Emmanuel Sonubi

Written by: Si Hawkins
Published: Friday 1st November 2019

It won't come as a great revelation to regular BCG readers that comedians often have a love/hate attitude to Christmas: this is where they get seriously busy. For Emmanuel Sonubi, a bunch of compering gigs at Hyde Park's Winter Wonderland Comedy Club this festive season can't come quickly enough.

Partly that's because these are cracking gigs anyway: Sonubi will be hosting the whole month of shows in that famously festive location, with some excellent names on the bill: Marcus Brigstocke, Jayde Adams, Milton Jones, Lost Voice Guy, Zoe Lyons, Andrew Maxwell, Abandoman, and many more.

But the compere will be particularly glad to get there as he's had a tricky time of late. Followers of Sonubi's social media accounts will know that the Londoner has been in hospital recently, although thankfully he sounds pretty chipper. So will he back gigging soon, doing some hospital-based material at these Winter Wonderland shows? "Without a doubt," he says - and adds a smiley face emoji. So that's good news.

Now let's get back to business.

First gig?

At a pub called Dirty Dicks in Liverpool Street, London. I was doing five minutes of material to a packed room full of strangers, and it was maybe the most nervous I have ever been.

There were maybe 15 other acts on, all doing five minutes, and I remember noticing that all of them seemed to know each other, and that made it even more nerve-wrecking, like being the new kid halfway through the new school year.

It seemed to take forever to get to my spot and then that five went in a blink of an eye, all I can really remember from that set was the laughter and the adrenaline. It was at that point that I was hooked.

Favourite show, ever?

There have been two gigs, or two points, for me. The first was the first time I played The Comedy Store, London - a 20-minute set on their pro weekend night. It's somewhere I wanted to play from the very beginning, so when I got the chance to play that stage it was the first time I felt like a professional comedian.

The second was supporting Jason Manford on his tour. Walking out to a theatre, 3,000 people strong, none of whom have paid to see you or even know who you are, was the best challenge for me. It was where I looked out and really believed that I could do this.

Worst gig?

I've had this question a lot from people and it's a tough one because I've never had a bad gig. Never had a bad show, and that is not through lack of trying. My team have sent me everywhere and still not happened!

The thing is, I fully expect it to happen at some point but the good thing is that it has given me a good work ethic. I always do my best to get to a gig early so I can see everything and be better prepared, I'm constantly trying to rewrite material to make it better and at every show I play, in the back of my mind, I'm thinking "is this going to be the one?" So it keeps me on my toes.

Which one person influenced your comedy life most significantly?

It can't be just one: I've got to say, onstage, the biggest comedian that has influenced me is Dave Chappelle.

But I also have to mention offstage, the one and the only [manager/agent/booker] Mr Brett Vincent!

And who's the most disagreeable person you've come across in the business?

Brett Vincent. LOL.

No, it's any act who doesn't appreciate what we do as a privilege. It is a hard job, but most jobs are. The way that I see it is that we get paid to do something we truly love. That's enough for me to get over any of the 'hard' parts. Also, acts that blame the audience for the show being bad. An audience is an audience and it's our job to entertain, not their job to be entertained.

Are there particular reviews, heckles or post-gig reactions that stick in the mind?

None yet, but we will see; you can't please everyone. To be honest, I don't really look to reviews that often. My focus is the audience, if they are happy then I am happy.

How do you feel about where your career is at, right now?

Fortunate. I have such a strong team around me where we are all on the same page. My only problem is moving too quickly, but they keep that in check too. I'm learning all the time and I'm loving what I'm doing.

Which leads me nicely on to say how privileged I feel that I'll be hosting every comedy show at the Winter Wonderland Comedy Club where I get to introduce you to some of the UK's best headliners and comedy royalty! Bring it on.

Emmanuel Sonubi compèred the 2019 Winter Wonderland Comedy Club in London's Hyde Park.