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Carl Donnelly set for The Stand

Source: The List (Issue 650)
Date: 18 February 2010
Written by: Brian Donaldson

As a jaw-dropping introduction to the mad old world of stand-up, Carl Donnelly’s second ever gig takes some beating. When telly channel Five were putting together a typically sensitive Race Swap show, it might have seemed like a good idea at the time to have ex-EastEnders star and, for the seniors among you, Runaround presenter Mike Reid black up and deliver his material in a Rastafarian guise. ‘It was all about how his comedy would work coming out of him if he was black,’ recalls Donnelly still sounding fairly aghast at the scenario. ‘It was probably the worst show I’ve ever seen but it was still an interesting experience watching how someone’s jokes would work if the comic looked completely different.’

For 28-year-old Donnelly, this notion has some resonance, given that he has cultivated an intriguing look himself, with curly hair and tinted glasses that wouldn’t appear wholly out of place on a spoof 70s porn movie directed by Judd Apatow. But slowly, Donnelly has tried to escape the potential trap this might impose upon him. ‘I’ve had this hair since I started out and I’ve always had the tinted glasses; I’ve copied my dad on that – it’s some weird south London taxi driver thing. When I was 18 and needed glasses, I got those but never thought it was something I had to have on stage. But two years ago I got normal, dark-rimmed standard ones and when I first wore them on stage it was the worst gig I ever had. And I just thought, “without the tinted glasses I’m nothing”.’

While getting his hair cut and donning less retro specs is not something he’s afraid of, last year’s Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer nominee knows where to draw the line. ‘What I could never do is properly smarten up. I don’t think my style of comedy would work if I came out in a smart suit, it would be ridiculous. With someone like Michael McIntyre, in his voice and with his manner, a suit works. But if I did that, I’d just look like I’d come from a job interview.’

Carl Donnelly set for The Stand

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