Finding comedy in death: an interview with Sean Hughes

Finding comedy in death: an interview with Sean Hughes

16 April, 2012
by: Eliza Power

Irish stand-up Sean Hughes talks to Eliza Power about his two new Edinburgh shows.

"This coffee is sexy," Sean Hughes declares, as he takes a sip of his mocha. We have arranged to meet in the library of the Soho Hotel. It should be a quiet meeting spot, but I'm already concerned with an American hip hop artist sitting opposite us, whose booming voice is drowning out Hughes' cheeky, softly-spoken Dublin accent.

Hughes has not one but two live shows going to Edinburgh this year – Sean Hughes Stands Up – a typical hour-long stand-up show, and a more personal narrative, Life Becomes Noises, where he discusses the death of his father. He is previewing this at the Udderbelly on London's Southbank at the end of April. Why two Edinburgh shows? "One of them, Life Becomes Noises, is a narrative. On stage I tend to dick about a lot and I didn't want to for this. I knew that if I had a stand up show as well that day then I would concentrate on the words in the narrative, and would have the freedom to play about with the stand up." Why the need for the theatrical show? "I wanted to do a narrative because I wanted to play around with the format and Edinburgh is perfect for that. It’s open to new ideas."

Like Hughes, my own father passed away from cancer so I tell him I understand the importance of such a show. However, he disagrees. "I don't think my dad dying is important in the way the world goes, it’s just that death is something we tend not to talk about. It’s not a dissertation on death, it's more the way we deal with death. It’s playful really. I talk about cancer but not in a bitter way. It’s an uplifting show."

For a man of just 46 years old, Hughes acts as if he is about 96, complaining about his aches and pains, and going through the ageing process. "I take after my dad. I’m not miserable but I'm not full of the joys of life." Hughes had his own brush with death a few years ago when he got caught in the Tsunami in Sri Lanka. 'I was very lucky, I nearly died." Yet he notes that on returning to the UK, he was back watching Neighbours again four days later.

It's not surprising then that he discusses trying to "rejoice in life and take it by the balls" in his new show. In fact, while the show centers around the death of his father, Life Becomes Noises sounds far from morbid. Employing music, puppetry, and Hughes walking onstage wearing a jockey costume, he uses the show to celebrate life and his father. "My dad loved horse racing. I wish he'd have worn a jockey costume when he died, he would have loved that. We take death too seriously."

Besides the theatrical Life Becomes Noises, his second show (Sean Hughes Stands Up) allows him to both comment on current events and interact with his audience. "I do a mix of silly and topical stuff. I try to change it up each night and don’t follow a script. With the narrative show, it’s not word for word but it has more of a structure. With the stand up I get to A-Z via different methods each night." It's no wonder Hughes has a lot to say in his stand up, he is interested in everything going on around him.

Teasingly inquisitive, he quizzes me about my own father's death, my 'relatively young' age, my comedy tastes, and why on earth I would consider living somewhere like Harrow (a question I often ask myself). He waxes lyrical about art. "It’s a hobby, it kind of pleases me. I like to be surrounded by aesthetic beauty." He talks enthusiastically about artists such as Daisy Cook, and is off to Houston to visit the Rothko Chapel this month. He even bought some paintings by the son of Irish politician Eamon De Valera simply to preserve the history.

Guiding him back on topic, I remark on the success he has had in other ventures - ten series of Never Mind The Buzzcocks, screen acting, writing novels and plays, even appearing onstage in Shakespeare's As You Like It with Sienna Miller. Yet he always comes back to comedy. He tells me that during filming of his series, The Last Detective, he spent eight hours in Fairfield Halls in Croydon watching a wrestling match with Peter Davidson. "Eight hours filming for one scene, it's ridiculous. I would much rather do comedy than anything else, the freedom of stand up is beautiful." Would he like to try the stage again with a straight play? "Acting...well stage acting, you have to be asked to do that, so it's not in my hands really. I'd like to do a new play. I might well try and write one, I'll see where the energy takes me."

Despite his career choice, Hughes isn't a fan of the comedy circuit. "I hate clubs. I did one recently and I fucking hated every minute of it. I couldn’t wait to get off the circuit." Neither is he interested in stadium comedy tours. "I never liked it from day one personally. People are there for the spectacle of the stadium shows. They want to say they've seen John Bishop. Whatever people want to see though, good on them. That's just my opinion."

Hughes' passion for comedy developed after seeing Richard Pryor on TV one night. However he had no idea what the future had in store. "I never saw comedy as a career it was just something I wanted to do. I had to emigrate over here to do it as there was nothing happening in Dublin." He travelled over with a comedy partner called Brian, with whom he did a number of successful double act shows. However after one disastrous show, Brian returned to Dublin for a 'family visit' and Hughes never heard from him again. You can't help but wonder if Brian regrets his decision.

After his Udderbelly and Edinburgh jaunts, Hughes embark on a 30 date tour of Life Becomes Noises, which he also hopes to take to Australia and America. I ask him what's next. "Death!" he responds. No, seriously. "I'm not going to put a time on it, but that will be the plan."

Sean Hughes: Life Becomes Noises is at the Pleasance Courtyard at 5:30pm until 27th August . Sean Hughes Stands Up is at the Gilded Balloon at 8:15pm until 27th August.

Photo credit: Eliza Power
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