Hilarious, even without kilts
Scottish comics Raymond Mearns and Gary Little will raise laughs and money for a good cause
ndulge in a pure Scottish funfest with renowned stand-up comedians Raymond Mearns and Gary Little in a two-night Bangkok tour this weekend, and help raise fund for Gift of Happiness Foundation in the process.
Billy Connolly (with all due respect) is not the only funny man from Scotland. Mearns made the Bangkok audience laugh so hard they almost fell from their chairs back in his debut show in 2008. That’s probably why the Scottish Business Group is bringing him back again due to popular demand, and this time around with another Scotsman, Little, to double the fun.
Raymond Mearns is an actor and comedian best known for his part in Scottish comedy sitcom “Legit”, where he plays Happy Boab. He has also appeared in “Ae Fond Kiss” and “It’s a Free World”, both directed by award-winning Ken Loach.
Mearns has also acted alongside his brother Eddie when they played the Blind Twins Troy and Roy Pettifer in 1998’s “Home”, which won Best Short Film at the Bafta Awards.
Mearns has been a full time comedian since 2003 and had a sell-out run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and then onto New York to the Improv and the Gotham Comedy Club alongside the first ever New York Comedy Festival. In 2005 Raymond returned to New York where he played to a sell-out crowd at the Laugh Factory with “Laughs Across the Ocean” in collaboration with New York comic Danny Lobell. Two years later he released his first DVD, recorded at the Stand Comedy Club during the Glasgow International Comedy Festival.
Last year, Raymond completed a mini-tour of venues across Scotland, appeared in the new series of “Rab C Nesbitt” and in the BBC’s Scottish soap opera “River City”. He released his second DVD last April.
As Mearns brings smiles and laughter to his fans around the world, he also gets high praise from peer comedians. Billy Connolly said of Mearns’ style in a comedy master class that he is “a man who knows how to swear, properly!” while Edinburghguide.com said the show was “a top class act.”
Performing side by side with Mearns is the inaptly named Gary Little, who burst onto the comedy scene in 2003. At six foot three, Little is an imposing presence on any stage and a regular on the UK comedy circuit with his humour described as honest, refreshing and “in-yer-face” with a wealth of material derived from a life lived to the full.
THE YUKSTERS
Raymond Mearns and Gary Little perform in the ballroom of the Rembrandt Hotel on Sukhumvit Soi 18 at 6.30 tonight.
Tickets are Bt2,750, which include a four-course dinner, pre-show appetisers, wines, beers and free corkage if you bring your own spirits. Call (081) 824 3157.
Proceeds benefit the Gift of Happiness Foundation for underprivileged children in the border regions in northern Thailand.
The pair will also perform at Zaks Wine Pub on Sukhumvit Soi 11 tomorrow night. Entry is Bt700, which includes two small bottles of Carlsberg beer. Call (02) 651 0214 or e-mail [email protected].
