#291: Troy Kinne - 'Nothing Special'
Funny In Failure
Troy Kinne is an award-winning comedian, actor, writer, producer and director. In the early days of his stand-up comedy career, Troy won almost every new comic competition in Australia. The Comic’s Lounge ‘You Gotta be Joking’ competition saw him receive the prize of a trip to New York to attend the American Institute of Comedy. He went on to perform at several well-known clubs in the U.S. including Caroline’s on Broadway, Stand Up New York, Gotham Comedy club, the Laugh Factory, The Hollywood Comedy Store and The Comedy Cellar. On returning to Australia Troy became a...
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#290: Cindy Busby - Training of Life
Funny In Failure
Cindy Busby is an actor who has been a prominent presence in Hollywood for over two decades, making her mark in both film and television. The television mainstay is best known for her series regular role as ‘Ashley Stanton’ on Heartland, one of the most successful Canadian television shows ever produced. Syndicated in over 81 countries and a fan favorite on Netflix, the series has solidified her as a beloved actress among audiences worldwide. She is now making the jump to When Hope Calls on Great American as series regular ‘Nora Anderson.’...
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#289: Stuart Laws - The Importance of Fun
Funny In Failure
Stuart Laws is a comedian, actor, writer, producer, editor and director. He performs sketch comedy and stand-up comedy. He supported James Acaster on his UK tours and has appeared on and written for Radio 4, has two specials on NextUp Comedy, one on American label 800 Pound Gorilla Media, and has written a play The Journey, that debuted at The Edinburgh Fringe at The Pleasance in 2018. In 2021, he was nominated for Leicester Comedy Festival Best Show and in 2022 he was nominated for Comedians Choice Best Show. In 2023, his Fringe show was awarded 4.5 stars by Chortle. Stuart runs his own...
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#288: Garrett Millerick - 'Worth Doing'
Funny In Failure
Garrett Millerick is an acclaimed stand-up comedian, writer, and director whose unique and versatile style has made him a favourite on the UK and international comedy circuits. A frequent Critics’ Choice, he has appeared on Conan, SiriusXM, and more. His breakout live show Sunflower became one of the most talked-about performances of 2018. Garrett recently wrote and starred in Do Gooders a workplace sitcom for BBC Radio 4 that takes audiences behind the curtain of the charity industry alongside a cast that includes Frank Skinner, Fay Ripley, Lisa McGrillis, Ahir Shah...
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#287: Kirsten Vangsness - “You’re not a fit”
Funny In Failure
Kirsten Vangsness is an actor, YouTuber, podcaster, graphic novelist & playwright. She is most known for playing Penelope Garcia on the long running CBS crime drama Criminal Minds, for which she co-wrote 5 episodes, including the series finale. In 2020, Kirsten launched her YouTube series KIRSTEN'S AGENDA as a way to promote mental health, wellness and civic duty. Her first season featured such guests as Aisha Tyler, Pauley Perrette and Karen David. She enjoyed the interviews so much she decided to spin them off into the KIRSTEN'S AGENDA Podcast, available wherever podcasts live. Kirsten...
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#286: Cam Knight - Workarounds
Funny In Failure
Cam Knight is a standup comedian, actor and presenter. He was the co-host of the Channel 9 show called Unreal Estate alongside Kate Langbroek in 2016. He has regularly appeared on the Today show, co-hosted Studio 10 on Channel 10 and could be heard as a weekly co-host on Triple M’s Merrickville and The Weekenders with Dan Ginane in Sydney. As well as performing sell out shows across the country, performing around London and receiving 5 star reviews and award nominations, Cam featured on the televised Montreal Just for Laughs Festival Stand Up Series at the Sydney Opera House in 2015, 2019...
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#285: Genevieve Hegney - More than an Actor
Funny In Failure
Genevieve Hegney is an actor, writer and performer. She has performed extensively in theatre, film and television. You probably recognise her from her role as Chiara in the groundbreaking and award-winning comedy ‘Colin From Accounts’. Her other television credits include All Her Fault (Peacock), Sunny Nights (Stan), In Our Blood (ABC), Pieces of Her (Netflix), Young Rock (CBS) Diary of an Uber Driver (ABC), Tim Minchin’s Upright (Foxtel) Kinne Tonight (Ten), The Commons (STAN), Doctor Doctor (Series 2-3), Janet King (Series 2), The Kettering Incident, Here Come the Habibs! (Series 1-2),...
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#284: Beth Broderick - Be the Solution
Funny In Failure
Beth Broderick is a thirty -plus year veteran of stage and screen as well as a writer, model and chef. She is widely known for her portrayal of Aunt Zelda in the long running hit TV series “Sabrina the teenage Witch”. Beth has appeared in over forty seven feature and made for television films including the “The Merry Gentlemen” which recently debuted at No. 1 on NETFLIX and “Holiday Mismatch” a new Hallmark hit. Others include: “Bonfire of the Vanities”, “Stealing Home”, “Psycho Beach Party”, “Christmas Town”, “When I Think of Christmas”, “Revenge of the...
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#283: Pierre Novellie - Finding your Clown
Funny In Failure
Pierre Novellie is a stand-up comedian, writer, radio host and podcaster. He is co-host of The Frank Skinner Show on Absolute Radio, and recent TV appearances include World’s Most Dangerous Roads (Dave), The Mash Report (BBC2), and Stand Up Central (Comedy Central). On the radio, Pierre has performed on The Now Show (Radio 4), hosts the BBC Sounds podcast series Obsessed With… SAS: Rogue Heroes and co-hosts the hit podcast Budpod with Phil Wang. As a writer, Pierre was one of the regular writers on the rebooted Spitting Image (ITV/Britbox) and has also written on shows including Mock the...
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#282: Ivan Aristeguieta - You’re Doing What Most Can’t
Funny In Failure
Ivan Aristeguieta is an award-winning stand-up comedian, writer and performer. Originally from Venezuela, Ivan moved to Australia after he was carjacked at gunpoint (true story!). He has performed all over the world, from South America to the US, Canada, Japan, NZ and the UK, featuring on and headlining some of the biggest comedy festivals and rooms. You may have seen him on the telly or online, performing at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Gala (2016-2022), as well as the Just For Laughs Montreal Comedy Festival, or as guest panellist on shows including Have You Been Paying...
info_outlineChris Parker is an award winning comedian, actor, writer, show-runner and podcaster.
This past year Chris hosted the New Zealand Comedy Festival Gala, and toured his latest show, Give Me One Good Reason Why I Shouldn’t Throw My Phone Off This Bridge, to full houses throughout Australia and New Zealand. He also made his prime-time Australian TV debut on Thank God You’re Here (where he won the episode) and released the highly anticipated second season of Double Parked. Chris Parker is most commonly known for his funny Instagram and TikTok videos which built him a huge social media audience over the last few years. His legendary win on the hit New Zealand TV show Celebrity Treasure Island made history!
His 2018 New Zealand International Comedy Festival show Camp Binch, was awarded the prestigious Fred Award for Best Show in the Festival and went on to play to 5-star reviews and sell-out crowds at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Fun fact, the felt hat he made during the 2020 nationwide lockdown was acquired by and is on display at The Auckland Museum and Te Papa the National Museum of New Zealand. Kinda dramatic – don’t you agree? Chris is a theatre graduate from the renowned drama school Toi Whakaari O Aotearoa and he has appeared in and written multiple theatre shows across New Zealand, most notably Hudson and Halls Live! Where Chris played one-half of the famous gay cooking duo, David Halls and won best actor at the 2017 Wellington Theatre Awards.
Chris has appeared in feature films such as Baby Done, The Breaker Upperers and Nude Tuesday and has two feature films of his own currently in development. As a comedian and writer Chris is a regular face on New Zealand television appearing on 7 Days, Have You Been Paying Attention NZ, Jono and Ben, Funny Girls, Season 3 of Taskmaster New Zealand and the sitcom Golden Boy. Chris also co-hosts the podcast The Male Gays with fellow comedian Eli Matthewson, which has an upcoming digital video series in production. Chris was listed as The Herald’s top 5 Entertainment Heroes of 2020 and in 2021, was nominated for Television Personality of the Year. In 2022, Chris was the recipient of the inaugural Topp Prize awarded by the New Zealand Comedy Trust for Aotearoa’s most generous and gifted comedian. That same year released the comedy/documentary special Chris Parker: Back To School, about all boy schools in Christchurch. Chris embarked on an Australian and New Zealand national tour of his show Gentle Man to sold-out crowds and 5-star reviews and his debut novel Here for a Good Time was released through Allen & Unwin.
In 2023, Chris toured his new show, Lots of Love, Chris Parker, to sold-out audiences in Australia and New Zealand. Chris’s new comedy series, Double Parked, premiered in June and was created and written with Alice Snedden.
He was the show runner and writer for the narrative comedy series Double Parked and is currently touring his live stand up (Stop Being So Dramatic) shows across New Zealand and Australia.
Stop Being So Dramatic are four words the self-proclaimed People’s Princess of Aotearoa Chris Parker has heard his whole life. Now those words also happen to be the name of his show touring Australia and New Zealand in 2025. At the culturally relevant age of 34, Chris is ready to address the drama queen allegations head-on. Stop Being So Dramatic promises to be an hour of high-intensity, feverishly paced and dizzyingly expressive comedy, it’s a one-man variety spectacle, chill, stand-up hour of laughs. That doesn’t sound dramatic at all – does it? Chris admits, there is some merit to the accusations, such as crying in every speech he’s ever delivered publicly, and there may have been a situation this year where he slept on his neck weirdly resulting in a neck brace. Still, Chris is sure he’s just a chilled guy, down to Earth and he’s ready to prove it to you in Stop Being So Dramatic.
We chat about his evolving voice, performing on a broken foot (multiple times), being an improv king and his 10 hour improv day, being the felting guy, his upcoming tour, being a show runner and leadership, thriving on celebrity treasure island plus plenty more!
Check Chris out on:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chrisparker11
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@chrisparkernz
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/itschrisparker
Website: https://www.chrisparkercomedy.com
Melbourne comedy tickets: https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/stop-being-so-dramatic/
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