Edinburgh Interview: Yianni Agisilaou

Edinburgh Interview: Yianni Agisilaou

11 August, 2010
by: Alicia Adejobi

Alicia Adejobi learns how the up and coming comedian went from law student to charity worker.

I feel quite privileged to be able to talk to Aussie native Yianni Agisilaou, as he is currently very busy performing two separate shows each night at the Edinburgh Fringe. I was worried that he may be too tired to talk, but to my surprise he's quite chirpy. “The weather’s been great up here”, he says as I inform him that the rain has been chucking it down in London.

The Take the Mic grand finalist has completed a week of performing both his shows: The Universe: A User’s Guide which is part of the Free Fringe and They #%@$ You Up: Greek Parents, a show which is loosely based on his family. “Most of what’s in the Greek Parents show is true but some of it is not based on my personal experiences”. So which of his experiences did inspire him to write the show?

In a big contrast to comedy, Agisilaou studied law at university and even tried to pursue a legal career. “It was one of those things where I thought it was a good course rather than what I genuinely wanted to do”, he explains. To the delight of his parents, he “kept getting the good marks and carried on pursuing it”. After leaving university, Agisilaou travelled to Europe and found his calling in London. “The London comedy scene is great, and I began doing a lot of stand-up there”, he reveals. “I love comedy and realised law wasn’t for me, so there wasn’t really much of a choice”.

But were his parents disappointed after leaving a promising legal career for the somewhat “flimsy” comedy circuit? “I think my Mum had these visions of me being a barrister and had even made me a wig”, he chuckles. Maybe that wig will come in use when he plays his mother in Greek Parents - his first character comedy show.

Agisilaou, who was labelled as "one of the three best acts of his age" by Sean Meo, admits that even after years of performing at the Fringe, it can still be nerve-wracking. “I’ve enjoyed the shows so far - even on the first night when there were only four people”, explains the witty comic. In addition to performing his two main shows, Agisilaou also has two other shows to do during the day. This is a far cry from last year, when he had time to set up a charity event for the homeless.

During the 2009 Fringe, Agisilaou set up two chairs in the city centre - one for him and one for a member of the public. The aim was to get anyone to sit and talk to him about anything they wanted in the hope that they would help raise money for Shelter. “It was really interesting to observe how people reacted when they were asked to sit in the chair. It was a fun thing to do because people don’t usually talk to strangers”, he explains.

“It’s always good doing something for someone other than yourself and it was nice to meet new people and hear their stories”, he says proudly. Sadly, not everyone appreciated his good deed. “Can you believe a policeman actually tried to stop us from doing charity work because we were using a metal tin to collect the money?” Agisilaou asks in disbelief. 

This is not the only selfless act that Agisilaou has done. Incredibly, he regularly entertains British troops when they have their 36 hour break from combat. “I like doing these gigs because it gives the troops a chance to take their mind off of things for a while”, he explains. “They appreciate it so much because it’s something they don’t have all the time”.  

Agisilaou is currently booked in to perform to British troops in Afghanistan, but until then, what else has he got lined up? “I definitely want to do some writing and character comedy. I really like the characters from the Greek Parents show, so maybe something with them”.

For now though, the Fringe is keeping him busy.  “I haven’t got much free time, although I would like to see other comedians’ shows”, he says. “But they’re all sandwiched in between my two performances. Maybe I’ll just get some rollerblades, then at least I can skate to each show”, he laughs

Yianni Agisilaou will perform nightly in The Universe: A User's Guide at Cabaret Voltaire and They @#*% You Up: Greek Parents at Just the Tonic at the Caves.

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Alicia Adejobi