Despite the bookies odds, neither of the top two favourites took the
£7,500 prize for this year's Perrier Comedy Award.
The forerunner had been Chris Addison who was shortlisted for the second year
running with his show Atomicity. Relative newcomer, Jason Manford, was
considered to be his main contender but it just goes to show that the bookies
don't know comedy because 26 year old Laura Solon took the finish line with her
show, Kopfrapers Syndrome.
Her one-woman show sees her play eight comedy characters including
Karen-the-prize-winning-beautician, Borgesia-the-Polish-storyteller and a woman
possessed by Diana, Princess of Wales. The show had to be written in three weeks
because she was originally due to perform as a double act but her comedy partner
pulled out at the last minute. To avoid any confusion for ticket holders Solon
decided to keep the show's original title, Kopfrapers Syndrome.
Solon was reading English at Oxford University when she started writing and
performing and took a double act around pubs until deciding to try on her own
last year. She is only the second solo female act to win the title in the
award's twenty-five year history.
The Best Newcomer Award went to Tim Minchin from Australia and his show,
Darkside, which the judges described as, “a smorgasbord of stunning
musicality, hilarious stand up and average air guitar”.
