Performer: Martin Mor Photograph by: Andy Hollingworth Show: Martin Mor is Blocked Venue: Laughing Horse @ Cabaret Voltaire Promoter: Indie Online: Box Office Facebook Website
Tell me about your Edinburgh Fringe show.
Attack is the best form of defense.
Tell me about your first gig.
My first ever stand up gig came after I had already been a professional circus act for a number of years. I rang up the Frog and Bucket Comedy Club, (that had just opened in Manchester), to ask for an open spot. The manager had already seen me doing cabaret shows in the city, and offered me a paid gig straight away. So my very first time doing a stand up set, I actually got paid. It really was a different world for comedy back in the 1990s.
Do you have any rituals before going on stage?
I always look in the mirror and count my teeth. This is an ancient tradition that all circus performers do. The theory is the you are checking even the smallest detail, and over time it must have just evolved into a superstition. It is the circus equivalent of saying; “break a leg:” Circus people say; “count your teeth”.
Tell me about your best and worst review.
I never, ever read reviews. The dog does not care about the opinion of the fleas.
During this Edinburgh run, do you plan to read reviews of your show?
No. See above.
How do you feel about reviewers generally?
At best they are parasites.
In April 2018, YouTube comedian, Markus Meechan (aka Count Dankula) was fined £800 for training his girlfriend’s pug dog to do a Nazi salute with its paw, in response to the phrase ‘Gas the Jews’. Do you believe Meechan committed a criminal offence, and why?
Unless it is demonstrability an actual ‘Hate crime” then I’m with Evelyn Beatrice Hall on this subject; “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it”
Are there any subjects that are not suitable for comedy?
No, but it is the comedian’s responsibility to make sure that their ‘edgy’ joke is actually funny and not just a shock tactic. Many new comedians say; “a groan is as good as a laugh” this is bullshit. Only a laugh is as good as a laugh…unless you are gigging in the Groaning Club.
Have you ever gone too far?
To quote the great John Cooper Clarke; “too much is not enough, now lets not be naive”
Looking back over your time as a comedian, tell me about the best gig of your career.
I’ve done 250 to 300 gigs a year every year, for over 30 years, and this question is actually the secret to longevity as a comedian; The best gig of my career… the next one.