughout Imran’s reviews over the month speak volumes for the huge talent posessed by the muslim comedian managed by Comic Voice Management:

“By not focusing on the obvious racial stereotypes, he wins over the entire audience. His happy, positive personality leaves them feeling uplifted, energised and privileged to have had An Audience With Imran Yusuf” ***** Chortle

“Imran Yusuf’s show heralds the birth of a new comedy star. Intelligent, thought provoking and laugh out loud funny it’s a glorious debut.” **** Time Out

“Imran Yusuf has to be one of the most captivating, energetic, and animated stand up comedians I’ve ever seen” ***** The New Current

“…there’s is no doubting his talent. As he says, catch him before you have to pay for the privilege” **** The Arts Desk

Imran Yusuf is represented proudly and exclusively by Comic Voice Management, a division of The Comedy Club Ltd

| View Imran Yusuf’s Page at ComicVoice.com

> “Bounding on stage for his first ever solo show at Edinburgh, Imran Yusuf isn’t your stereotypical stand-up. For one thing, he’s a Muslim, though he barely refers to this fact. He is also full of positive energy, happiness and joie de vivre.

He’s no doom merchant lamenting his lack of luck with the ladies but a man so full of fun that the audience can’t fail to not only warm to him, but feel positively fired up by his infectious personality. He has the feel good factor on tap.

He’s no oil painting with his scrawny build, large nose and irregular teeth, but his smile lights up the room and the sound of his laughter peppers his material. Born in Kenya, he moved to England at an early age but was educated in the USA and it is from here that he draws the inspiration for most of his material.

His stories of going to school it the States were told in faultless American accents and delighted the bunch of Americans in the audience who, by coincidence, came from the same town.

The comedy drew on his experience of being ridiculed by the Americans for his English accent, but his cultural comparisons are seen from a totally different perspective as he subverts the traditional UK-USA dissonance.

By not focussing on the obvious racial stereotypes, he wins over the entire audience. His happy, positive personality leaves them feeling uplifted, energised and privileged to have had An Audience With Imran Yusuf” ***** Chortle (Cara Sandys. 17.8.10)

>> “Imran Yusuf’s show heralds the birth of a new comedy star. Intelligent, thought provoking and laugh out loud funny it’s a glorious debut.” **** Time Out (Tim Arthur)

>>> “Imran Yusuf has to be one of the most captivating, energetic, and animated stand up comedians I’ve ever seen. His act is at a mile a minute, and he doesn’t let off for any of it. This show was a slight change on his usual act, focusing much more on his personal life, ideas, and experiences.

His delivery is lightning-fast, and with this show you get a real feeling of ‘getting to know’ him. He describes about his time at an American school, and how he was bullied for being British, patriotism and how we choose ‘British (UK)’ on software installations. Throughout the show he high-fives the front row, blows kisses to the girls, which is a really funny touch.

A highlight of the show is the ‘British citizenship test’, showing words such as ‘schedule’ that are often mispronounced due to things like American TV, which he got a guy in the front row answers with flying colours. Although the Fringe was one of the first public shows of this new material, it is already fairly solid, providing a lot of thoughtful insights into big topics like immigration, religion and culture. The material is very personal, and it’s a great to hear so much about a very interesting character such as Imran.” ***** The New Current (Mark Thomas)

>>>> “The Free Fringe is throwing up some great talent, not least this young Londoner of Asian extraction who has been gigging in clubs for a while but appears to be on the cusp of a breakthrough into the mainstream. Yusuf’s material is almost entirely about being a British Muslim, or should that be a Muslim who lives in Britain – a question he poses more than once in a very well thought-through set that subverts a lot of notions about racism.
He has some great stories about the time he spent at middle school in New Jersey; it remains the only time, he tells us, that he has ever been picked on for being English. “You people complain about being called infidel, but you don’t know what racism is until you’ve been called ‘English muffin’.”

Yusuf has a tendency to be a little preachy, but he’s clued-up enough to draw it back with an unexpected punchline when he feels he is losing the room. When he isn’t talking about racism, though, he’s leering at the women in the front row and suggesting they meet him in the loos. Classy.

He’s a very animated performer and a young man in a hurry; Yusuf references coming back next year and being a big star a few too many times, but there’s is no doubting his talent. As he says, catch him before you have to pay for the privilege. Until 29 August” **** Veronica Lee – The Arts Desk

“Imran Yusuf’s show (Laughing Horse @ Espionage 4 stars) is an hour of cheek and charm that takes us briskly through the Asian comic’s early life at an American school where his peers treated him as if he was in Mary Poppins (”Can you imagine me in that film? Well, maybe as a chimney sweep”) through to his life in Britain as a Muslim. “ **** The Independent (Julian Hall)

“Here we are at the end of the Fringe, and there are so many acts I meant to see but didn’t. I have a ‘would like to see’ list the length of the Mile. Then a couple of days ago, Imran Yusuf graduated from this list to the ‘must see’ list. He was nominated for an Edinburgh Comedy Award.
My head is not usually so easily turned; there have been some truly dreadful winners of what was the Perrier, in its various incarnations. But Yusuf is special in that he is the first winner from the ever-growing free Fringe scene, placing it more firmly on the map than ever.
The place is packed to the rafters, with as many turned away. Whilst desperately wanting such a fantastic success story to come out of the incredible amount of hard work and dedication the that is the Free Festival, I am naturally swayed to distrust such hype and so the bar is set high. As far as I am concerned, he needs to prove himself. Not prove that he is a good free act; prove that is he a good act.
He is a bloody good act. He is so good I want to cry a little at the end. Taking in themes of race, culture and identity, he pleas for peace and tolerance. He would be broadly described as ‘political comedy’, but he in fact comes across not as political but as deeply human. It is his very rejection of such boxes that make him so remarkable. Add to this a tremendous physicality and a joyful glint in his eye, and it’s easy to see why I came out of the show somewhat in love with him.
What simultaneously makes him brilliant, but hinders this from being a 5 star review, is his potential to be better. He has his weak moments. These may pass in poorer performers as strong moments, but they undermine my expectations which, by the end, are still high – not because of the hype, but because of what I have seen him do.
I hope he wins the best newcomer. It would be not only an amazing achievement for the free Fringe Festival movement, but one that is well deserved.” **** The Skinny (Lizzie Cass-Maran)

Imran Yusuf
You Would Never Believe…Imran’s a passionate Video Games Consultant for Midway, Eidos, SEGA & Headstrong Games plus enjoys martial arts, free-running, climbing, football & learning to speak Japanese in his spare time.

Edinburgh Show: An Audience with Imran Yusuf
Where: Laughing Horse @ Espionage
When: 6-30 Aug
Time: 4.30pm-5.30pm
Show Summary: The fast-talking lyrical machine-gun comic slows it down for a deep and meaningful look at life with personal stories and a unique life philosophy. Based
on intense personal experiences, a lot of soul searching, lost friendships and fights, comes a light-hearted hour on our commonalities as human beings.

Imran Yusuf’s Upcoming Comedy Club Gigs

“A compact stage benefits this quintet’s matey charm and it’s refreshing to see improv performed with such a professional lack of corpsing. Audience members are incorporated but not humiliated and there’s a great deal of fun to be had in spotting the impending gags. It’s very rare to see improv comedy so consistently hit the mark.” **** The List

“The Noise Next Door are five hyperactive, hypermobile performers, whose lively and unpredictable show is a exemplar of high-quality, high-energy improvised comedy. In a twist on the usual format, they structure their show around the establishment of an agency to fight evil, asking the audience for suggestions regarding their underground lair, the identity of their nemesis, and the format of a secret mission. It’s a clever set-up, marking their show out as distinct from the many other improv troupes on the Fringe, and – with the help of some inspired audience contributions – they create a brilliantly funny hour of preposterous scenarios and over-the-top characters. The interplay between this close-knit group and their astounding physical, facial, verbal, and lyrical dexterity is impressive and consistently entertaining. Accompanied by a quick-thinking guitarist, they also belt out some musical numbers, in an impressive range of genres, including some lightning-fast freestyle rapping. Overall, this is fun, well-executed and original improvised comedy.” **** Broadway Baby (Beth Kahn)

“The Noise Next Door consist of Charlie Granville, Tom Livingstone, Matt Grant, Tom Houghton and Sam Pacelli, with Nathan Marshall on guitar.

This improvised comedy show from The Noise Next Door is unlike anything you have ever seen before. Featuring some corny pubs and witty one-liners, ‘Chaos Control’ is hilarious and sheer genius, excellently improvised and incredibly well presented. The show follows a vague structure about forming a secret agency, but aside of that relies upon audience input. As such, the show varies greatly from performance to performance, but the key fact still remains, that the boys of this ‘camp comedy troupe’ can tackle almost anything the audience suggest to them; ranging from Viking Techno music about Goblin Ninjas, to Richard Branson being hidden away due to constipation.

At times this show can be incredibly bizarre, but it is in this that it’s merit lies – the way in which all of the performers manage to instantaneously create scenes or vocalise songs is nothing short of impressive and almost unbelievable, this is especially the case with guitarist Nathan Marshall who seems to be able to provide musical accompaniment for anything and everything and in every conceivable style. What makes this show even better is that the boys give you everything – great comedy, stunning improvisation and – described as a ‘comedy JLS’ – they can sing! If their comedy ever fails (which in some ways unfortunately it never will) The Noise Next Door could always form a boyband – maybe an option for next year’s Fringe guys?!

Chaos Control is most definitely worth more than the price of a ticket, and I recommend you all pen it into you Fringe planners.” **** ScotsGay

“The penultimate, particularly hectic section of The Noise Next Door’s new show Chaos Control doesn’t work at all. The longer it goes on, the less idea you have what the members of this quickfire improv troupe are trying to achieve, and it exhibits the worst traditional vice of this style of comedy in that the performers seem to be having far more fun than the audience.
Not so the rest of the show, a hodge-podge of off-the-cuff rhyming, (atrocious) dancing and all-round silliness that is often riotously enjoyable. It kicks off with these five young fellows embarking on a “mission”, its various components yelled out in turn from a very willling audience and incorporated with lightning speed into the skit. On the evening I caught them, the result was an agreably surreal adventure in which The Magic Roundabout’s Zebedee led the forces of good against Darth Vader, who was holed up in Worcester Cathedral.

Ok, maybe you had to be there. But had you been, you would have laughed a lot, as well as being treated to — among other things – a hilariously lubricious R&B love song, as well as a mini-musical that incorporated panto, folk and death-metal.
In fact, the death metal vocals sounded very and inexplicably Jamaican. Much as, when we collectively cooked up a drama in which a sausage roll was going to be crucified in the Kellogg’s factory, and four of the troupe gave the fifth punning clues as to what was going on, he came up with the still more improbable: “Are you hiding a sausage-roll that is turning into Jesus?”
The quintet win either way. When they guess correctly, or nail an impression, accent, or rhyme, the speed of thought is both impressive and funny. When they fall flat on their faces, such are the zest and all-round good humour radiating from the stage that, although less impressive, it’s funnier still. That late, scrappable section aside, this is definitely a superior kind of chaos.” **** The Telegraph (Mark Monahan)

The Noise Next Door
You Would Never Believe…Between the 5 guys, one loves mozzarella, there’s a 258 top bowling score, 5 years spent in Kenya, crying on cue, making a belly look pregnant and one has the word ‘flange’ tatooed on an arm.

Edinburgh Show: The Noise Next Door: Chaos Control
Where: 33 Pleasance – Courtyard
When: 4-30 Aug (not 11,18) (Previews 4,5,6)
Time: 7.00pm
Show Summary: Earth-shattering secrets & Impossible odds.  Our mission: Protect mankind, kick ass…and bag sexy chicks. Audience suggestions are transformed into fantastically funny scenes and songs, exposing society’s secrets and unleashing ludicrous characters, witty one-liners and explosive physicality.

The Noise Next Door’s Upcoming Comedy Club Gigs

3 Days of Preparation
We arrived in Edinburgh and spent most of our first night marvelling at our swanky flat and catching up with some old buddies. We also overcooked some pasta.

A day of generally sorting stuff out. Our tech rehearsal was cut in half by a slightly worrying power failure, the cause of which, the tech staff at The Pleasance confidently informed us, was entirely unknown. A contingency plan involving opening doors to let light in was put in place… Sounds safe.  Met up with fellow B+G acts including Stephen K Amos, Sean Hughes and Tim Vine and then went out for the Fest Magazine launch do.

Last minute touches to the show, including a bit of set decoration and some singing practice was slowed only by the onset of the first signs of the Edinburgh bug as a few voices waned. The first show was a blast; a surprisingly packed house and a great reaction across the board. An evening spent variously at the Just the Tonic and Assembly launch parties with various lovely folk. Good times… They had pick’n’mix.One of our number had an unfortunate incident where he lost half of his left big toenail in a popular food chain and gushed blood all up the side of the drinks fridge. Some slightly over dramatic screaming and some panicked flapping by some passing ballet dancers led to a free sandwich for us. That’s a big win by our books… It was all very Claims Direct. Only without the crappy adverts.

WEEK2
A good week for us. We’ve had full houses and some very satisfied customers.

One of our number had an unfortunate incident where he lost half of his left big toenail in a popular food chain and gushed blood all up the side of the drinks fridge. Some slightly over dramatic screaming and some panicked flapping by some passing ballet dancers led to a free sandwich for us. That’s a big win by our books… It was all very Claims Direct. Only without the crappy adverts.

We had a box sliding race down Arthur’s Seat on our day off. It’s not a technical sport yet but it’s good fun. The basic rules involve jumping in a cardboard box and slipping down the hill at speeds that most people would describe as ‘uncontrollable’ due to a total lack of brakes… and steering. Fear and an absence of safety wear meant the game was called off relatively quickly. Our bodies emerged from the fray unscathed… Our minds, however, were utterly blown by the mind numbing speed we had experienced. Most people we met that night weren’t as impressed with our efforts as we clearly were.

WEEK3

A Week In The Life…
The Fringe has become some what of a blur in this week. We are going to promos and parties left right and centre… Some of the most memorable…

We were the final guests on Hardeep Singh Kohi’s Chat Masla in which he cooked up a pea and haggis vindaloo for us! Our resident vegetarian, Charlie, politely turned down the dish, Matt quivered at his first haggis experience once Hardeep explained exactly what it was, whilst Little Tom and Sam were left near blinded by spiciness. Big Tom however, true to form, proclaimed it the best thing he’d eaten in weeks and proceeded to shovel it in… three portions of the stuff. To everyone’s surprise (and slight disappointment) this didn’t affect him in any negative way… Iron stomach.

Backstage is a funny place to be sometimes… Matt had been racked with toothache all day and had gone to seek serious help at a pharmacy just before a late night show. As the rest of the guys warmed up and chatted to the other acts Matt applied a gel to his offending wisdom tooth. Minutes later, having lost nearly all feeling in the left side of his face, Matt was, unbeknownst to him drooling profusely out of the corner of his mouth down his trademark green tie. In a room full of comedians its tough to make a mistake like that and not pay for it. Through a barrage of banter and stifled laughter Matt managed to clean himself up just in time to get out on stage in time. Close call.

Accents can be tough to get perfect when you’re making things up on the spot. A distinctive Geordie twang is an old favourite of crowds however the guys attempts at the voice were somewhat over shadowed on Stephen K Amos’ Chat Show when they appeared alongside Alistair McGowan… Talk about out of your league.

“John Ryan comedian and Master of Ceremonies for the day drew large crowds where members of the public not only benefitted from a good laugh but gained valuable information as well. The day was a great success thanks to John and it is true that laughter is the best medicine!

Over 100 men had health MOT’s (30% of which were referred to other services). 70 received stop smoking advice, over 80 were given skin cancer awareness information and 75 new blood donors were registered.
500 pedometers and water bottles were distributed, in fact we ran out such was their popularity!

The events focus was on getting men more active. Over 100 took a rowing challenge, over 200 took football and bike challenges. Top scorers got some great prizes including the best sports quiz team.”

Community Public Health Practitioner, Public Health Development Unit

A word from John himself: “The day started out with me avoiding the full English breakfast at the hotel. I felt a bit guilty bulking up on the calories before talking to a crowd about their health. However I got as far as the muesli when the smell of the bacon wafted over. The waitress assured me that it was grilled so I figured it was healthy. Plymouth is a lively town and there was a good crowd many of whom remembered me from last year. The brief was straightforward, we needed to encourage the public to take up some of the many opportunities for health checks, and tips for a healthier lifestyle that were littered around the place. This they did in very ‘healthy’ numbers. The south west has the highest rates of skin cancer in the UK so there was plenty of opportunities to mention the free sun cream and other preventative measures available. The highlight of the day was being able to offer free condoms with my advice to “keep it zipped up and you wont need these’. All in all another great day and I even managed to avoid the chips with my grilled meat and salad (aka a kebab).  Roll on next year.”

Following an exciting year on the the UK comedy circuit, filming of Imran Yusuf’s ‘Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Roadshow’ performance will take place half way through his show run at the prestigious Edinburgh comedy festival. Imran’s show at The Laughing Horse at Espionage titled ‘An Audience with Imran Yusuf’ is expected to be a great platform for audiences to enjoy his unique brand of stand-up comedy whilst give the national press a taster of what’s to come.

As Imran Yusuf’s exclusive mangement, Comic Voice Mangement is extremely proud to announce this great news. Watch this space for more updates!

Edinburgh Show: Life of Si: Si Harder
Where: The GRV
When: 6th-30th Aug (not 18 Aug)
Time: 6.40pm
Show Summary: Sophomoric sofa-mates Simon and Sy escape their shared abode to run riot with new shenanigans, bigger videos, camper haircuts, skinnier jeans and more pressing cohabitation questions like, “Have you washed that since last year?”, “Is this safe to eat?” and “Did you pack the teapot?”

Simon Feilder’s Upcoming Comedy Club Gigs

So welcome to the festival; young Belfast born act Ryan McDonnell, improv incredibles The Noise Next Door, Sophomoric sofa-mates Simon & Sy and Michael McIntyre Comedy Roadshow probable Imran Yusuf.

Here’s a brief summary of what’s to come:

Ryan McDonnell
Show: AAA Stand-up
Where: 33 Pleasance – Courtyard
When: 4-30 Aug (Previews 4,5,6)
Time: 11.00pm
Overview: Bringing his own brand of upbeat Northern Irish banter to the Fringe with a mixture of laughs and charm, Ryan will entertain you with an energetically, unique view of the world and how he survives in it.

The Noise Next Door
Show: The Noise Next Door: Chaos Control
Where:  33 Pleasance – Courtyard
When:  4-30 Aug (not 11,18) (Previews 4,5,6)
Time: 7.00pm
Overview: Earth-shattering secrets & Impossible odds.  Our mission: Protect mankind, kick ass…and bag sexy chicks. Audience suggestions are transformed into fantastically funny scenes and songs, exposing society’s secrets and unleashing ludicrous characters, witty one-liners and explosive physicality.

Imran Yusuf
Show: An Audience with Imran Yusuf
Where: Laughing Horse @ Espionage
When: 6-30 Aug
Time: 4.30pm-5.30pm
Overview: The fast talking lyrical machine gun comic slows it down for a deep and meaningful look at life with personal stories and a unique life philosophy.

Simon Feilder
Show Name: Life of Si: Si Harder
Where: The GRV
When: 6th-30th Aug (not 18 Aug)
Time: 6.40pm
Overview: Sophomoric sofa-mates Simon & Sy’s riotous return! New shenanigans, new videos, new haircuts… same teapot.

TO REQUEST MORE INFORMATION ON COMIC VOICE ACTS PERFORMING AT THE EDINBURGH FRINGE FESTIVAL 2010, EMAIL INFO@COMICVOICE.COM OR CALL 0845 459 56 56

In what can only be described as “clearly some kind of clerical error”, Life Of Si has been invited to appear at the innaugural Hollywood Fringe Festival, running from 17-27 June 2010.

In Hollywood. The real one. In LA, America, The World etc.  I KNOW, right?

We’ll be performing an hour(ish) show featuring all of (y)our favourite things from last year’s Edinburgh show plus some special Hollywood treats.

If you could bottle excitement, all of our bottles would be overflowing and broken. In a good way. Not in a “festival tent” way.