About
With a growing reputation as an honest, fearless comedian willing to tackle subjects with fresh eyes and cutting wit, Ashley Haden’s comedy is not for the faint of heart. Politically pointed and with killer punchlines, this self professed “Genocidal Liberal” creates his stand up shows as havens against the growing stupidity of a selfish world.
Ashley has been making waves on the circuit over the past few years. An 2015 NATYS finalist, in 2016 he was crowned Winner of the Pegasus New Act of the Year – one of London’s longest running and most exciting new material stand up comedy nights with previous acts to grace it’s stage including Josie Long, Imran Yusuf, Fern Brady and Lou Sanders. And now, 2018 has seen his C*nting Trilogy of solo shows released for digital download through Bandcamp.
Describing himself as “not a slick comedian…warts and all and rough around the edges” he’s also one of the few unafraid to go deeply dark with his comedy. If it’s raw, honest and punchy humor you’re after with a topical bite, emerging talent Ashley Haden is undoubtedly your man.
Watch Ashley Haden: We All Die C*nts
Punchy, misanthropic and darkly funny as the title suggests, Ashley’s provocative material tackles all sorts of hot topics for right now, from heroes to Nationalism to our own privilege. The eagerly awaited final chapter of the C*nting Trilogy, Haden’s vitriolic take on humanity is the antidote to the apathetic world. This may not be the comedy show the world wants, but it might well be the comedy show the world needs.
See Ashley Haden Live
Info on Ashley Haden’s latest gigs and news can be found here.
Bio
Whole-heartedly a political comedian from the working class left, there will be no smug, Guardian reading anecdotes from Ashley Haden, a man who proudly graduated from “the primary school of life”.
Beginning to dabble in comedy back in 2011, his first gig was, he tells FringePig, at the aptly named London open mic night, The Lion’s Den. “It was a five-minute spot where I was doing some of the most vanilla awful material about self-checkouts and getting x-rays done. It did not go well.” Certainly a long way from the dark satirical political commentary he serves up these days. Asked whether he has ever gone too far, he replies “I once went to zone 9 for a gig that I died on my hole at. In terms of comedy. No.”
Just two years after that first disaster gig, Ashley was beginning to find his authentic comic’s voice, making it as finalist in London’s Comedy Cafe competition, a venue that has a seriously good hit rate at spotting future stars
In 2015 he made the finals of prestigious New Acts of The Year Show, formerly the Hackney Empire New Act of the Year, a long-running annual national competition for comedy and variety acts.
Berating the fact that on the circuit he was often the only political comedian on the bill, Ashley’s no holds barred take on the world has seen him bring three biting solo shows to the comedy arena. Debuting with We are all C*nts, delivering a no-holds-barred condemnation of domestic and foreign affairs, Ashley soon followed with his second solo show, We are All Still C*nts, a bold hour on why “the left, the right, the old, the young, the rise of fascism, the rise of vegans and anyone in between can all go f*ck off.” Completing the trilogy, his latest show, We All Die Cunts, is a damning sweep at Brexit, Trump and bigotry in all forms.
As well as having an innate ability to call out political hypocrisy with cutting comic clout, Ashley Haden is also a realisist when it comes to looking at his own profession. When Chortle asked what would be his slogan for the Edinburgh Festival, his response – “Edinburgh Fringe. Come see sad comedians in the wild.”