The Iceman (performer)
British performance artist and visual artist
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Anthony Irvine (born 17 February 1951), also known as the Iceman and aim, is a British performance artist and visual artist.[1][2]
The Iceman | |
|---|---|
Anthony Irvine in 2024 | |
| Born | 17 February 1951 |
| Alma mater | Oriel College, Oxford University, Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama |
| Notable work | The Iceman, Funny Bones, aim |
| Comedy career | |
| Years active | 1977–present |
| Medium | Alternative comedy, performance art, fine art, outsider art |
Performance
As the Iceman, his act is to creatively melt large blocks of ice[3][4][5] while talking to the audience over a soundtrack of tightly-looped music[6] and sound effects.[7][8] His methods of attempting to melt the ice include breath, salt and a blowtorch.[9][10] He might also sing songs, make puns, attempt to release a rubber duck from inside the block of ice,[11] or sell photographs of the ice to the audience.[12]
In the 1980s and '90s, he performed at notable alternative comedy venues including Cluub Zarathustra[13][14] and Malcolm Hardee's Tunnel Club as well as the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[9][11][15] In 2007, he performed at the Hackney Empire in a tribute show to the late Malcolm Hardee.[16] In 2011 he performed at the Royal Festival Hall.[17]
He is often cited by Stewart Lee as a legend of alternative comedy[18][19][20] and by Jo Brand as a favourite act of the 1980s.[10] Lee dedicates his epic poem about stand-up comedy, "I'll Only Go if you Throw Glass," to notable 1980s performers including the Iceman.[21]
In 1995, Irvine appeared in Peter Chelsom's film Funny Bones.[22][23] In the same year, he shared the Edinburgh Tapwater Award with Malcolm Hardee and Charlie Chuck.[24]
In 2022, Irvine published an ice-related children's book called Lockdown Melter.[25]
2025 saw an Iceman performance called "The Final Block" at the Bill Murray Comedy Club in London.[26]
Visual Art
Since 2014, he has produced art brut paintings under the name aim.[27][28] 2023 saw his first solo art show at Guggleton Farm Arts in Dorset.[29]
He returned to Guggleton Farm Arts for a second show in 2024.
In 2025, he held an art show at The Tabernacle in Notting Hill.
Legacy: book and film
The Iceman is the subject of a 2023 book released by Go Faster Stripe called Melt it! The Book of the Iceman.[30][31] As a result, he appeared on Richard Herring's Leicester Square Theatre Podcast.[32]
The book was adapted to become Melt It! The Film of the Iceman in 2026.[33][34][35][36]