Edinburgh Fringe 2010: Interview Sean Hegarty

From time to time you get to meet some people who are simply inspiring, the type of people that make you feel really lucky you had the chance to meet them for a fleeting second. The Fringe festival plays host to hundreds of people who want to make it on the comedy scene (as well as other scenes) and sometimes they lack honesty and that genuine belief. Having seen a few of Sean’s Youtube videos I have been left with no doubt whatsoever that Sean Hegarty is going to be a name you will remember.

We where lucky to get him to do our famous email interview and his first solo show is going to be at the fringe for the whole of the run. He has just been crowned 1 of 6 winners of BBCNI hit tv show, Find Me The Funny, the young father of 3 isn’t making his 1st ever appearance at the place he desribes as the comedy capital of the world. Sean performed for the very 1st time in Edinburgh’s Meadow Bar during the Fringe in 2008 , having spent months preparing a set in the build up to his maiden voyage. Wracked with nerves and adrenaline, he took to the stage on the 2nd last night of the festival at around 2am in the morning, with only a handfull of conscious punters remaining to see him in action.

Sean has my respect and admiration, a gent and a passionate performer to boot, this is a comic who is going to be big, do not miss the opportunity to see him in the best environment ever. More information on Sean’s show can be found at the end of his interview.

How have things been going, you all done and dusted for the summer shows or are there still some creases to iron out?

I still haven’t ordered my posters and flyers so I’m all up in the air at the minute. I only got my accommodation sorted out a few days ago too. As I’ll be bringing my family (wife and 3 kids) over for the whole month with me, I thought it was only fair to treat them to a glorious 1 bed apartment between the five of us. I’m practising sleeping standing-up in my shower at home, in preparation for next month’s circus.

What has made you want to do the Laughing Horse Fringe?

Well, it’s the comedy capital of the world, I can’t say I’m a stand-up comic until I’ve performed a solo show night after night,for a month, in a venue that smells of wee in the middle of nowhere in Scotland. I came over to Edinburgh 2yrs ago to do my 1st ever gig, at an open-mic night at 3am on the 2nd last night of the Fringe. Then returned last year as part of a tv show for BBC1 N.Ireland in which I was one of 6 winners, whittled down from an audition process of 140 comedians to perform a showcase gig in front of 350 people at the Gilded Balloon. So I thought it’d be the next step to come back and do a show on my own.

This is your debut solo show, are you nervous?

Yes and no, only not no!! I’ve tested my show out in my hometown, performing for 12 nights in a row, in 12 different bars, from going down a storm in several to getting threats to leave for ruining karaoke in another. I’m preparing for the worst, but hoping for the best in all honesty! I think I just need the right crowd and people will respect what I have to give.

Have there been any obstacles in producing this show?

There was a time during one of my gigs that I had to climb under a net, walk a see-saw and jump through a flaming hoop, but I was at Crufts at the time.

What was the best feedback you got from your audience or the press?

I was performing at one of my favourite places in the world, the Empire Comedy Club in Belfast and after coming off stage, not only where the audience soaked, (wink) but this familiar Manc accent out of nowhere…well, out of Manchester presumably, said “Well done mate, very very funny!” I replied, “Oh, thanks very much, cheers!” Then about 10 seconds later, it suddenly dawned on me, that it was Jason Manford, my hero!! Couldn’t believe it.

Xmas last year I organised one of my regular comedy club gigs in Lurgan, over 150 people showed up and it felt like everything that came out of my mouth that night was comedy gold, the crowd were so behind me, until I turned round….

What was the Best and Worst shows you’ve played?

Best has to be a toss up between the Empire Belfast, Laughter Lounge Belfast and the Cellar Bar Lurgan, all lovely, lovely places to perform comedy. The worst was probably a toss up between a gig I did on a double-decker bus around Belfast to random passengers or doing a 5 min set in between future WAG Wannabe’s singing karaoke in Yates’s Liverpool. Never again.

What can people expect?

People can expect one-liners, short stories, musical interludes and a young Irish boy smiling in appreciation and gratitude at anyone who comes to his gigs. Apart from that, a bit of swearing, maybe some experimentation and a few love-bites along the way.

Any new tricks up your sleeves?

No, just some tissues my mum gave me incase I get a runny nose when her little man on stage.

Who has been an inspiration to you?

I could give you a list of people that inspire me as long as a dwarfs arm….and I’m gonna. Tim Vine is an absolute legend, he made me want to get into stand up and I based a lot of my earlier stuff around his style of comedy. Others include Stewart Francis, Milton Jones, Gary Delaney, Tony Cowards and Steven Wright of the one-liner variety. I enjoy Jason Manford, Daniel Kitson, Dane Cook, Daniel Tosh,Tommy Cooper, Reeves + Mortimer and the list goes on and on.

What advice have you been given, and what advice would you give someone bringing a show to the Fringe?

The best bit of advice I was given, was to take a break for a few days in the middle to recharge the batteries and prepare yourself for the rest of the Fringe. However, I was given this advice about 3 months after finalising my dates to perform my own show EVERY SINGLE DAY OF THE ENTIRE FRINGE. I’m seriously falling asleep just thinking about it.