The comedian on his love of poetry, navigating political landmines and why Edinburgh is so close to his heart
West Bromwich-born Frank Skinner, 66, studied for a master’s in English literature and worked as a lecturer before trying standup for the first time aged 30. He won the Perrier award at the Edinburgh festival fringe four years later, in 1991. On TV, he co-hosted Fantasy Football League, followed by his own chatshow and Room 101. He currently presents a show on Absolute Radio and a critically acclaimed poetry podcast. He now returns to Edinburgh with a new show, 30 Years of Dirt. He lives in north London with his partner and their 11-year-old son.
What’s the concept of your new standup show?
I’m not big on concepts – I always think they’re an excuse for not writing enough jokes – but I accidentally landed on one. It’s about the fact that when I started out, I loved a knob joke, but in the past decade that’s worked against me a bit. People see it as a bit lowbrow. Yet whenever I’ve been infected by that snobbery and tried to write a clean show, it’s failed. So the new show is about how I enjoy good old Rabelaisian wit. I call it that to lend it intellectual credibility.
