of the best comedy goes beyond the rules.
Are there any particular crossovers between science and comedy that aren’t especially obvious to the naked eye? RI The simplest similarity is that both are about looking at the world and questioning why certain things are as they are. The comic can stop when he gets a laugh from it; the scientist goes in search of theories and laws, which can take considerably longer. A physicist, biologist and chemist walk into a lab . . . RI Ouch, it was an iron lab.
Uncaged Monkeys, King’s Theatre, Glasgow, Sun 3 Apr; Ince and Cox also appear in separate events at the Edinburgh International Science Festival. See sciencefestival.co.uk for details.
How interested are you in debating the other side of the argument with all those God-type folks? RI When we do Infinite Monkey Cage on Radio 4, we often rail against the idea of ‘balance’. So, someone might say, ‘Shouldn’t an argument about evolution also have someone who believes in intelligent design?’ Do you think we could get around that problem by simply saying, ‘Well that’s one opinion, but now, in the interest of balance, here is someone who is wrong’? B C This would be one acceptable compromise! The problem with today’s world is that everyone believes they have the right to express their opinion and have others listen to it. The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense.
At this point, Professor Cox (he used to be in D:Ream, you know) exits stage left to have a think about the Large Hadron Collider and Higgs boson, with Mr Ince remaining to ponder a few last minute queries.
Which science is the most naturally funny? R I In one specific area it is physics, as there are many Schrödinger’s cat jokes. Also, many worlds theory allows you to tell one joke and then expound on all the possible different outcomes, which is handy for lengthy stories. Evolutionary biology though, supplies you with lots of strange animal behaviour and peculiar spiked penises, so it can be a better area for a drunker audience at the Royal Institution. I s t h e re a s c i e n c e t o j o k e - telling/writing? RI There can be a science to joke writing, there are certainly rules and patterns that can be followed, but I think most
ES ANDI LINESI
GLASGOW COMEDY FESTIVAL
FUNNYGAMES Imran Yusuf, Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee and expert dinosaur impersonator, talks to Brian Donaldson
Whatever he goes on to achieve in his comedy career, Imran Yusuf already has three mightily impressive entries on his CV. Last August he became the first Free Fringe act to gain a spot on an Edinburgh Comedy Award shortlist, ultimately losing out to Roisin Conaty for the Best Newcomer prize. Prior to that he posted a spoof video on YouTube in which he played a jihadist martyr proclaiming death to the infidels before intercut footage of the Britain’s Got Talent judging panel gave the game away. And he does a mind-swervingly brilliant dinosaur impersonation. It may be a surprise to those who have seen
him in live action, but the tall, gangly Yusuf was something of a short-stop as a kid, a situation that contributed to him being picked on – not in Kenya, where he was born, or in the UK, where he was mainly brought up, but in New Jersey, where he spent a year at the age of 13. ‘Once you become a teenager you start to become really aware of your background, your identity, who you’re meant to be as an individual,’ he says. ‘When I was picked on in America for being English, it was never horrible, it was teasing. It was annoying because I got it every day without fail. Everywhere I went, it was, “English muffin this, English muffin that.”’
He returned to Britain with a hardened
resolve to be himself and an exclusive killer routine thanks to Jurassic Park, which had yet to open in the UK. Dropping out of university to pursue his dream job in the video games industry, he eventually quit when that went sour to follow his other burning ambition. ‘I was doing opens spots after a day’s work but the point came in 2007 when I was being worked to death on a game I was working on. At work I was treated like an animal, being worked to the bone and humiliated by my employers. I remember doing the gong show at the Comedy Store and it went so well and the girls were all over me and I thought, “Wow, do I want to be treated like an animal or do I want to be treated like a hero?” You just can’t beat it; it’s the best job in the world.’ ■ An Audience with Imran Yusuf, The Stand, Glasgow, Mon 4 Apr.
31 Mar–28 Apr 2011 THE LIST 27