Graham Clark (comedian)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Comedian
- writer
- podcaster
Graham Clark | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1981 (age 44–45) |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Organization | Maximum Fun |
| Agent | Paquin Entertainment |
| Spouse(s) | Sally White, 2023–present |
| Awards |
|
| Website | beardpaintings |
Graham Clark (born 1981)[1] is a Canadian stand-up comedian and philanthropist from Vancouver, British Columbia. He is best known for pioneering podcasting as the co-host of Stop Podcasting Yourself and his 24-hour charity fundraisers, Graham Clark's 24 Hours of Stand-Up.[2][3][4]
Clark is also a producer and regular guest on the CBC Radio One's comedy program The Debaters.[5]
Clark grew up in Calgary before moving to Vancouver in 2000.
He was an independent candidate in the 2009 British Columbia general election, running in Vancouver-Fairview.[6]
Comedy career
In 2001, Clark started hosting The Laugh Gallery, a weekly stand-up show at El Cocal restaurant in East Vancouver.[7][8] The Laugh Gallery moved across the street in 2006 to Rime, then down Commercial Drive to Havana, and finally relocated to its current home at Little Mountain Gallery following the venue's reopening in Gastown.[9]
On June 7, 2008, Clark appeared on The Debaters for the first time.
Tragedy Plus Time, his comedy blog column for Vancouver Is Awesome, ran from July 7, 2010 until March 24, 2011.[10][11]
On April 12, 2016, Clark was named one of the National Post's "Eight Extraordinary Canadians."[12]
At the 2019 Vancouver Comedy Awards. Clark received Best Crowd Work, Best Twitter Account, Best Comedy Parent, Best Local Headliner, Best Local Host / MC, as well as Best Comedy Podcast for SPY.[13]
He released his album, Never Was, on October 31st 2023, and received a nomination for Comedy Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2024.[14][15]
Television
In 2008, Clark won Yuk Yuk's Great Canadian Laugh Off.[16] He was a host of Citytv's satirical news show The CityNews List from 2009 until its cancellation in the 2010 Rogers Media layoffs.[17] He appeared in season 1, episode 6 of HBO Canada's Funny as Hell in 2011.[18]
Clark did punch-up writing on the first three seasons of Corner Gas Animated, from 2018 to 2020.[19]
From 2018-2019, Clark was a West Coast correspondent on season 26 of This Hour Has 22 Minutes.[20]
Writing
| Year | Title | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-2020 | Corner Gas Animated | punch-up writer and creative consultant | |
| 2018 | This Hour Has 22 Minutes | ||
| 2013 | The Stand-Up Comedians | ||
| 2011 | The Debaters (TV Show) | ||
| 2011 | Funny As Hell | ||
| 2006 | Comedy Now! |
Fringe Festivals
Clark has premiered multiple shows at various Fringe Festivals. In 2015, he performed Graham Clark Reads the Phone Book at the Toronto Fringe Festival and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[21][22] In 2016, he returned to the Toronto Fringe with his show Instagraham.[23] In 2018, he brought his show Graham Clark's Not Here to the Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival.[24]
Stop Podcasting Yourself
In 2008, Clark was invited by his friend Dave Shumka to start a podcast in Shumka's basement studio.[25] Stop Podcasting Yourself accidentally invented the chat show format, and was a quick success.[26]
He and Shumka met Jesse Thorn and joined the Maximum Fun network in 2011.[27]
Shumka and Clark were nominated for, and won Best Podcast twice at the Canadian Comedy Awards, in 2012 and 2013 in recognition of Stop Podcasting Yourself. They also won the Canadian Comedy Award for Best Audio Show or Series in 2014.
The podcast has been recorded live at festivals such as Just for Laughs.[28]
Stop Podcasting Yourself celebrated 500 episodes in 2017, and its 10th anniversary in 2018.[29][30][31]