Email: neill@outloudculture.com
Andrew Hansen. Comedian, actor, author, musician, tired dad, and the actual, real, proper star of The Chaser’s War On Everything, CNNNN and The Hamster Wheel. He has over 43 million separate talents, so let’s face it – he’s the good one from The Chaser.
Known for his ferocious songs and beloved characters like The Surprise Spruiker and Clive the Slightly-Too-Loud Commuter, Andrew now presents a blistering new live set of sketches and musical takedowns.
Andrew’s work has garnered two Logie Awards and the AACTA Award for Best Performance in TV Comedy. His voice range is as versatile as they come, from dramatic deep reads to hilarious characters to winning sincerity. (Except for the sincerity.) And as a singer, he’s fronted all The Chaser’s songs in styles ranging from rock to cabaret to teen pop to simply shouting a lot.
Andrew is also the author of the 4-book fantasy series Animal Mummies, co-written with Jessica Roberts. The audiobook versions, narrated by Andrew and Jessica, have just been released on all platforms by Wavesound.
He has a forthcoming TV show, Stories From Oz, a comedy series that turns true Australian stories into musicals. The show is written and executive produced by Andrew Hansen and Chris Taylor, and its 36 songs are composed by Andrew. Stories From Oz is coming soon to ABC.
Tour presented by Laughing Stock Productions. More information at www.laughingstock.com.au
Hi Andrew welcome to OLC! Your about to take part in the comedy festival in beautiful Perth, Western Australia…Tell me what do you love about being here in P-Town lol?
Much warmer weather than M-Town, rofl! I love the public transport in Perth. The cleanest, most spotless buses on Earth. Do you realise how unusual this is in this world? The windowsill on the train I caught to Subiaco was so clean, I ate my sushi off it.
You were part of ‘The Chaser’ which spawned a huge amount of successful programs on the ABC, so how did you get into comedy?
By accident, like anyone else. I was jobless and the other Chaser guys told me they wanted someone who could actually act, or even just deliver a line. I could, so they took me in!
So how did the idea for the show ‘The Chaser’ come about?
The first Chaser TV show was called THE ELECTION CHASER and was dedicated to taking the piss out of the 2001 election. I was not involved but joined the team for the next show, CNNNN. It was a parody of Fox News and Foxtel’s multi-channel offerings, which were both an intriguing part of pop culture at the time and ripe for making fun of. Really we are a bunch of like-minded friends, which is how many bands and comedy groups form.
You’ve worked with the same group of people for over a decade on these shows, what keeps bringing you back to them?
Actually I avoid them whenever possible. That’s why I’m doing my own show in Perth, I can finally work with someone I trust!
What do you think made these comedy shows so popular?
It’s bizarre that my TV stuff became popular. Niche, experimental shows that accidentally got watched by far too many people. I think the reason might be that people liked seeing us interact with real Australians, combined with constantly taking large quantities of piss out of everything and anything, which is very Australian.
Your stand up show is called “Andrew Hansen is Cheap”, what can people expect from your stand up show?
Very little standup. It’s mostly sketches and songs, with me racing between piano, guitar and iPhone to make fun of everything that’s remotely connected to money – from overly large broccoli in online grocery orders to bogan baby names to spam emails to dead celebrities. The show has all the silliness and pace of THE CHASER’S WAR ON EVERYTHING but live on stage.
Where has been the best place for you to perform at and what made it memorable to you?
I’m happy in any venue. The bench at my local playground, for instance, makes a wonderful stage on which to rehearse. I can’t wait to perform at Planet Royale in Perth because it used to be an IMAX. Never done an IMAX before, they’re normally for documentaries about dinosaurs narrated by Tom Cruise, not one-man comedy shows. It has these expensive VIP booths – six of them – but I insisted on removing those from sale in case Gina Rinehart or Prince Andrew turned up wanting to see my show.
Tell us about your up coming show called “Stories From Oz”, what can people expect from it?
That’s the working title of a comedy TV show coming soon. It turns true, well known Australian stories into musicals. If you ever wanted to see the lives of Steven Bradbury or Schapelle Corby retold in song, this is the show for you.
Where did the idea for this show come from?
Chris Taylor and I always loved writing silly songs. That, plus the desperate desire to avoid getting a proper job.
What’s next for you in 2023?
Panicking about 2024.
ANDREW HANSEN IS CHEAP – AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2023
ADELAIDE
ADELAIDE FRINGE
The Garden of Unearthly Delights
7:00 pm, Fri 17 Feb – Sun 5 March (No Mon)
TWO WEEKS ONLY
Buy Tickets Online Now
adelaidefringe.com.au
COMPLETED
CANBERRA
CANBERRA COMEDY FESTIVAL
Big Band Room, ANU
8:00pm, Sun 26 March
ONE SHOW ONLY
Buy Tickets Online Now
canberracomedyfestival.com.au
COMPLETED
MELBOURNE
MELBOURNE COMEDY FESTIVAL
Trades Hall
7:40pm, Thurs 30 March – Sun 23 April (6:40pm Sun, No Weds)
Buy Tickets Online Now
comedyfestival.com.au
PERTH
PERTH COMEDY FESTIVAL
Planet Royale
6:30pm Friday 5 May
ONE SHOW ONLY
Buy Tickets Online Now
perthcomedyfestival.com
BRISBANE
BRISBANE COMEDY FESTIVAL
Powerhouse Theatre
8:30pm Friday 12 May
ONE SHOW ONLY
Buy Tickets Online Now
brisbanecomedyfestival.com
SYDNEY
SYDNEY COMEDY FESTIVAL
The Factory Theatre
6:50pm Weds 17 – Sat 20 May
5:50pm Sunday, 21 May
Buy Tickets Online Now
sydneycomedyfest.com.au
SOCIAL MEDIA
https://www.facebook.com/AndrewHansenComedy
https://twitter.com/andrewjhansen
https://www.instagram.com/mrandrewhansen/
