Young gun looks at life through an inbetweener's eye
They call him comedy's fastest-rising star and there's no doubt that Seann Walsh's observational stand-up is striking a chord with audiences of all vintages.
Perhaps it's because we can all recognise elements of the 27-year-old's self-effacing too-young-to-be-a- grown-up, too-old-to-be-a-student stories in his Seann To Be Wild tour repertoire?
A lot of the Brighton-born and raised funny man's sharp, witty and precocious repertoire seems to centre around the fact that he still drinks lots of alcohol, even though he knows it is bad for him and frequently makes him feel terrible. He used to send up his heavy smoking habit, too, but he has now managed to quit – and reveal terrible truths about his younger nicotine addicted self.
One of the stars of this year's Dartmouth Comedy Festival, he was warming up for the occasion last week by recording his own TV show for the Comedy Central channel – a mix of stand-up, sketches and funny film clips, delving into his life as a single twenty-something.
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"I hope people like it; it's a dream come true to have my own show," says Seann, who will also be starring in his own sitcom – Big Bad World – later in the year.
It's quite a coup, then, to catch this charismatic and charming young gun on his way up.
Comedy fans might have seen him on Channel 4's Stand Up For The Week, BBC1's Live At The Apollo and Dave's Argumental.
Within two years of his first ever comedy performance Seann won the Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year title, followed by nominations for Chortle's Best Breakthrough Act Nominee 2010 and Best Compere Nominee 2011.
His other recent TV appearances include Never Mind The Buzzcocks (BBC2), Mock The Week (BBC2), 8 Out Of 10 Cats (Channel 4) and Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow (BBC1).
He says it's great to have all those outlets and he's having a ball as one of the up-and-coming pack of young comics – he and Josh Widdicombe, for instance, often work together.
Seann has always been a bit of a clown, although not, surprisingly, in the classroom.
"I was rarely in class; I kept getting kicked out for distracting the other kids. I did try to make people laugh through the glass in the door... things like walking down invisible stairs, rowing, that kind of thing," he admits.
He grew up on a diet of his comedy heroes, Jack Dee and Lee Evans.
"In the 1990s they were pretty much the only comedians on TV worth watching... and then there was Dylan Moran," recalls Seann. "Now there is so much to choose from. There's a lot of great comedy out there."
Living by the sea in Brighton gave him the perfect environment for people watching, which lies at the core of his inspiration, along with a reluctance to get a proper job.
"The cafes in the Lanes were perfect for sitting and drinking coffee, thinking and watching. There always seems to be a lot of time there because it's a student town full of adults who never grew out of their student mentality. A lot of my friends are still in that lost floaty part of their lives, out of university, but without responsibilities and behaving like they are on their gap year."
Seann Walsh is at The Flavel, Dartmouth, on Saturday, March 9.
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