We had the chance to chat with Toronto comic Roger Bainbridge about his influences, comedy style and where we can follow his work.
How would you describe your comedy style?
I’d start by pouring you a glass of wine. You’d gently protest, “You really shouldn’t, you drove here.” I’d grin impishly and suggest you’d certainly pass the breathalyzer if you merely smelled the bouquet. It is Beaujolais season, after all. You’d roll your eyes at my cheek but accept the glass anyway. Then I’d ask you about you. Whether this is where you saw yourself when you were still just a journalism undergrad balking at the crumbling media landscape you were inheriting. As you stammer through a fractured roadmap of your post-collegiate life, its successes and curveballs, I’d slide closer to you. You’d ask me what I think I’m doing. It’s then that I’d lean in, making eyes with you over my glass and whisper coyly, “I do sketch.”
Who are some of your influences?
Tom Noonan, Annie Lennox, Rodney Mullen.
Who was your favourite comedian growing up?
Robin Williams and then Tom Green. I was an annoying kid.
Who is your favourite comedian now?
Conner O’Malley. Sarah Squirm.
What is your pre-show ritual?
Finding out where Adam is and then getting him unstuck from whatever he is stuck in. Then having some Jack Daniel’s and Coke Zero, preferably from a soda fountain/freestyle station with lots of ice, or, failing that, a 500ml bottle, drain the coke to just a touch below the beginning of the label, then add the Jack just till you get to the neck.
What is your favourite place you have performed? Why?
Los Angeles because I thought I was gonna be rich for a minute.
What is your favourite medium for listening or finding new comics/comedians?
Live shows are the absolute best place to do this. Podcasts. Comedy albums.
Do you have anything to promote right now?
Apparently! The brand new season of our podcast Tony Ho: Old Young People! 10 brand-new sketches and our bonus podcast Help Tony Ho! I think it’s pretty darn funny. Also, the cartoon I worked on during the pandemic, DOOMLANDS, should be coming out on Roku soon, so keep your eyes peeled. To Roku.
Where can we follow you?
Anywhere, my love. And Twitter.
Tell us a joke.
What’s the difference between a pineapple and a school bus? A pineapple has a bunch of little pricks on the outside.
PAY IT FORWARD: Who is another local comic/comedian we should know about?
Brandon Ash-Mohammed, Ben Stager, Ajhanis Charley, DJ Mausner, Alex Kolanko and Filipe Dimas’s Disaster Show is one of the best comedy shows in the city.
