Star Of The News Quiz and The Now Show, Ian Smith Returns To The Edinburgh Fringe With CRUSHING

Multi-award-winning comedian Ian Smith (BBC Radio 4's The News Quiz, The Now Show and co-host of the Northern News podcast) presents a new show about stress, love, teeth and driving a tank.

Ian is always stressed about something - and now he's getting told off by his jobsworth dentist for grinding his teeth in his sleep, which is stressing him out even more. Some of the advice to help includes hypnotism, pre-bedtime motivational messages spoken into the mirror and, hardest of all, to just stop being anxious. Is that even possible? There's the ever-looming threat of nuclear war and a cucumber shortage. Even falling in love is stressful! It's stressful coming from The North too - especially if you're from his ever-failing hometown of Goole, turned down for city status for the second time and rejected by its twin town.

Join Ian for an hour where he explains why he's stressed and what he can and can't do about it - and why that led to him travelling to Slovakia and driving a tank over a car with his hairdresser. It's another classic northern-stress-body-image-car-crushing comedy show from Goole's only comedian.

Ian Smith: Crushing runs at Monkey Barrel (The Tron) 2 - 27 August @ 1.35pm

As a stand-up, Ian's six Edinburgh Fringe shows have received critical acclaim, awards and runs at Soho Theatreand New Zealand Comedy Festival. In 2015, he was also part of the hugely successful Richard Gadd - Waiting for Gaddot. In 2017, his fourth solo show, Snowflake, won an Amused Moose Comedy Award and a ThreeWeeks Editors' Award. His last show Half-Life was critically acclaimed, described as "an effortlessly brilliant stand-up show" by The Scotsman. He was invited to perform as part of Mary Tobin's Best of the Edinburgh Festshows at Adelaide in 2020 and Melbourne Comedy Festival this year, 2023. In 2020 he was also nominated for two Chortle Awards, including Best Compere.

Last year, Ian directed Amy Gledhill's Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer nominated debut show, The Girl Before The Girl You Marry.

Ian has become a regular guest on The News Quiz and The Now Show (BBC Radio 4) and has been seen on Comedy Central Live, Sweat the Small Stuff (BBC3), The Funny Thing About... (Channel 5) and the prestigious New Zealand Comedy Gala (TVNZ).

He is the co-host of the Northern News podcast with Amy Gledhill, produced by Plosive (Off Menu), based around obscure news stories from The North. It has reached the Top 20 of the iTunes comedy charts and was recommend in the Guardian's "best podcasts of the week".

Ian has also had a number of acting roles - starting off as a lead in BBC2 sitcom Popatron. He's also starred alongside Katherine Parkinson in Sky pilot Officially Special and had a leading role in BBC1 drama, The Ark, starring David Threlfall - as well as a various supporting roles including The Emily Atack Show, Siblings, Pls Likeand BBC drama The Syndicate.

A regular topical writer on The News Quiz, The Now Show and Newsjack (BBC Radio 4), Ian has also written for Have I Got News For You and Mock the Week. In 2020, he recorded his first solo Radio 4 show, the comedy-doc Girl Stuck in Basketball Hoop.

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