Daniel Connell

May 16, 2021

Tell us a little about yourself and how you got to where you are today?

I’m a country boy originally, from Batemans bay NSW, I grew up there until I was 20. From my late teens all I wanted was to try stand-up comedy. I had odd jobs till I was about 25 and then I had my first gig in Canberra and loved it. I knew if I wanted to succeed in stand up I would need to come to Melbourne, so I moved down here in 2010 and since then I’ve just been plugging away on the scene, doing festivals and touring round Australia. In the last 3 or 4 year I’ve had a good foot in and been able to stand up on my own and not worry about other side jobs. This year I’m in my 9^th solo show at the comedy festival, so that’s a little about me.

Have you had a favourite gig or festival that stood out?

I did the Comedy Festival Gala in 2017 for the first time ever and that is kind of something you aspire to do when you start stand-up, it was at the Palace in St Kilda with 3000 people for about 4 minutes and you just do your best stuff. There are cameras in your face and it’s all very official, I was terrified and don’t remember a thing, although when I finished, and the claps came from the crowd – that’s something that sticks out In my mind.

What are some of the challenges in your career and what would you say to any aspiring comedians?

Challenges is probably writing a good new show every year, ideally you would like 2-3 years to write one good show. That would be the biggest challenge, writing a brand new, quality, 55-minute show every year.

As you get older and you gain more experience in your career you work out how to do it a bit better. But certainly 4-5 years in I was thinking how I am going to keep this up? You also don’t want to lose the fans you’ve built you don’t want to put out crap – the new content must be better than the year before.

Advice, I would say, I got told this when I first started, nothing is going to happen overnight in stand up. Like all professions you need 10 years in the game to get a foot hold and stand up is the classic example. For 6 to 7 years I was out every night doing every terrible gig in Melbourne, to get better. Its really the only way you can do it. Go in with a clear mind and know that you may not make any decent money off it for 10 years and be prepared to give it that time – because if you do it you will be fine.

Any pre gig rituals or lucky charms?

I have a banana before every show, without fail.
I think I got hooked by that banana add a couple years ago “Make your body sing”. The nutritional value is great, bit of energy before the show and they sit well in your tummy. Honestly, I’m at the stage now if I don’t have one, I feel a bit off, which is worrying.

How would you describe your comedy style?

I often get called laid back, laconic, I think that’s a creation from where I’m from. Very cruisy and dry – my comedy itself is very observational, it’s everyday stuff that I see on the street, read or pick up and see on the news. I also like to put surprises in my stand up, I like to go to places people wouldn’t expect. Dark stuff does make me laugh.

What do you look for in a shoe?

Now that I’m in my late 30s I really enjoy a good shoe. I love the look of a boot with a pair of jeans, that’s usually what I will wear on stage. I like the slip-on factor of boots. I now look at mates on stage to see what they are wearing, we talk about shoes, I’m in that stage of my life. When you messaged me, I thought this is meant to be…