Photo by Monika Marion
COMEDY.
"Singing Stand-Up Gareth Cooper embraces the unique comedy in the unashamedly un-cool" - NextUp
Gareth does comedy. Quite a bit of it. He wrote and performed in the award-winning & critically-acclaimed sketch group, Delete the Banjax, and now spends his time gigging his own special brand of "un-cool" musical comedy.
In 2015, he took his debut solo comedy show, Mishmash, up to Edinburgh Festival Fringe - you can watch Mishmash on NextUp comedy streaming service here.
In 2016 he won an award from the International Songwriting Competition (Comedy category) for his track, Dead With You and, in August 2017, he took his second solo comedy show, Nerd Rock, to Edinburgh Festival Fringe as part of PBH's Free Fringe. In 2020, he released his first album, Comedy Songs - you can stream it on Spotify here.
He also performs with Small Laces, a new comedy band for kids.
Gareth filmed a bundle of comedy shorts for the BBC for their About Shakespeare series; he played "Cool Tory" in a comedy video for Sam Delaney's News Thing, which ended up going viral; he's also filmed a load of music videos for his own award-winning comedy songs, which can be found on the Videos page, along with sketches from Delete the Banjax and a whole host of other treats!
If you'd like to book Gareth for your comedy night, or contact him about comedy/song writing, drop him an email and he'll get straight back to you.
★★★★★ ThreeWeeks - "Hysterically funny....missing this act would be like skipping Christmas" (Editor's Choice Award)
★★★★★ British Comedy Guide - "I left grinning from ear to ear"
★★★★★ Broadway Baby - "Bloody marvellous"
★★★★ TimeOut - "Incredibly fun, fast-paced sketch comedy with fresh, innovative skits and charming performances from a gifted quartet"
★★★★ Chortle - "Inventive ideas and cleverly written skits"
★★★★ The Times - "Gareth Cooper's jaunty songs have flavours of folk and jazz, and nimble lyrics that zing with wit"
The Guardian - "Samuel Champion, Daniel Cook, Gareth Cooper and Caroline May-Jones make up a precocious four-piece whose mix of skits and songs make up a compelling set that is gloriously daft. While they're fond of big surreal ideas, they never fall into the Boosh-lite self-indulgence to which younger comics can sometimes fall prey. At all times, they've got a sure feeling for where the funny is, and they know how to deliver it too."
Top 6 shows of the Fringe 2017, International Times - "The amount of energy Gareth Cooper exudes in the first ‘Heavy Metal’ five minutes of this performance is remarkable. One wonders how he’ll ever carry on, if he’ll survive the remainder of the show. But, thankfully, he does. He cavorts, sings, jokes, and generally astounds with his dynamism and comedy/musical expertise. From the pulsating, prerecorded backing tracks that accompany his witty and sometimes poignant songs, to his acoustic serenades on guitar, there’s an undeniable warmth and charm that simply demands our attention, and gets it. Suffice to say, you don’t have to be a Nerd to rock along to this show, just go!"
Gareth does comedy. Quite a bit of it. He wrote and performed in the award-winning & critically-acclaimed sketch group, Delete the Banjax, and now spends his time gigging his own special brand of "un-cool" musical comedy.
In 2015, he took his debut solo comedy show, Mishmash, up to Edinburgh Festival Fringe - you can watch Mishmash on NextUp comedy streaming service here.
In 2016 he won an award from the International Songwriting Competition (Comedy category) for his track, Dead With You and, in August 2017, he took his second solo comedy show, Nerd Rock, to Edinburgh Festival Fringe as part of PBH's Free Fringe. In 2020, he released his first album, Comedy Songs - you can stream it on Spotify here.
He also performs with Small Laces, a new comedy band for kids.
Gareth filmed a bundle of comedy shorts for the BBC for their About Shakespeare series; he played "Cool Tory" in a comedy video for Sam Delaney's News Thing, which ended up going viral; he's also filmed a load of music videos for his own award-winning comedy songs, which can be found on the Videos page, along with sketches from Delete the Banjax and a whole host of other treats!
If you'd like to book Gareth for your comedy night, or contact him about comedy/song writing, drop him an email and he'll get straight back to you.
★★★★★ ThreeWeeks - "Hysterically funny....missing this act would be like skipping Christmas" (Editor's Choice Award)
★★★★★ British Comedy Guide - "I left grinning from ear to ear"
★★★★★ Broadway Baby - "Bloody marvellous"
★★★★ TimeOut - "Incredibly fun, fast-paced sketch comedy with fresh, innovative skits and charming performances from a gifted quartet"
★★★★ Chortle - "Inventive ideas and cleverly written skits"
★★★★ The Times - "Gareth Cooper's jaunty songs have flavours of folk and jazz, and nimble lyrics that zing with wit"
The Guardian - "Samuel Champion, Daniel Cook, Gareth Cooper and Caroline May-Jones make up a precocious four-piece whose mix of skits and songs make up a compelling set that is gloriously daft. While they're fond of big surreal ideas, they never fall into the Boosh-lite self-indulgence to which younger comics can sometimes fall prey. At all times, they've got a sure feeling for where the funny is, and they know how to deliver it too."
Top 6 shows of the Fringe 2017, International Times - "The amount of energy Gareth Cooper exudes in the first ‘Heavy Metal’ five minutes of this performance is remarkable. One wonders how he’ll ever carry on, if he’ll survive the remainder of the show. But, thankfully, he does. He cavorts, sings, jokes, and generally astounds with his dynamism and comedy/musical expertise. From the pulsating, prerecorded backing tracks that accompany his witty and sometimes poignant songs, to his acoustic serenades on guitar, there’s an undeniable warmth and charm that simply demands our attention, and gets it. Suffice to say, you don’t have to be a Nerd to rock along to this show, just go!"