Arthur Smith is often described as the compère beyond compare, but before becoming a fully-fledged playwright, panellist, performer, and stalwart of the Edinburgh Festival, he worked as a road sweeper, dustman, market researcher, teacher, and even advertised chicken burgers in supermarkets dressed as a fox.
A career in comedy was the only one that could follow a build up like that. He was one of many stand-up performers on the alternative comedy scene in the eighties. Twenty years on, he still performs in much the same manner, and perhaps ironically, now describes himself as a “semi-professional” comedian.
To BBC radio and TV audiences, his career has been split between appearing on top quiz shows, fronting the funny section on Loose Ends, and being a regular Grumpy Old Man and Countdown wordsmith. His plays include the award-winning An Evening with Gary Lineker, My Summer with Des, and The Bed Show. He has also presented Radio 4’s Excess Baggage and Radio 2’s The Smith Lectures. He describes himself as Radio 4’s “bit of rough.”
Presented in association with Clive Conway Productions.
Booking Details:
Venue: The Ropewalk
Date: Saturday 20th January 2024
Time: 19:30
Booking link: https://roperyhall.co.uk/2023/10/20/arthur-smith/