Daniel Cartoon
May
30
Fame and fortune …ok, not the fortune… :(
Filed Under Blog, Featured | Leave a Comment
Teenage kicks for stand-up Daniel Sloss
Published Date: 30 May 2008
“I was never the attractive kid, I was never the sporty kid, I was always the funny kid who made everyone laugh,” says the youngster, who will be performing at The Stand Comedy Club’s Red Raw night on Monday. “I love being on stage. What can I say? I’m just an attention whore.”
With his shaggy blond hair, baggy jeans and designer T-shirt, the young man from Fife looks every bit the stereotypical teenager. However, he exudes a confidence that belie his tender years.
Currently on study leave from Waid Academy in Anstruther, Sloss doesn’t turn 18 until the end of the summer – September 11 to be precise.
“There was a minute’s silence on my birthday for the first three years after the terrorist attack – that’s not something I particularly wanted,” he says.
His dislike for silence is understandable, especially if it follows one of his jokes. Fortunately, that’s not common. But with his regular appearances at The Stand in on York Place, it’s amazing that he finds time to fit in his schoolwork. When he isn’t performing, he’s writing. And then there are the other dilemmas with which teenagers are faced.
“I did really badly in fifth year – there were so many good games coming out for the X Box 360 that I really couldn’t bring myself to study,” he says. “I’ve got to revise like hell this year – it’s a struggle trying to fit everything in.”
Yes, it’s tough being a teenager, something Sloss tries to get across on stage.
“My routines are all about coming at things from a different angle to adults,” he explains.
Sloss doesn’t claim that his humour is sophisticated, but that never did Billy Connolly any harm. Listen carefully, however, and you’ll hear the odd pearl of wisdom – the world according to Sloss.
This is hardly surprising, considering he’s studying philosophy. But his reasons for doing stand-up are far more base.
“I’ve been a huge fan of stand-up comedy since I was about four, when my dad basically force fed me Jack Dee,” he says. “I laughed but I think that was only because of the silly voices and the swearing.
“I used to act when I was eight. I always liked being on stage but I didn’t really know why. My friend Craig and I were always the comedy characters at youth theatre in Kirkcaldy. We were really close and funny together off stage and so we just went crazy with the scripts.
“With comedy acting, you know you’re doing well or doing crap because you get an instant reaction. That’s not something you get with straight acting. But it was only when I turned 16 that I thought, ‘Why not give stand-up comedy a try’?”
He makes it sound simple, but it helps when your mum is able to arrange three weeks’ work experience with one of the best Scots comics in the business.
Last summer, in the bubbling comedy cauldron of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Sloss was taken under the wing of Mock the Week star Frankie Boyle. “I was told a lot of comedians aren’t funny in real life but he was absolutely hilarious,” says the teenager.
“We would hang out and he would give me advice. He even let me write jokes for Mock the Week. He told me. ‘There are some gigs when you’ll come off stage and consider suicide, but you can’t let it get you down’. I doubt I would’ve had the confidence to write jokes if it hadn’t been for that.”
The work experience culminated in the youngster’s stand-up debut at the Laughing Horse in Edinburgh.
“Looking back, I think I was terrible,” he cringes. “I still got laughs but I was far too nervous.
With lots more gigs in the pipeline, including an appearance with Boyle in London next month, the future is looking bright. However, Sloss knows that comedy is a cutthroat business – he isn’t taking anything for granted.
“I want to study journalism and history at university,” he says. “But I’ve told my parents that if the chance to do stand-up comedy for a living comes along then I’ll take it, even if it only pays enough to get by. I just love being on stage.”
• Daniel Sloss, The Stand, York Place, Monday, 8.30pm, £2, 0131-558 7272
The full article contains 836 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
May
27
Past gigs list
Filed Under Blog | Leave a Comment
Just a record of all the gigs I have done so far:
2007
21 Aug Laughing Horse, Meadows Bar, Edinburgh
11 Oct The Stand, Edinburgh
30 Oct The Stand, Glasgow
7 Nov Ha Ha Comedy, Craigton Coach Inn, Monikie
20 Nov Black Bo’s, Edinburgh
26 Nov Absolute Beginners, Mercat, Edinburgh
3 Dec Absolute Beginners, Mercat, Edinburgh
2008
7 Jan The Stand, Edinburgh
15 Jan The Stand, Glasgow
3 Feb Laughing Horse, Meadows Bar, Edinburgh
4 Feb Mercat, Edinburgh
12 Feb The Stand, Glasgow
13 Feb Black Bo’s Edinburgh
2 Mar Surf Reality, Universal Bar, Glasgow
10 Mar The Stand, Edinburgh
18 Mar Magners Comedy Festival, BBC Best of Redraw, Universal Bar, Glasgow
21 Mar Laughing Horse, Meadows Bar, Edinburgh
25 Mar The Stand, Glasgow
1 Apr SNAFU, Aberdeen
2 Apr Ha Ha Comedy, Craigton Coach Inn, Monikie
8 Apr Long Live Comedy, Dog and Parrot, Newcastle
10 Apr Queen Margaret Union, Glasgow
17 Apr Unity Fundraiser, Flying Duck, Glasgow
18 Apr Laughing Horse, Meadows Bar, Edinburgh
22 Apr The Stand, Glasgow
27 Apr The Stand, Glasgow
29 Apr The Stand, Glasgow
1 May 2008 Stag’s Head, South Queensferry
4 May Northern Laughs, Café Drummond, Aberdeen
6 May Cancer Research Fund Gig, Partick, Glasgow
11 May The Stand, Glasgow
19 May The Stand, Edinburgh
21 May The Rock Trust Benefit Gig, The Stand, Edinburgh
27 May Mercat Edinburgh
2 Jun The Stand, Edinburgh
3 Jun Fit-o-the-giggles, Leith Comedy Festival, Edinburgh
4 Jun Fit-o-the-giggles, Leith Comedy Festival, Edinburgh
8 Jun The Stand, Glasgow
16 Jun Mercat, Edinburgh
17 Jun The Stand, Glasgow
22 Jun The Stand, Edinburgh
25 Jun So you think you’re funny competition, Manchester
26 Jun The Stand, Glasgow
27 Jun The Stand, Glasgow
28 Jun The Stand, Glasgow
30 June Supporting Frankie Boyle, secret gig in London
2 July Fit-o-the-giggles, Mercat, Edinburgh
10 Aug Fit-o-the-giggles, Mercat, Edinburgh
11 Aug Fit-o-the-giggles, Mercat, Edinburgh
12 Aug Fit-o-the-giggles, Mercat, Edinburgh
13 Aug Fit-o-the-giggles, Mercat, Edinburgh
14 Aug Fit-o-the-giggles, Mercat, Edinburgh
15 Aug Fit-o-the-giggles, Mercat, Edinburgh
16 Aug Fit-o-the-giggles, Mercat, Edinburgh
17 Aug Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Life in 2D – own show
18 Aug Fit-o-the-giggles, Mercat, Edinburgh
18 Aug Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Life in 2D – own show
19 Aug Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Life in 2D – own show
20 Aug Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Life in 2D – own show
21 Aug Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Life in 2D – own show
22 Aug Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Life in 2D – own show
23 Aug Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Life in 2D – own show
24 Aug Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Life in 2D – own show
25 Aug Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Life in 2D – own show
May
23
Press Release
Filed Under Articles | Leave a Comment
May
23
Flyer
Filed Under Featured | Leave a Comment
May
23
Laughing Horse
Filed Under Featured | Leave a Comment
May
22
Comments from other comedians
Filed Under Reviews | Leave a Comment
To be appreciated by an audience is fab. To be appreciated by other comedians is HUGE! Here are examples of some of the things they say about me on the Scottish Comedy Forum. Totally awesome. It’s stuff like this that makes doing this stuff the d*g’s b*ll*cks:
I’ve seen Daniel Sloss 3 times now…and its absolutely crazy the talent and confidence he has at only 17. Despite the age he still manages to use his own life experience of things like school and m**tur**te really effectively, with really clever material. You’d hate him if he wasnt so likeable.
Daniel did 10 mins at the QMU last night. He got some of the very best feedback and I thought he was great. He could have easly pulled off more time with a crowd who could really relate to him (I’m only 6 months older).
Very funny young chap seen him do a red raw at the stand a while back and he really had the crowd in stitches – top class
Man, I’ve known this guy for years and he is easily one of the funniest people I’ve met. Even when we did youth theatre, serious plays and stuff, he still managed to bring his own comedy persona into it. Genius.
Very confident, some nice throwaways and off-the-cuff stuff last night at Red Raw. And if it’s really true that he’s only 17, then quite frankly he might not see 18…
I was impressed by Daniel’s performance last night, he is looking more and more comfortable on stage and he has some nicely crafted stuff.
I really wish I could hate him, I really wish I could rant about terrible he is – but the boy’s done good and is getting better. Incredibly likeable on stage – his material suits him, some lines that any comedian would be proud of and a stage craft that belies his years. frankly I want to kick his face…. talented little f**k…
Apart from being a talented comedian who killed at red raw on Monday, and not that this should matter in a ‘comedians review’ section but he’s also a lovely, friendly person. Both of these mean he’ll probably go far, and in years to come when I’m a washed up boring office manager I’ll be telling people how I once gigged with Daniel Sloss.
Another great performance from Master Sloss at The Stand tonight.
May
22
Edinburgh Festival – My own show!
Filed Under Featured | Leave a Comment
This whole thing started last year when I got the chance to train with the legendary Frankie Boyle during his sold out gig at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. This year I’m doing my own show!
My mate, Davey See, will be helping me out – he’s fairly new to comedy too but I love his stuff.
The show is free and at lunchtimes so hopefully we can pull in some punters off the street who are hungry for a laugh. We don’t make a penny but are allowed to take donations at the door.
Check it out on :
http://www.laughinghorsecomedy.co.uk/freefestival/lifein2d.htm