EDINBURGH 2014 - BWW Interviews: Comedian Paco Erhard

Comedian Paco Erhard speaks to BWW:UK about his Edinburgh Fringe 2014 show- Worst. German. Ever.

How long have you been doing stand-up comedy?

In the UK and touring around the festivals of the world: close to 6 years. Before that I performed to slightly rough British audiences in Magaluf and Tenerife for 7 years. After that I just had to come to London. I had to do intelligent comedy.

What makes your show stand out from all the other comedy performances at the fringe?

ThreeWeeks called me a German "mixture of Bill Hicks and Jim Jeffries". Which made me very happy, though it is obviously quite over the top. But it's the tradition of comedy I see myself in, and that from a German/globetrotting perspective. No "look at how German I am" bullsh*t, but a distinct perspective on our life in Western society, informed by a life of travel, philosophy, existential experiences, anger, mistakes, German background, and life-affirming laughter in the face of media and marketing bullshit.

What are your expectations for the festival this year?

Expectations and the Fringe don't really mix - anything can happen. I love most of the material in my show and I'm aiming to make the show one that I utterly like and that I think is top quality. And then...I hope as many people come to my show and agree with me. And what that leads to then...we'll see.

Who are your comedy influences?

Doug Stanhope. Bill Hicks. Steve Hughes. Bill Burr. Chris Rock. Patton Oswalt. A bit of Eddie Izzard. And a little of Ricky Gervais. As well as Kurt Tucholsky, a German political satirst in the 1920s, and Ephraim Kishon, an Israeli satirist who was really big in Germany when I was growing up.

Are there any other shows you're hoping to catch this year?

Plenty. There are so many great people out there! Benjamin Crellin, Dr Professor Neal Portenza, Lewis Schaffer, Anil Desai, Jon Bennett, Susan Calman, Imaan, John Robertson, Martin Croser, Eddie Pepitone, Dr George Ryegold, Daphna Baram, Sameena Zehra, Brendon Burns, the list goes on and on. And hopefully for once I'll manage to catch some theatre or musical, some non-comedy things.

Worst. German. Ever. runs from August 1st- August 25th (not Mondays).