CV
John Cooper

Edinburgh Fringe Festivals:

• 2023-2025 - The Totally Improvised Musical
• 2017-2025 - Comedysportz
• 2011 - Danny Pensive's Maps of Britain (solo show)
• 2008 - The 30 Year Itch (solo show)
• 2005 - The Big Comedy Picnic
• 2004 - The Big Comedy Picnic

Improv:

I've performed with The Totally Improvised Company in Manchester for 20 Years. I've performed with many other groups, both in the UK, US and Ireland. I've performed at the Edinburgh Fringe in improv shows since 2007.

• Totally Improvised Company - 2007-Present
• Performed with Comedysportz in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Portland, Miwaukee, Minniapolis, Philadelphia, San Hose & Sacremento.
• Liverpool Improvathon
• Improv Utopia, Ireland

Comedy:

• Stand Up Hero Pilot - ITV4 (TV)
• Tour Support for Milton Jones
• Tour Support for One Man Star Wars x3 - (100+ theatres)
• City Life comedian of the year - Finalist.
• Channel 4, So you Think You're Funny - Semi Finalist
• BBC Radio 4 Sketch Show - Jesting About
• BBC2 The Speaker - storytelling in comedy. (TV)
• Channel 4's '4 Laughs' - The Road to Edinburgh (TV)
• Compere - Manchester Comedy Store Kids Show
• Represented by Gag Reflex Agency 2005 - 2013
• Resident compere for Stand up Live (Newcastle 2004) and Giggle (Manchester 2006)

Theatre:

• Whatever Happened to the Likely lads, Lass O'Gowrie Productions, Manchester
• Henry 5th, Sunderland Royalty Theatre
• 21st Century Scum, Newcastle Side Theatre
• Soup Sketch show Hyena Comedy Cafe, Newcastle

Presenting:

• TEDx Warrington 2025
• Pecha Kucha Manchester 2025
• Pint of Science Festival
• SFX Weekender
• VWORP - Doctor Who Fan Convention

Quotes and reviews:

★ ★ ★ ★ "His audience interaction is flawless"  - The List
★ ★ ★ ★ "Uncanny accuracy and unerring honesty"  - The List
★ ★ ★ ★ "His audience interaction is flawless"  - The Skinny
★ ★ ★ ★ "Cutting wit…an hour well spent"  - Three Weeks
★ ★ ★ ★ "An infectious delight"  - Fringe Guru

"Vic and Bob meets Samuel Beckett" - Artsfest
"Gloriously deadpan and very  funny" - South Wales Post
"A must-go-see comedy highlight" - Buxton Fringe
"a superb creation…brilliantly done" - BBC
"Sublime innocence and lateral observation." - Cheltenham Greenbelt Festival
"Catch this comic idiot savant before Vic 'n' Bob snap him up" -  The List
"There's more to him than meet the eye" -  Three Weeks
"You could almost imagine Harry Hill doing it" -Ed Byrne
"The audience cheered him to the rafters." - Kendal Calling Festival

Biog

Contact info

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Whether it's the branding for Salford's Child Friendly City incentive, Q and A's with attendees at a live scribe event or running a session at the opening of Stockport's Stockroom, social engagement has now become a part of my overall offering.
Since joining GRIT studios in late 2023 I've been able to combine these skills much more often, and I thank them for spotting new opportunities for me to do so too.

You see - full disclosure - when I'm not designing and illustrating, I'm performing and teaching. I've performed and taught comedy and improv on and off for almost twenty years. I'm also involved in TEDx Warrington. I consider myself a 'creative generalist' and have for a long time. It's a slow burn to skill up in a few different areas, but the career rewards, I think, are much greater.

Having an eclectic skill set offers a few different ways into a project. My involvement can involve helping to spark curiosity, build trust, and create a space where people feel safe to express themselves. It's not just the 'what' of a projects outcome, but finding the best 'how' to get there, where everyone feels invested.

Art can be a catalyst for change, and I see my role as helping others tap into that potential. Whether it’s sparking joy, raising awareness, or building community, I’m there to make creativity a shared experience—one that lingers long after the workshop ends.

Previous clients for this work include:

Salford City Council
Trafford Council
Stockport Council
Grit Studios
Sickfest
Stockroom
Greater Manchester Youth Network

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Big thanks to Bron and Sean, and all the other improvisers who volunteered their time. The Kings Arms in Salford was a perfect venue too, with its theatre and studio spaces perfect for both big and intimate shows. 2026 has been confirmed, so see you next year!

This weekend I'll be taking part in and helping out with the first Greater Manchester Improv Festival.

There's so much good improv happening in Manchester, it really does have it's own improv scene. It's also great to the work my pals at The Totally Improvised Comedy have done to get some of the amazing groups together for a weekend of shows.

All the shows are taking place at the lovely Kings Arms Theatre Pub in Salford, from 5pm across the weekend, and it's all under one roof. There are some belting top shows on and some bright new talent too. Check out show's from;

• Drunk Classics
• Murder Inc
• Ladies Who Improv
• Improv on Demand
• The Things You Love
• Dark Peak Adventure Club
• Yoga Goats
• Improvised Musical Galactic Deathmatch
• Shakespeare On The Spot
• Absolute Onions
• The Communimps
• It Will Do You Good

I'll be appearing in The Totally Improvised Musical and Comedysportz

For full listings and tickets, check out www.totallyimprovised.co.uk

Useful Links:

Kings Arms Salford
GMImprov Fest
Drunk Classics Manchester
Murder Inc
Thirsty Productions
My! That Improv
Get in touch

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Talks are usually written and planned, but on this occasion, the speaker wouldn't know the content of the slide deck, or the subject they were going to speak on until they arrived on the stage.

Working with Kyle Soo to make this happen, we'd been chatting about if for over a year. He has an amazing team who have helped him bring great Pecha Kucha events to Manchester, and this was no different. Cultplex, the indie cinema in the Green Quarter was a perfect venue too. (amazing pizza).

I'd had far too long to procrastinate over the ins and outs of how to keep it fresh for a whole night, which in the end didn't need overthinking. I also delivered my talk in song.

Thanks to Kyle, his team and the amazing speakers who took part.

Eve Holt
Hannah Cox
Simi Abidakun
Short Supply
Rob Stuart Hudson
Kate McCabe
Max Cross 

More improv

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More 'Yes and'

Something I've noticed in the last few years is the increase in improvised shows. It's nothing new, and perhaps there's even a bit of cognitive bias here, but it seems more popular than ever. Competition? That's just the nature of the fest, and with so many different formats and themes, from musicals to murder mystery, folk horror and burlesque, there was plenty to choose from.

I hope the increase in improv shows will help raise awareness of improv as a tool. It's not just for performers, it's something everyone can learn and engage with to build better conversations and relationships.

Were you at the Edinburgh Fringe this year? If you got a chance to see either Comedysportz or The Totally Improvised Musical, thanks for coming and supporting the show.

Do you need some improv in your life?

From fun sessions, to specially developed presentation skills and team building, get in touch to find out more.

Photos by Brainne Edge.

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2024 Shows and times for...

Comedysportz

The Totally Improvised Musical

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Next event: Click here to find out more.

Connecting creativity with commerce, ART+WORK connects local artists and creatives with Manchester’s vibrant business community to explore ideas and create new opportunities.

Join us for an evening of chilled networking, chat and idea-generating discussion.

ART+WORK is designed to help businesses who want to work with creatives, and vice versa. To help answer common questions when working on creative projects, provide practical advice and chat with professional working artists and creatives in the city.

Update!

Today I was on BBC Radio 4 talking about side hustles. These are exactly the kind of conversations we'll be having as this event going forward.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001zg4y

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John Cooper is an illustrator, live scribe and improv comedian working across the UK.
He solves problems with visuals and delivers workshops and talks on how to develop improvisation skills and hone creativity.
A professional illustrator since 2010, with most of his work being in education, technology and medical comms, but I have done the occasional children's book too!
I solve problems for clients visually, and often people come to me for the light-hearted touch of humour I can add to a serious or complicated topics. Some of my background in comics and character work.
Comedy.

You can find me making funny happen with The Totally Improvised Company and our shows Comedysportz and The Totally Improvised Musical.I've done hundreds of stand-up comedy gigs, supported TV names on tour and am a TEDx speaker too. I teach comedy sessions and advanced presenting skills, (face-to-face and online) helping people use humour in talks, pitches and work.

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Joining organiser and networking superhero Kirsty James and a lovely select bunch to watch submissions from this year's candidates, and offer my input as a comedian and former TEDx speaker.

It's been fascinating watching all the videos and hearing potential candidates share their ideas. People's stories from so many different backgrounds and personal experiences, all wanting to share their ideas on the red dot.

I've taught stand-up comedy skills for many years, and while humour is only one aspect of a TEDx talk, coaching people with what they want to say, and how they say it so is something I have a lot of experience in doing effectively. Turning a waffly 20 into a tight 10, so to speak.

It's all under wraps right now so I can't possibly tell you who will be speaking and what about, but there are some fascinating talks this year, it promises to be an amazing night full of ideas, emotion and learning.

TEDx Warrington 2023 is on November 16th.

Stand up, speak up!

Are you looking to improve your performance skills, get better with advanced presenting or add humour to a talk? If you want to hold an audience in the palm of your hand, I can help with online and face-to-face training.

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I really enjoyed chatting with Darren, and think it's probably the clearest I've been in an interview. Explaining just how useful improv skills can be to build relationships and help our clients get the best out of us if we spend more time listening than thinking about sales opportunities.

In this chat we talk about WordPress, Comedy, Presentation skills, TEDx talks,improv and many other things in between.

Booking a talk to find out how improv skills
can increase your team's performance.

The engaging marketeer podcast

Apple podcasts link

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I mentioned improv in the discovery meeting with the training coordinator, and having known and seen how effective it is from their time in the USA, they were up for it. I learned they are a very skill-focused company and were intrigued by my offering of comedy for presenting skills. Something a bit different.

The teams I worked with were highly motivated and many already did regular presenting in development and sales. What can a comedian, teach them?

I'm always ready for a little bit of resistance when I introduce improv into a workshop, it's understandable why highly focused people would question what presentation skills has to do with playing a game called 'I'm a tree'?

I really enjoyed this course although it pushed me out of my comfort zone…it has definitely benefited my confidence and skills.

- Jenny

As much as my ego makes me assume everyone has seen my TEDx, not everyone has. I put across the idea that like any muscle in the body, the brain needs regular exercise. Explained in running terms, it's similar to a couch to 5K. Exercising our leg muscles improves running skills, and exercising brain muscles develops our ability to think fast, and perform more confidently.

Improv builds mental resilience, it's also our way into using humour. To be ourselves and become the focus of the message we're delivering.

Some of the key takeaways during these sessions were;

• Giving yourself permission to use humour
• Putting a slide deck together that can be talked around not read from
• Presenting without a slide deck

Testimonials

It was very good!

- Alexander

Overall it was a real pleasure and I learned a lot.

- Manuel

I loved it!

- Katja

Links:

• New Balance
• My TEDx talk

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TedX talk, Warrington

Massive. This has been on my bucket list for years. Talking about the benefits of improv, I worked hard to learn it and get it right. The best takeaway from it wasn’t just the standing on the red dot, but how it’s helped me look forward. The version of me on stage that is confident not only in being funny but also in sharing knowledge and experience.

Art Battle Manchester.

Another opportunity to actually say ‘I’m an artist’. I’ll admit I wasn’t totally comfortable doing it, and wasn’t happy with the final piece, but it was a great experience, and something I’d like to have another go at.

Edinburgh Festival, Comedysportz & Salfunny

Great to see the Edinburgh fringe back in full swing with covid restrictions eased. It looked the same and smelled the same, but it was different. Higher accommodation fees and new ticket systems changed the status quo for performers and producers. After the pandemic, refocusing my career path, I was able to enjoy performing, doing Comedysportz and compering the Salford University showcase. All without any ego fuelled self-analysis or giving too hoots about what other stand-up comics were doing. Joy.

More Live Drawing.

More of this in 2023, please. Drawing portraits for awards ceremonies at the Liverpool Hilton, Graphic recording for to big corporate clients in Manchester, and a dozen more events this year. If live drawing has replaced comedy and I’m invited to nice hotels around the world to create live art, I’ll be a very happy person. It’s niche and I’m good at it. More or this.

Pecha Kucha night Manchester

A talk with twenty slides, twenty seconds each slide. My talk was on my comedy career and how Distance came into being, but I also got to do a completely improvised talk too, where someone else had prepped slides that I didn’t get to see beforehand. Blimey that was fun.

New clients

I can’t wait to share more of the work I’ve completed in 2022. In July I started working with the NHS, writing and illustrating an animation to help autistic people. Also in November, I delivered my presentation skills and humour workshop to the sports company New Balance.

New home

The high point has to be January though, and my new flat. Moving to South Manchester near the city was no mean feat. Manchester is an incredible city and it’s growing at an exponential rate, with a skyline that has changed along with it. When I moved here eighteen years ago it was like a big Newcastle, now it’s a little London.

It resonates all the more as at the end of this year we lost my dad. He was an incredible person. Funny, kind and always cheering me on, and he got to see all this year's successes. I’ll miss him loads. A very reflective end to a very successful year.

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It's given me a newfound affection for Musicals. The last musical comedy I saw live was The Book of Mormon and before that probably Little Shop of Horrors.
The improvised musical is of course different every time. If you're a fan of the Edinburgh festival or live in London, you might have been lucky enough to see Showstopper or Baby Wants Candy. Both are amazing, and the industry benchmark for just how good these shows can be. I saw Showstopper for the first time in Edinburgh this year, with a full house and a standing ovation.

As they say, this is Manchester and 'we do things differently here'. It's great to be putting on our own Manchester Musical every month in the centre of town.

Links

• Comedysportz
• A view on live gigs
• Manchester Theatres
• Totally Improvised Musical at Sale Waterside

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I chose to speak about my near 20 years in comedy and try and condense it right down. My relocating to Manchester years ago to make a go of stand-up. Getting a comedy agent, taking up improv, performing at the Edinburgh festival and going on tour support around the country with comedians far more well-known than myself!

It was a liberating talk to give. I'd not given it much thought before suggesting the idea and it was a nice way to reaffirm my personal history. I'm often so busy thinking about my next project that perhaps I don't always acknowledge the skill of my experience that I should give myself credit for.

Pecha Kucha is a global format which takes place all over the world. The event I attended had scientists, engineers, clothing manufacturers, climate change specialists and me, I might have felt a little out of place, but on refl,ection I wasn't. Stand-up comedy is a very niche career choice.

I was also challenged by Kyle the organiser to give a second talk completely improvised, without any knowledge of the slides. Of course I relished it, as to me that's a 'no pressure gig'.

One of the other speakers commented on how terrifying the idea of an improvised talk was. From my perspective, it's just fun.
I think it's still very much an issue that some folks aren't comfortable speaking in public. PechaKutcha was really supportive and a great platform for that.

I hope to change that perception in the training I do, I'm currently promoting a talk on improvisation.

Building on my TEDx Talk in July, I go to teams and companies who are perhaps a little intimidated by improv. Instead of a workshop with participants, the talk, explains the benefits of improv, for work andfor fun, in a way I hope will understand and encourage teams to try improve themselves and build the brain muscle skills that I now take for granted. Just saying 'Yes, and'.

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Giving a TEDx talk is an altogether different experience from any stand-up comedy I've done. If you look closely you'll see muscle memory where I'm waiting for laughter and just have to remind myself I'm not in a comedy club. I've earned and owned my space on the stage. Going forward I hope to do more talks on improv. To explain the benefits in more detail to groups who are perhaps a little hesitant about jumping into an improv workshop with both feet I need a little more information before wielding the power of 'yes and'.

Big thanks to my amazing friends and teachers at ComedySportz. I hope what I've learned and shared here is valuable to others. Thanks also to the TEDxWarrington team for putting on this event

This was the first TEDx event in Warrington and there were some amazing speakers on the stage that night with wonderful ideas to share;

Finding freedom in using a wheelchair | Pete Donnelly

Connecting with authentic success | Kate Trafford

Why conservation education matters | Charlotte Smith

From frustration to fascination: Embracing cognitive diversity | Kerry Lockyer

Building an alternate future through grief | Ben Dunne

Everything is connected, connection is everything | Ali Davenport

Poetry never abandons us | Kate Jenkinson

Rachel Morgan Trimmer

Emma Baylin

There is nothing wrong in your life right now | Russell Treasure

My talk with full script

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The live gig scene feels very different in 2022.

A lot has changed since 2019 and as the UK adapts, my priorities have changed a little too. With the current cost of living crisis and high fuel prices, the idea of driving long distances every weekend has become very challenging.

During the pandemic, a lot of comedy friends took on second jobs out of practicality. A year later some have stayed in those jobs, preferring the security, and treating stand-up as a professional second income. It might be my age that's changed my view, but it makes sense. One circuit comedian recently suggested on message boards that live gig promoters should try and book local where they can, in order to help the financial situation, and reduce travel costs, which again makes sense, and it's good for the environment too.

As the UK has re-established its new normal another side effect of the pandemic disruption has been a changing of the guard with gig promoters. Some venues have sadly disappeared, while new promoters flourish with outdoor gigs.

I used the time I'm doing the lockdowns to take stock of goals. It's not new news, but there's been a surge in comedians and broader comedy performers bypassing promoters as gatekeepers for exposure and taking their comedy online where they can build their audience directly.

I'm really excited by technology and I'd love to spend more time doing online stuff to build my own audience, but I'm not sure what that would look like at the moment.

I know from experience doing the podcast in 2017, there's a lot of work involved, it's not just posting a video every week, there's marketing work behind the scenes to drive traffic to your channel. It's not just about the comedy it's about the strategy, and most of the folks I see doing well operate in teams, and I think that's where the future lies.

My goal in 2022 is to promote our ComedySportz and more recently the improvised musical which is soon to have its first theatre show, and doing great guns as a new monthly comedy in Manchester.

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Want to try improv but don't know where to start? I can help.

Improv is a brilliantly effective way to build confidence and develop skills. It’s not about trying to be funny or cracking a joke at the expense of a teammate - improv uses games as a way to learn and develop.

Whatever your background or goals, if you're nervous speaking in public or a seasoned speaker to wanting to add improv to your tools. Or maybe you just want to tick it off your bucket list. Improv is great for;

• Better soft skills
• Speaking confidence
• Agile thinking
• Finding your voice
• Stage presence
• Storytelling

Totally Improvised

I'm a member of the Totally Improvised Company, the North West's longest running improv group, who teach a range of classes and courses here. Amazing teachers (you'll see me there often) and all highly recommended.

Looking for me specifically? I have two offers. General improv sessions and more focused half day workshops on using improv for presentation skills. Here are some of the clients I've worked with.

Presentation skills through comedy

I deliver comedy and presentation skills sessions that have improvisation at their core. These sessions use humour to unlock creativity and build confidence. They can be face-to-face, online or hybrid.

I help develop talk's so they are not just engaging, but also entertaining. We look at the art of timing and delivery, honing your ability to hold an audience in the palm of your hand. We explore your content, hone ideas and how to pace yourself effectively when presenting.

Delving into the power of storytelling and how to craft narratives that resonate with your particular audience, whether you're delivering a stand-up routine or a business presentation.

There's a focus on building confidence and stage presence. Providing techniques to overcome stage fright, command attention comfortably, and deal with wandering attention spans.

It's all about discovering yourself and being authentic. Together, we find your unique voice and style, ensuring your performances or presentations are genuine and memorable.

Links:

• Improv. Creative Workshops for Digital and Tech Teams .
• What do Google analytics and stand-up comedy have in common?
• Paul Goddard podcast interview | Improv in Agile development

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With 20 years of experience in stand-up comedy and improv, I can supercharge you or your team with advanced presentation skills.

These presentation skills sessions have improvisation games at their core. We discover how to use humour to unlock creativity and build more confidence in front of an audience.

Sessions are developed to hone a distinct voice that's your own and keep audiences highly engaged, energised and entertained. I often bring in members from The Totally Improvised Company, too.

What's covered?

• Gain skills to deliver exhilarating presentations.
• How the right kind of humour can create amazing results at work.
• Overcoming technology fears - don't let it push your buttons.
• Pop, don't fizzle - Make nervous energy work for you,
• How comedy can build stronger, happier relationships.
• Using comedy to 'smash the roof off' your presentation (as we say on the stand-up comedy circuit).
• Timing. Prevent overrunning so you always end on a high note.
• Applying storytelling beats that keep your audience listening to the end.
• Think like a comedy show editor, how to eliminate waffle and look for punchlines.

How, where, when?

Tailored to suit individuals or teams. Delivered online or face-to-face, afternoon or full-day events that deep dive into crafting a presentation or talk as sharp as a stand-up comedy set.

Interested? The first step is to get in touch to find out more:

About John

John has delivered talks on the effectiveness of humour to Lloyds Bank, Google’s Digital Garage, The Business Growth Hub, Power to Change, Locality, Avecto Cyber Security and many others. He's a speaker coach for TEDx Warrington, regularly hosts events across the North West, and has a few hundred comedy gigs under his belt.

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You're reading this in the future, right now for me it's mid-February 2020. As I move my life in boxes from one location to another I feel a sense of vulnerability. A raised awareness of my environment and the big stuff over which I have no control right now. From flooding in the UK, to political shifts, climate change and a possible pandemic to counter. It has all resonated a little louder as the safe space I call home is in flux. Fortunately, I know my improvisation training. The ability to stay focused in the moment. Dealing with new things as they present themselves, not getting caught in trying to plan for what might happen as I move the boxes. The improvisers mantra is Yes And, not what if - and improv is a great skill for dealing with change.

Yes And, not what if.

Dealing with change is inevitable. When life presents a new challenge and changes our status quo in ways we don't like, it's natural to shy away from or try to control it. In my day to day work, I strive to implement the tenets of improv to the best of my ability to be my best self.

• Yes, and. Accept and build.
• Being present and focussed.
• Actively listening to what is being said during conversations.
• Slowing down to process information effectively.
• Make clear decisions based on what I now understand.

It's easy to get caught up in the 'what if' loop. I used to do this a lot. What if a client doesn't pay? Why did I get passed over for a promotion? How will I cope if a close relative falls ill? There are millions of possible circumstances I could suddenly find myself presented with. What can sound like a negative voice in my head is actually my brain trying to keep me safe. To stop me from taking risks that might put me in danger or out of my comfort zone.

The edge of that comfort zone is where we do our best learning, when we're uncomfortable enough that our awareness becomes heightened. It's common in high stakes situations, like a job interview or buying a new car- or moving house.

A safe space to fail

One of the advantages of improvised learning, where games are played to improve listening skills, memory or communication is that they provide us with a safe space to fail, and a playground for experimentation. Misunderstanding the rules, or simply getting something wrong while playing a game is a small failure without no serious real-world consequences.

Learning how to fail small in improv workshops is positivity encouraged. A student I taught once called it "a healthy level of f&*k it". Meaning that it's not about if you fail, but rather the attitude you adopt to deal with the recovery.

Doing one improv workshop is no quick fix, unfortunately. Improv is skill-based. Working a muscle, not using a tool, think of it more like a couch to five-kilometre run than a can opener. Similar to the process of working up to a 5k, it starts with a little exercise every day. Putting your shoes on at the front door one day, jogging down the street the next and eventually laps of the park.
Regularly working the creative muscles strengthens them and builds resilience. Neurons in the brain begin to fire off down different pathways, that lead to less obvious, more creative thinking.

You don't need to be a performer or even an extrovert to begin building your mental muscles.

Professional improvisers and stand up comedians use these brain muscles all the time on stage, to make fast, smart, decisions that influence and impress those around them. A joke is a problem looking for an original solution, and a good punchline changes the way you see the subject matter.

The ability to think fast spontaneously and robustly can get us out of the mud of the negative 'what if'. You don't need to be a performer or even an extrovert to begin building your mental muscles. Moving house twice in five months, the stress of moving didn't bother me too much, because the mental heavy lifting was well in hand. That's why I believe improv is a valuable way to help us when dealing with change.

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Applied improvisation a term that refers to learning the skills to think on your feet, and then applying them to a particular industry, situation or relationship.

Along with the troupe I perform with regularly CSz UK, I've been a passionate advocator of improv and improving my own listening and communication skills for many years now. Particularly in the digital space where there are oh so many ways to communicate. Technology, software, apps and their developers work in a space where change is the only constant.

This week I delivered a workshop for a team of web developers. A great forward-thinking gang who'd heard enough about improv training to know it was a tool to get in their collective belt. Here's their testimonial;

"Collaboration and creative thinking are crucial to our day to day business, and we're always looking to improve and develop these skills. John taught us various improv techniques and concepts that we could use to work better together.
John was a great teacher, and created a space where everybody felt comfortable to come out of their shell. The improv games we played were fun and engaging, and John encouraged everyone to put themselves out there and get involved. After learning about what our business did in advance, John made sure to explain the relevance of each game to our specific work, which went a long way to get buy-in from the team and senior management. Overall we found the workshop enjoyable, eye opening and motivating - our team were already discussing how we could incorporate the learnings into our day to day work. "

Tom Parson, Manchester Technology Centre.

Could your digital team benefit from improv? If you want to know more, please get in touch here or email info@johncooper.org.uk

Further Reading;

• Improving Agile teams - Paul Goddard
• Humour that works - Drew Tarvin
• To Sell is Human - Dan Pink

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There's nothing in the UK that's really comparable the annual improv championship. It's not really a competition,  more a convention of comedy shows and improv workshops where performers from all over the us - and UK - come together for one week to collaborate and learn new skills.

Improv is on the rise in the UK, but no where near as well established as it is in the US, with it's dedicating schools of improvisation, not just for performance skill, but also as a tool for learning. This annual event attracts some of the worlds best teachers of improvisation. During the week I took workshops in diverse topics such as character types, status, building emotional connections. There was also a brilliant workshop on how to teach improv, weighing up the feedback approach versus side-coaching that It really got into the nuts and bolt of how teachers teach.

The Edinburgh Fringe Festival

A twenty four hour turnaround from landing the Manchester improv gang regrouped and headed to Edinburgh for our twelfth year at the fringe. I've taken up solo comedy shows in the past, and it a lot less stressful to be part of a team.

During my ten days there I was performing in four shows per day including the regular ComedySportz show, guest spots, comparing a couple of night of Salfunny, and a late night improvised true crime show.

Salfunny was a showcase for students studying the comedy degree at Salford University. One of their performers, Erika Ehler, went on to win the Chortle new comedian award.

There were more improvised shows there this year than ever before, and while and that's a good thing for recognition of improv, it's important to keep the quality standard high. With stand up comedy and improv, there is no barrier to entry, to learn the skill is a choice. There are some great places to learn improv best practice around the UK, and hopefully some day soon improv will be as well recognised as a teaching skill as it across the pond.

• CSz Worldwide
• Salford University Comedy Writing and Performance
• Chortle New Comedian of the Year
• Comedy Background

The post American Improv & The Edinburgh Fringe appeared first on John Cooper.

How does that work? After an introductory talk there's a big blank schedule of events board - waiting to be filled.

Those keen to give a talk complete a description card and stick it the board. As this event proved, very quickly there was a diverse and interesting amount of talks to attend across the day.

I've attended similar formatted events in the USA, at the annual ComedySportz improv championship. During a week of workshops and entertainment) there's an 'open space' which is very similar in format. The idea of a full day of this locally piqued my curiosity.

It was easy to understand the ethos of the event, and MeasureCamp Manchester was well organised. It's not only for those keen to get up and talk, but also to encourage those who've never given a talk. It's an opportunity to to seize the chance to give their first ever bit of public speaking, workshop or discussion.

As I found out, a group of data analytics techy folks set up MeasureCamp in 2012. They  wanted to run a local community event and it took off. MeasureCamps are now held in over a dozen cities, all over Europe plus Hong Kong and Australia.

I think the 'unconference' format is a brilliant concept too. A speaking event with no traditional hierarchy or barrier to entry, encouraging anyone who has an idea they are passionate about.  The presentations do not need to be polished, there's no guarantee of full audience. Attendees will vote with their feet. However as this event proved, with this well curated day, the fear of 'what if no one comes to my talk!' doesn't arise.

Improv for Creative Thinking

MeasureCamp is designed for the digital and analytics community though I thought it felt broader. There was much discussion here about modern work culture. I attended some great talks, including a discussion on freelancing and a talk on impostor syndrome. I also gave two talks on how improvisation skills is  used as a tool for creative thinking. A shortened version my Google Digital Garage in 2018 sessions, and they were well received.

Of course there's a strong element of improvisation to the MeasureCamp Unconference format. When I deliver an improv workshop, I explain how improvisation is about being present and creative within set of constraints of a game.  One of the organiser, Paul  suggested I pinned my session on the board at the beginning of the day, which I did. Improv is great for learning, and it's also a good motivator. By sticking my session at the beginning of the day it could provide a little confidence boost to anyone attending who had an idea for a but not yet committed to it.
It would have been an ideal place to promote my book,  but one of the stipulations is that there is no hard sell by speakers, and rightly so.

MeasureCamp Manchester was a fun learning experience and a great networking opportunity. I've even considered offering to volunteer for next year's event (if I have the time and commitment it requires) I''ll certainly be getting in early for a ticket!

Useful Links

• Event - MeasureCamp Manchester
• Book - Present Yourself!: An illustrated guide to speaking in public and building confidence by John Cooper
• Book - Humor That Works by Andrew Tarvin
• Book- Improv-ing Agile Teams by Paul Goddard
• Podcast - Bring a Brick - using improve in the workplace
• Venue - ETC Venues
• The Candidate
• PRWD
• Usabilla
• Observe Point
• Content Square

The post MeasureCamp Manchester appeared first on John Cooper.

In early 2018 I was involved with Manchester's Business Growth Hub 'Spark 2 Scale' programme - had lots of help with business plans for my workshop using stand up comedy skills for public speaking 'Present Yourself' - based on the book from 2017. I was invited to run it as part of their special events, which in turn led to a few engagements at Manchester's Google Digital Garage.

There's been a lot more illustration this year than previous years. I finally got on Instagram. Inspired by the 'Bee in the City' project I created a bee for the Manchester Fringe and that led to me being asked to design the mascot for the Fringe. During the fringe I also ran out an experimental show - 'Confessions of a WordPress Fanatic', combining stand up, songs and website development just to 'talk about what I know' and see if it would work. Not great numbers in the audience, but very rewarding.

Some great project's landed on my table including illustrating for a TV advert, re-designing and re-branding Wentworth Music Festival, and working with actor Arthur Bostrom on his new 'Fronch Phrose Berk' writing as Officer Crabtree, the character he played in 'Allo 'Allo. So much creative freedom with all these projects, too.

In August much fun was had performing at the Edinburgh fringe with ComedySportz, and before that I headed over to Dublin for the first Improv Utopia event, a long weekend of improv workshops with people from all over Europe and the USA.

Personal highlights this year including Running a couple of half marathons and walking up Snowdonia with the Manchester Road Runners crew. Hosting the Pint of Science festival and meeting inventive folk, then hosting a manic Doctor Who convention and finally meeting Peter Davison. There was some sad news closer to home, which makes me even more grateful for the amazing people I have as family and friends.

Inktober was a bit of a revelation. I'd never heard of it until it was already happening. Draw an inked image everyday for a month. Having done so much digital artwork I'd forgotten just how much I love the real thing. That and brush pens. The very fact I didn't know they existed until this year baffled me and excited me in equal measure. Inktober opened more doors for me, just be doing it.

I've loved doing the 'WordPress Fanatic' show, as it was quite personal in place, and want to take it to Edinburgh in 2019. I also have a new comics illustration project that's taking shape and am aware don't have the time to do both. Right now the comic project is winning out as it something I have more control over. I love the Edinburgh fringe, and performing, but there are so many variable's and I've not taken a solo show up since 2011. I'd like something more solid and tangible to show for 2019. And I'm allowed to change my mind on that.

As I plan out 2019 current thoughts are to double down on what works. Building the good projects for nice people and building new relationships in turn. Take risks and live life. Oh and and have a holiday, I'm so due a holiday.

• Spark 2 Scale
• Present Yourself at Google Digital Garage
• Illustrating for TV with GroundBreak Productions
• Great Manchester Run Half Marathon
• Mascot Design for the Great Manchester Fringe Festival
• Pint of Science Festival
• Improv Utopia Ireland
• Comedysportz and Joke Thieves at the Edninburgh Festival
• VWORP! An independant Doctor Who convention
• Good Moaning France With Arthur Bostrom
• Inktober
• Manchester Half Marathon
• Liverpool improvathon 2018
• Comedysportz Panto 2018
• and all the other lovely comedy gigs I've done as Danny Pensive.

The post 2018 - Lots of little experiments. appeared first on John Cooper.

Venue: The Kings Arms, Salford, M3 6AN
Ticket available on Eventbrite:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/confessions-of-a-wordpress-fanatic-tickets-50782649271

While publicising the show I was re-tweeted by Matt Mullenweg!

Make sure to capitalize the P! 😆

— Matt Mullenweg (@photomatt) July 4, 2018

Confessions of a WordPress Fanatic

In early 2017 I attended 'MWUG', or Manchester WordPress users group to give it it's full name. I met a bunch of lovely people including Mike Little, one of the core developers of WordPress. I was surprised. I thought anyone involved the creation  of WordPress must live in some kind of sun drenched villa on a mountain side in Silicon Valley. How wrong I was.

Mike was the really welcoming chair of the group, and they were on the lookout for people to give talks at their meet ups. Despite just arriving I offered. I'd been using WordPress since 2010. Despite a terrible memory I know that because WordPress helpfully releases a new theme design named after the year, every year, and I started with 'TwentyTen'. Also being a comedian I'll take any chance to get in front of a new audience.

I was prepping 15 minutes on how I'd used WordPress to publish a podcast when I realised what I had was quite funny but not very technically hardcore. Was my knowledge of WordPress enough for a tech savy audience? Was I glossing over the cracks in my knowledge with gags? Of course it didn't have to be funny, I was probably over analysing, and on the day it was fine.

I went back a few months later and a half hour talk on my experience of building WordPress websites commercially. Again is wasn't intend to be funny, but I couldn't help it. That's when I thought there might be a show in it. Sharing my feelings on the culture of constant updates, and making it funny. I've created bucket loads of websites using WordPress for all different manner of clients, but it never occurred to me to attempt to combine that with my comedy storytelling. So in a nutshell that's the new show - Confessions of a WordPress fanatic! at the Greater Manchester fringe. Not a duffel coat in sight.

The post Confession's of a WordPress Fanatic! appeared first on John Cooper.

That might sound like an odd thing to say - but the more I thought about it the more the comparison holds up.

Google Analytics reports feedback what's happening on a website, what people are looking at and responding to. How long they stay engaged, and if they connect...becoming a customer or a fan. You can even see it in real time.

For that particular website, we added some recent case studies and removed technical jargon. By doing that we changed the language - the website's voice - and added relatable stories (short case study videos) to draw people in and acquire new customers.

I used this metaphor again this week quite fittingly, at my first workshop at the Google Digital Garage in Manchester. They were really supportive in providing me with a space to lead my all elbows 'Present Yourself!' comedy workshop, which mixes stand up comedy with presentation skills, team games, improv, public speaking tips and interpersonal skills all rolled together.

It covers the same ground as analytics, but with less artificial intelligence. It's for humans instead of websites. It's all about understanding your audience. How to stay engaged and avoid attention span 'bounce rate', and the language we use tell stories and connect with others. Again, all in real time. I guess you might call it the discussion points we have as  'human analytics'.

Human Analytics (in front of an audience) :

• Audience. Make eye contact with them, this will give you all the data you'll need.
• Behaviour. Be aware of your body language, relax and be comfortable.
• Engagement. If what you're saying isn't working experiment off script with a different approach  -this is where the scary fun learning happens.
• Acquisition. Don't try too hard to be funny. Just be yourself. Let your audience, or customers, come to you.

The feedback since I started running these sessions in 2015 has been great. Together with the help of the  Business Growth Hub  it's evident that business leaders across the North West are really keen to integrate this kind of skills workshop into their own team training programmes.
[boxout_start]

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The post What do Google analytics and stand-up comedy have in common? appeared first on John Cooper.

The Festival has been running for 8 years and brings researchers into local pubs all over the UK to get people interested in science, in this case machine thinking, extreme engineering and big data. Now I'm no scientist and a comedian as opposed to presenter  -the nearest I get to science is Doctor Who or reading Douglas Adams novel. However my geek credentials and curiosity served me well, even if the audience preferred hard research over warm up jokes, I was just the messenger.

Social media was big and #pintofscience trended on Twitter during the live events (there were 21 in Manchester alone!) When organiser Becky took a photo of myself and the other professors, we all put our drinks down out of shot - until she reminded us that it was the pint of Science Festival and drinks in hand were preferred!

Highlights for me were Professor Steve Furber's Spinnaker Project. He had worked on the BBC Micro and Archimedes computers which filled my with nostalgia. Dr Mostafa Nabawy and his bio-inspired micro robots. Making tiny spiders that jump and flies that fly sounded like a Sci-fi disaster movie waiting to happen. Dr Katie Druce's talk on 'what people mean when they say they don’t sleep' and how it can be monitored was as clever as it was easy to understand, using fitbits to monitor activity at night in the bedroom (SLEEPING!). Also I particularly enjoyed ProfessorDavid Berezan's Sounds of the sea, which uses real time data from sea buoys to create a dynamic soundscape. The combination of data, process and improvisation to create a hypnotic nautical composition pressed all of my buttons, and it was no surprise when we chatted that we are both fans of Delia Derbyshire and the BBC radiophonic workshop.

Big thanks to Becky Dodd and all the organisers at the University of Manchester for letting me share the stage, and for keeping me watered with some very good cider courtesy of the Beer Nouveau venue.

Micro Drones are here to take over the world!

Links

• Pint of Science Festival
• Professor  FurberSteve 
• Dr Mostafa Nabawy 
•  Dr Katie_Druce 
• Professor David Berezan | NOVARS Research Centre
• Beer Nouveau
• Radiophonic Workshop

The post A Pint of Science? appeared first on John Cooper.

An opportunity to meet an improvise with folk from the USA, Ireland and  other countries all in one place. I've been to plenty of improv conventions in America over the last ten with my comedysportz troupe,  and honestly didn't know what to expect from this - but it was every bit as cool as I'd hoped.

We took over Newgrange Lodge just North of  Dublin with some expert teachers including Nick Armstrong, Katy Schutte, and Neil Curran as well as the lovely Craig and Carla Cackowski From L.A.

Watching improv people together in large groups is quite a thing to behold, and probably quite curious to the outside world.  We played 'diamond dance' outside in the blistering sunshine. It's a game about dance moves, but also leadership...but really - dance moves!  I could see the staff of Newgrange Lodge watching us, clearly a little bewildered and  amused by what they were watching.

Each workshop covered a different discipline.  From group work to using emotion, character and selling yourself.  The weekend reaffirmed  my love for improv and how it's a great tool for connecting and building relationships.  Improv Utopia has been running for many years in the US, but this is the first time they have organised a residential outside of the US - and it proved to be a great success.  Big thanks to all the guys who put it together, it felt like being in America without actually being in America.

Sell it! - workshop with Craig Cackowski

Links:

• Improv Utopia Ireland
• Nick Armstrong
• Neil Curran 
• Katy Schutte
• Carla Cackowski
• Craig Cackowski
• Jaime Moyer
• Chris Mead
• Josh Nicols 

About John Cooper

He’s performed in hundreds of theatres around the UK and internationally as part of the CSz Manchester improv troupe. He has delivered workshops on how to use humour  and improv in business, taking part in the BBC2 series ‘The Speaker’ and the BBC New Comedy Awards. John is author of Present Yourself! – An illustrated guide to speaking in public and building confidence.

The post Improv Utopia Ireland appeared first on John Cooper.

Late last year I took part in their 'Spark 2 Scale' programme -  to help grow my own business, and it's been a real boost for my networking and marketing. So it only made sense then for me to then approach them at the end  and offer the service they'd helped me develop in return.

The idea for 'Present Yourself!' was born out of the stand up comedy class I had been  teaching, and has slowly 'iterated' from there over the last 2 years. Slowly adding in 'bits' from other disciples such as personal development,  solo improvisation and side coaching, and clarifying what it is - and what it isn't.  It's great finally see growth myself, the help running the event the feedback on the day was incredibly rewarding.

Stand up comedy workshop for presenting and storytelling in business

Feedback from the event:

"I came away with more confidence, and an understanding that I can talk about topics that I'm passionate about in a way to engage the audience without losing them ... probably one of the most rewarding growth hub events and totally valuable use of my time."

"Brilliant – straight away comfortably out of my comfort zone!"

"Really enjoyable. Got a lot from it. Hope to implement in my workplace."

"It will push tour boundaries, but well worth it."

"Amazing use of 3 hours to develop confidence & presentation skills."

Links

• The Growth Company
• Workplace

The post Building Confidence Through Comedy appeared first on John Cooper.

• Found a new regular yoga teacher and learned the 9 part breath. #namaste
• Interviewed improv legend Neil Mullarkey for my podcast. #bringabrick
• Got my geek on delivering two talks at the Manchester WordPress Group. #mwug
• Judged ciders at the Manchester Real Ale festival. #freecider
• Got through all The Apprentice interviews in the Manchester heat. #notfired
• Taught my first corporate training session #RocketSteps #PresentYourself
• Joined the lovely folk that are Manchester Road Runners #MRR
• Ran the Sunderland 10k in 52 minute and 29 seconds. #Howaymelegs
• I'm the Mayor of Wirrals Favourite comedy act. #DannyPensive
• Did the 8^th Annual Liverpool improvathon with #Impropriety

• Design work beamed out on huge video screens in a field. #WentworthMusicFestival.
• Rode a ‘G Bike’ and did a headstand at the Google Campus in Silicon Vally, California
• Visited the offices of Adobe and said hello to Photoshop.
• Met the real California Highway patrol.
• Did a live illustration commission
• Got name checked in Sarah Millican's autobiography.
• Taught improv at Cambridge university.
• “I'd book you but I don't think we can afford you” Best feedback ever after a training session.
• Got my book on Amazon (go and buy it)
• Did an improvised pantomime #Comedysportz
• Watched the Doctor Who Christmas special in a school hall.
• Yearly running stats: 1633km.

The post 2017 in Bullet Points. appeared first on John Cooper.

Jim Ansaldo is a Research Scholar at Indiana University Bloomington, a member of Comedysportz Indianapolis and an instructor at Camp Yes And, which teaches improv Teenager on the Autism Spectrum.

"Improv gives us a means for everyone to bring their life experience to the table"

I had the chance to catch up with Jim earlier this year in San Jose, California. We talked about his approach to teaching, and his work bringing improvisation to with children and teenagers with autism, and how it can be used to highlight and aid communication and interaction. We also touched on the broader aspects of improvisation as a tool in therapy, Jill Bernard mindfullness in improv workshop that we both attended and the legacy of Keith Johnstone.

Direct Link

Bullet Points

• Creating a safe space for improvisation without the pressures of 'performing'.
• Working with educators at Camp Yes And.
• Improv Camps and Classes for Teens on the Autism Spectrum and Educators
• Using improv to facilitate discussion on how to improve teaching methods and generate new ideas.
• The core values of CSZ worldwide - Collaboration, Inspiration, Values, fun.
• Musical improvisation - The Yes And band.

Links

• Benjamin Bloom, Blooms Taxonomy
• The Applied Improvisation Network

The host John Cooper is a professional stand-up comedian, improviser, tutor & illustrator based in Manchester, UK.

Click here to listen to previous podcast interviews  with other experts who use improvisation. 

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The term 'jack of all trades' is a phrase that has bugged me for years.  I know it's negative connotations and consider myself an optimist, but I've always thought I was one. A 'jack of all trades...and master on none'.   My thinking has been perhaps inherited from the  previous generations. The received wisdom that focusing on one career to become an expert over time was the best way forward, and taking an interest in a few different things diluted time, effort and commitment .

Since going freelance as a designer and pro as a comedian I didn't want a design client knowing I did comedy in case they thought I didn't take the work seriously, or a comedy promoter to know that I did graphic design.  I was terrified of not being seen as professional.

Old beliefs are very hard to shake.  I previously had five different websites. One for comedy, one for  design and illustrations, and more recently a podcast and training workshops.  Each of these things had it's own orbit and audience, with rare overlapping exceptions.

The fear of confusing people with 'multi disciplines' and not being able to answer the 'what do you do' question' in less than four sentences was (and still is) a bugbear.  However, I've known for years that diversity and adaptability are key to survive, and something just clicked. Listening to technology podcasts, reading Seth Godin books. Learning more about applied improv in my podcast. Finally something clicked and I've broken my old programming.

So here are 'all my eggs -  in one basket'. Better for me, better for  google SEO and as I'm finding, people who come looking for one thing and find another and spend a bit of time on my website looking around. Isn't the the point of a good website?

The post A Life Less Ordinary appeared first on John Cooper.

You'd be right to wonder how this is relevant to proper 'work', but when you strip away the theatrical of Liverpool's 8th annual 'improvathon' you'll see a very impressive model of project management played out at speed.

Improvisation isn't making things up. There are rules and constraints that help unlock the creativity for high levels of collaboration and achievement, for example a six person 'safety song' and dance that was 'slip, trips and falls'. Impressive not only in line and verse, but also as it was a great metaphor for good improvisation. Safety culture in the workplace aims for interdependence over independence, and so does improvisation. If we have each others back, we do good work and we look great too.

I've recently become interested in agile development. An approach to project management that favours interaction over process, and responding to change over 'end goals' to achieve a more satisfying outcome (and a happy client). I'm not an agile developer but I have been a web developer for twenty years and an improviser for ten.

The improvathon is played out in two hour 'episode' chunks with performers creating and discovering stories through interaction. Over the course of the show new cast members join, some leave and some stay awake (and present) for the entire duration fuelled by adrenaline, coffee and the buzz of the show. A 15 minute break between these episodes is just time enough for the director, overseeing the scenes, to gently highlight the more compelling stories from the previous section and suggest new points of focus. Moving events forward towards a rewarding outcome.

During the show, I failed in my many evil attempts at 'conversions' turning other characters into cybermen - to create and army of robotic cybermen - that's just what they do. I was reminded of a chat with a scrum master (Paul Goddard) who used the term 'conversion' to refer to the moment when a newcomer to improv clicks with the 'yes and' principle and comprehends the wider implications and values. Improv isn't just for actors or extroverts, it's for everyone in or out of the workplace.

It's also much better than being turned into a cyberman.

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In this episode I recap what I've called  'series 2'. The last eight interviews with some great people who use applied improvisation (improv, impro...that particular way of thinking and responding, and using mental agility). Beginning with Paul Z. Jackson and culminating  with Pam Victor. There's a wealth of information to be had, on a load of different topics, and I thank all the wonderful guests who gave their time.

• Paul Z. Jackson is one of the founders of Applied Improvisation Network, we talked about his work and digressed on the topic of improvisation on television.
• Mary T. Curtis works in behavioural health, coaching people with issues such as stress and anxiety and the YES AND, accepting and building in therapy.
• Neil Mullarkey didn't need any introduction. We chatted about the business of improv,  story structure, character comedy and how to bring improv into a training session by giving examples. Loads in this one.
• Adam St John Lawrence is a Customer experience consultant, who uses improv to generate ideas, break them and get better questions. Loads of great content here about understanding the world you’re selling to.
• Dan Starkey is an actor appearing in television series such as Doctor Who, and insode No.9. We chat about how a foundation of improv can help an actor approach a role.
• Cathy Salit is CEO of Performance of a Lifetime. Among the many thinks we talk about, Cathy explains her view on 'performative psychology' and how everything we do - our life -  can be seen as a performance.
• Paul Goddard is a coach in agile development and certified Scrum trainer. We touch on the geographical differences in recognition of improv in the US and UK and how improvisation can be applied to agile development
• Finally I interviewed Pam Victor on her 'Zen of Improv'. Her mission it is to make the world a happier place through improv.

Links to All episodes

Bullet points:

• Comedysportz World Championship 2017 in San Jose
• The Applied improvisation conference 2017
• The Liverpool 8th Annual Improvathon

Direct Link

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Pam is the founder of Happier Valley Comedy whose mission it is to make the world a happier place through improv. She's co-author of "Improvisation at the Speed of Life", with Chicago's TJ & Dave and uses improv to teach personal and professional growth.

She has her own podcast, Conversations with Funny Feminists. We chat about honesty and authenticity in improv, facts versus belief and using improv for personal development to overcome fears and increase learning opportunities.

Bullet Points

• The Zen of Improv
• TJ and Dave.
• Honesty and authenticity
• Improv for personal growth
• "I suck". The evil mind meanie - The voice of unhelpful judgement.
• Beliefs vs Facts
• Susan Messing
• Annoyance Theatre
• IO
• "You can't be brave and not be scared"
• Big Booty, cheering when someone fails, redefining failure as learning.
• 'Can I make a living doing what I love'
• Conversations with funny feminist's - 'Bitches get stuff done'.

Links:
Happier Valley Comedy | Pam Victor on Linkedin

Direct Link

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Paul is a coach in agile development and certified Scrum trainer. He's the founder of training company agilify and his book 'Improving Teams' brings together his work in agile and improv theatre, highlighting the overlaps and connections between the two.

In conversation we talk about the cost of change in the workplace and how similarities in agile and improv allow for efficiency in fields like software development. How adapting is as much about a given project as it is the people involved, and introducing improv for learning. We also touch on the geographical differences in recognition of improv in the US and UK for the  approach agile and improv use to introduce game play as a tool.

"Scrum master". Number 8 in the 10 weirdest job titles in the UK.

Paul's book on Amazon: Improv-ing Agile Teams: Using Constraints To Unlock Creativity

Bullet Points

• An overview of Agile and Scrum.
• The agile manifesto.
• Scrum coaching.
• Traditional software development vs agile.
• Technology, culture and the dilemma of linear planning.
• Seeing what you don't want, to find out what you do.
• Making the cost of change lower.
• The comedy store players / Neil Mullarkey.
• Connecting improv and agile.
• Keith Johnstone.
• Agile conference 2012.
• suffer fromt he same legacy agile and improv.
• Being open to learning and client rapport.
• Fear of failure in computer science.
• There is one truth, one outcome.
• Preparing for change, adapting personally and professionally.
• Slowing down to reflecting on a process and make improvements.
• Scrum masters, putting games in timeboxes.
• Scrum master - The 10 weirdest job titles in the UK - The Independent.
• Relating back to the personal - Paul's book examples.
• Storytelling and the agile product owner.
• Good companies have compelling narratives.
• The Applied Improvisation Network.
• US vs UK, Regular improv and agile approaches are built into the fabric of large tech companies. 10 years.
• The sprint retrospective
• Working with a group and creating in a safe environment for gameplay
• Inspiring others through improv practices
• Pixar, agile and storytelling.

Links:
www.agilify.co.uk | Paul on Linkedin

Direct Link

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I started my podcast in late 2016, interviewing people who use improvisation techniques in their work. Six months and fifteen episodes later and already it's paid off in more ways than I can think.

Fifteen isn't a massive number of episodes for a podcast, but the original intention was to 'box it off' as a project with a beginning and an end so it didn't turn into a spiralling not-for-profit time sink. Focus on quality, not quantity, find great guests willing to give up an hour of their time to be interviewed about their work.

It's been enlightening listening to different points of view, and stories of people in different parts of the world and how they teach the 'way' of improv in different environments. I'm getting a lot of great feedback and it's evolved into one of the most enjoyable things I do.

Check out the Bring a brick website and have a listen.

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Cathy Salit is CEO of Performance of a Lifetime. She has delivered hundreds of keynote speeches on how using performance in everyday life helps with growth and productivity.

She's the author of Performance Breakthrough' A radical approach to success at work.

In conversation with Cathy we chat about her work at POAL, and how treating life as a great performance can be a strong catalyst for growth and change. How her company has developed over time using performance, improvisation and psychology  to create a safe 'playground' and lead to a diverse range of projects including working with inner city 'cops and kids' to to improving the doctor/patient relationship.

Direct Link (MP3 file)

Links: Performance of a lifetime | Cathy on Linkedin |  Performance Breakthrough

Bullet Points;

• The human side of business strategy
• Performative psychology
• Who we are becoming; tapping into the natural ability to perform from childhood
• Choose to Grown blog
• Cathy the Jazz singer
• The All Stars Project - Cops and kids finding common ground
• Elisabeth Cleaners street school
• Art and business building together
• Form of life -  Ludwig Wittgenstein
• David Nackman, Fred Newman
• Your life story in one minute
• Devising improv for medical residents - improving  the doctor patient relationship.
• Using improv to create a 'playground' to approach emotionally difficult. conversations such as doctor patient DNR (do not resusitate).
• Stephen Nachmanovitch, Free play.
• Emotinal intelligence...why the need to prefix "intelligence"?
• "The Sales Whisperer" - Daniel Pink, author of To Sell is human.
• Bringing performance to the sales pitch.
• Our ability to change is a performance choice.
• We need weird! Doing something new to find change.
• The art of selling, networking and other schmoozy things.
• Don't worry about the sale.

The post Podcast: Cathy Salit | Performance of a lifetime appeared first on John Cooper.

Dan Starkey is an actor appearing in television series such as Doctor Who, inside No.9 and Class Dismissed on CBBC. He's performed with many improv groups and done improv marathons.

I'm a massive Doctor Who fan, and seeing Dan improvise some online shorts for Doctor Who, a big TV production,  made want to delve into how that came about and find out more about Dan's work.

Bullet Points

• improv, Keith Johnstone
• Spontaneity shop, Tom  Salinsky, Debra Francis-White
• Bristol Old Vic
• Be generous to your audience and don't stare at the floor
• Start the scene with silence, creating character
• Getting a reaction - Improvised comedy and Christmas carols
• On the set of Doctor Who, Sleep no More, Bethany Black and Mark Gatiss.
• David Tennant, Peter Capaldi and Russell T. Davis ..and me.
• London improvathon, Lord of thrones
• Liverpool improvathon, Impropriety
• Die Nasty Theatre, Soap-a-thon
• How long can we sustain being present?
• Buskin the magic cobbler
• Class Dismissed.
• Attribution of improvised lines in a scripted piece
• Big Finish Audio

Links: Dan on Twitter | Dan on IMDB

Direct Link

The post Podcast: Dan Starkey | An Actors Foundation appeared first on John Cooper.

Adam is a customer experience consultant with a background in stand up comedy and psychology.

"We are going to break your ideas". Adam uses improv theatre techniques to drive design and innovation and is the co-initiator of the world's largest service innovation event, the 48 hour Global Service Jam.

In this interview we discuss how Adam brings his skills in theatre, marketing and design together with improvisation. Using the 'yes and' in service design,  showing client's how to embrace uncertainty, understand the world they sell to and deliver a better product and service. We touch on the subjects of conformation bias,  big ideas versus cheap experiments and allowing flexibility within structure.

Bullet Points

• The handicraft of emotion
• Treating design prototypes as offers
• The iterative stages of innovation & customer centric innovation
• Removing risk in product design
• Using improv to generate ideas, break them and get better questions
• "We've got this idea, how do we sell it?" - understand the world you're selling to.
• Confirmation bias. Defending our own ideas and getting precious about them...
• ideas generated by a group are my readily accepted.
• Get up and try stuff, get your hands dirty and enjoy the uncertainty
• Micheal Schrage, The Innovators Hypothesis - "You don't need big ideas, you need cheap experiments"
• Service design & design thinking - moving away from a linear approach
• How do you lead a non-linear, improvised approach to design?
• A brief word on agile design & scrum
• What works for you might not work for me; Allowing the flexibility for a great performance.
• Tom Peters - If it's rock and roll you can smell it.
• Global service Jam

Links:
www.workplayexperience.com | Adam on Twitter

Direct Link

The post Podcast: Adam St John Lawrence | Improvisation for Innovation appeared first on John Cooper.

Neil Mullarkey is one of the founding members of the Comedy Store players and probably one of the most recognisable faces in the world of improv.

He has a string of well known movie and television credits appearing with other improv alumini. Just as impressive is the list of companies he's worked with, where he has brought improv theatre techniques into businesses like Barclays and Google.

In this interview we talk about Second City and the early days of the comedy store players. We also dig into Neil's work applying improvisation and performance in his workshops. How he encourages people to enjoy uncertainty and identify offers, and re-frame a 'yes but' into a 'yes and'.

We cover a lot of ground in our conversation:
Structure in improv, the 7 stories.
'Get on with it', introducing improvisation into a workshop.
L Vaughn Spencer, costume disguise in character comedy.
Agile workflow for teams.
VUCA: Volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.

The show notes for this episode are pretty extensive. Neil has an encyclopedic knowledge of improv and I've tried to capture most of the reference's that came out during our conversation below.

Direct Link (MP3 file)

Links:
www.neilmullarkey.com | Comedy Store Players | L. Vaughn Spencer

A lot of mentions in this show, here a most of them;

• The Comedy Store
• Comedy to go
• Keith Johnstone
• Desmond Jones
• Mike Myers & Kit Hollerbach
• The Second City
• Jim Sweeney, Steve Steen, Justin Case & Peter Weir
• Voila Spolin
• Dan Patterson, Hat Trick Productions
• The Free Association
• Bridie Connell
• Whose Line is it anyway, Australia
• Arthur Smith
• Josie Lawrence
• Robert Poynton, Everything's an offer
• Showstoppers
• David Pearl - Impropera
• Peter Drucker "Culture eats strategy for breakfast"
• Love, Food, Power...The 7 Stories
• Comedia Del arte
• Cariad Lloyd, Ruth Bratt, Joseph Morpurgo, Kirsty Newton
• Mike McShane
• Greg Proops
• Provocative thearpy
• Agile workflow
• Paul Goddard
• VUCA: Volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity
• Brenne Brown, The Power of Vunerability

The post Podcast: Neil Mullarkey | The Business of Improvisation appeared first on John Cooper.

I've just delivered a couple of talks at 'WMUG', a group run by Mike Little one of the co-founders of the crazily popular WordPress system. The first was on podcasting and the second was on 'Real World Clients'.

I've already posted on how I created the podcast over on my design blog, and if you're interested the podcast itself, interviewing people who use applied improvisation in their work, it's here.

Real World Clients.

Despite doing stand up comedy forever I've never got up and talked about my design work - ever, let alone my experiences with clients. I'm totally comfortable getting up and talking. In fact chatting to the group beforehand, I think that was my worry. In comparison to being Danny Pensive this was a 'zero pressure gig'. My desire to entertain, rather than inform could easily take me take me way off topic very quickly. Without high stakes I could get sloppy.

Having said that I was really worried about throwing myself under the bus. There would be other developers in the room and I wasn't just telling stories, but also talking about my work processes, potentially laying myself open for judgement. So actually there was a bit of pressure, but not the kind that i'm used to. That's good, a bit of performance pressure is better than not at all.

So I dipped back down the last five or six years of work history and picked out a dozen or so projects, then mashed them all together. Mixing old real world situations I've come up against with a bit traditional narrative structure. A call to action here and a stink of death there and pretty soon had something I could work with and relate back to WordPress.

It was a success I thought, in fact putting my comedians head back on...I think there might be a show in this.

The post Real World Clients appeared first on John Cooper.

Mary is a learning and development professional. She trained with Second city and combines her skills to deliver dynamic experiential learning programs.

Mary uses applies improvisation techniques in the area of behavioural health. Working with business in professional development courses and families, she helps people manage issues such as stress, anxiety and addiction to fulfil their peak potential.

When I started the podcast in 2016, Mary was on top of my list of people to talk to. In this interview we talk about how improvisation can be applied to increase  quality of life. By being present, utilising the fundamentals of 'Yes And' to accept and commit to positive change in ourselves and in helping others.

This episode in bullet points

• A.C.T.  - Acceptance Commitment Therapy
•  Tony Robbins - date with destiny
• A brief digression on yoga.

Connect With Mary
www.marytcurtis.com | Mary on Linkedin

Direct Link to MP3

The post Podcast: Mary T. Curtis | Behavioral Health appeared first on John Cooper.

Paul (@Paulzj) is a trainer of trainers and a founding members of the Applied Improvisation Network. He has authored a handful of books including 'The Inspirational Trainer' and '58 and a Half Ways to Improvise in Training'.

"We teach what we need to learn most."

He has a background in comedy and journalism and his early biog entries read like a who's who's of the British comedy scene. Paul has played a large role in bringing improvisation techniques to a wider audience. In our chat we talk about the diversity of his training work and his discovery of improv watching Steven Steen & Jim Sweeney. We also digress on topic of improvisation on television the challenges of making improvisation work on television.

Selected links from this episode

• impro.org.uk
• The Solutions Focus
• Amazon Book link: Impro Learning
• Amazon Book link: 58 1/2 ways to improvise in training
• Steve Steen and Jim Sweeney

Connect with Paul:
Paul on AIN | The Solutions Focus | Paul on Linkedin

Direct Link to MP3

The post Podcast: Paul Z. Jackson | Train the Trainer appeared first on John Cooper.

In Series two of the Bring a Brick Podcast I interview another eight people who use improvisation in their work. Guests include Paul Z Jackson from the AIN, Behavioral health expert Mary T. Curtis, comedy store players founding member Neil Mullarkey and customer experience consultant Adam Lawrence.

Series two is available in February.

What is the Bring a Brick Podcast?

In this podcast I chat to guests from as broad a range of professions as I can find to make new connections. As a curious student, discovering how people teach and benefit from the values of applying improv in different fields.

Play Trailer

The post More Yes. More and. Series 2 available soon. appeared first on John Cooper.

I've done hundreds of stand-up comedy gigs, two Edinburgh Fringe solo shows, supported TV names on tour and am a TEDx speaker too. I teach comedy and presenting skills, and offer talks on the effectiveness of good improv skills.

Comparing the Kids Comedy Show at the (much missed) Manchester Comedy Store.

Reviews from The Edinburgh Festival:

"During his whistle-stop recollection of a trip around Britain Danny Pensive highlights with uncanny accuracy and unerring honesty the stupidity of places and people. Catch this comic idiot savant before Vic ‘n’ Bob snap him up."

THE LIST

"From Newquay to Aberdeen, from Swansea to Bridlington, Danny Pensive recalls the things that made the places he has been special and memorable. But this is not some excruciating holiday slide-show. His audience interaction is flawless, and he has us laughing from start to finish with his songs and little anecdotes. His delivers each word like a six-year‐old reading aloud. His observations are told with such openness that he is impossible to dislike. The Fringe’s most loveable performer."

The SKINNY

"With his quirky capacity for story telling, Pensive’s unusual and amusing anecdotes let the audience get caught up in his adventure. This “infectious delight” left its mark, along with his listless eccentricities. An afternoon in Pensive’s company is sure to be an hour well spent."

THREE WEEKS

"He slips out some cutting wit, firing out insults like facts he’s looked up on Wikipedia, so then you know that there is more to him than meets the eye… Hilariously sweet, Pensive is a delight to watch, full of amusing observations about British scenery and culture."

FRINGE GURU

Previous solo shows;

• Blink and You'll Miss It - 2026
• Confessions of a WordPress Fanatic - 2018
• Danny Pensive: Life Coach @ Buxton Fringe  - 2017
• John Cooper: Pictures of Cats @ Leicester Festival.  - 2014
• Danny Pensive - Around the world in 80 Howays @ Leicester Comedy Festival  -  2013
• Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads, Manchester Fringe - 2012
• Danny Pensive's Map of Britain @ Edinburgh Fringe.  - 2011
• The 30 year itch @ Edinburgh Fringe - 2008

Other stuff

• Pecha Kucha Improv special, Manchester 2025
• TEDx Warrington 2022
• Hosting VWorp Vworp Doctor Who conventions.
• Presenting the Pint of Science festival in Manchester
• Sketch writer on BBC Radio Newcastle's Jesting About
• Winner of Cofilmic Sketch Writing Competition
• ITV's & FHM's  Stand Up Hero.
• SFX weekender convention. 2006
• Tour support for One Man Star Wars. 2007 - 2016
• Appeared on BBC2's the speaker.

I had a Podcast before they were wildly popular, interviewing people from all over the world who use improv to help the work they do. You can listen to them all here.

Don't mistake me for the bard of Salford, John Cooper Clarke. I do live in Salford, but he's someone else. I'm also not the car manufacturer John Cooper, the rock band singer John Cooper or the Welsh serial killer who appeared on Bullseye. There's also an illustrator called John Cooper, that one might be me.

The post Comedy & Improv appeared first on John Cooper.

A summary of the first eight podcasts.

I've interviewed a pretty board range to people so far and the interest and feedback has been great. The tone has shifted from episode to episode, depending on the guest and subject matter, some have been fun, some more serious, and that I think is a good thing.

If you've been listening to Bring a Brick, I'd urge you leave a review on itunes or Stitcher. There's no funding for publicity, so it's all word of mouth and fingers on keyboards.  What do you want to hear?

Why the podcast?

I'm am naturally quite curious, and I wanted to do a podcast to connect and improve. I recently watched Ted talk from Susan Greenfield: Technology & the human mind, and how social media is reducing out attention span, how screens are effecting the quality of our interactions, so by doing a podcast I'd like to think I'm harnessing the technology for the forces of good!

In series 2 I'll in interviewing another 8 people who use improvisation in their work and play.

John

Direct download

The post Podcast: Series 1 Summary | To connect and improve. appeared first on John Cooper.

Tim Urban: Inside the mind of a master procrastinator

“You call it procrastination, I call it thinking.” once said Aaron Sorkin. Tim Urban has a great blog and I even have his grim but refreshing life calendar. Here he explains why people tend to put things off until the last minute, and why that's sometimes ok. Inspiration.

Mike Rowe: Learning from dirty jobs

I chanced upon Mike Rowe as I was listening to loads of podcasts and prepping to launch my own . As well being funny and shocking there's a valuable lesson about 'doing it the right way', Aristotle and goats testicles.

Dave Morris: The Way of Improvisation

Dave Morris's seven steps to improvising is a great refresher as to why improv is such a valuable learning tool. Play, listening, allowing failure as part of the process.

Susan Greenfield: Technology & the human mind

Are our attention spans getting shorter? Susan Greenfield gives a great talk about how children's minds develop and the effect technology. The effect social media is having on our ability to engage and have quality interactions, i.e. Texting is bad. This is stuff that comes up in some of my training workshops, when we talk about the value of unspoken communication. I do draw issue with one point. Being a gamer I'd argue there are some role playing games which engage at an emotional level in a way that books cannot, and it's an unfair comparison, as the engagement level is different. All good points to bring up though.

Diana Nyad: Never, ever give up

I watched this on a flight to the USA at a time I was feeling pretty down and feeling old. Listening to Diana Nyad's was akin to a hand come out the screen and slap me across the face. Good health intact, age is relative and pretty irrelevant. Every year is a year to build and improve. Swimming with jellyfish and sharks at 64?

Thanks for reading my blog, and Happy New Year.

John Cooper. Inspiration for 2017. My top 5 TED Talks of 2016.

The post My Top 5 TEDx talks of 2016. appeared first on John Cooper.

Richard is the founder of Making Presentations, where he trains and consults on advanced presentation skills.

His work is underpinned by the principles of Improv, in terms of training and how improv principles help us be better presenters.

He worked for Procter & Gamble for 17 years, starting in sales. He moved into consumer and shopper research, and then to global learning & development and knowledge systems. The regular theme throughout was the need to know what motivates people to take notice, to engage with information, and then do something with it. Presentation skills.

We chat about facilitation techniques and 'how to do the how' in improv training. Richard discusses how people in a company like P&G respond to “Improv” in training. Richard also briefly touches on Daniel Kahneman’s principles in behavioral sciences and links this across to how you engage an audience and open them up to new ideas.

He works with Paul Z Jackson from the Applied Improvisation network, training Advanced Presentation Skills.

Bullet Points

• “Yes...and”, pausing to reflect in the space between words.
•  Seeing the process and having fun.
•  It's not about pretending to be a penguin.

Links

www.makingpresentations.co.uk

Direct LinkThe Bring a Brick podcast interviews people from all over the world who use improvisation and applied improvisation in their work. That can be anything from business training to games development, design and behavioral health. It’s a broad and constantly developing field. The presenter and host takes the role of the curious student, learning how people teach and benefit from the unique values of applying improv.

The post Podcast: Richard Pascoe | Presentation skills and Facilitation appeared first on John Cooper.

The importance of having fun

Marijn began using improvisation during his time as a nurse working with PTSD sufferers. There he learned to use improv techniques to bring much needed fun into the lives of people using the clinic.
He is now part of improbattle.nl working with people from all ages and background and uses improv theatre to bring them together.

In this talk Marijn discusses his experiences in the clinic and it's pretty heavy stuff in places. Listeners note; the interview touches on the subjects of suicide and rape, but is also very positive, shining a light on Marijns' bold approach to his work.

Links:

• improbattle.nl
• www.improphondo.nl
• Marijn on linkedin

Direct Link

The post Podcast: Marijn Vissers | Social Inclusion appeared first on John Cooper.

Creativity is a state of mind...

Dominic is a London based artist and inventor who create thought provoking works with humour. In his own words he works “between the worlds of art, design, craft and technology to create innovative and thought provoking objects”.

There's a lot of 'yes and' in Dominic's work and I was keen to get him on the show to discover what parallels there may be between the creative process of inventing and that of improvisation. This is a slightly tangential interview with regard to improv, but we cover a lot of familiar ground in terms of thought processes.

Bullet Points

• Speed Creating
• Charlie Holmes
• Children don't know what's impossible
• Lost and found office of oddities

Links:

• DominicWilcox.com
• Little inventors
• Variations on Normal
• Fablab Sunderland
• Office of Odd

Direct link.

The post Podcast: Dominic Wilcox | Creativity and Invention appeared first on John Cooper.

Sam is a member of the Renegade Saints improv troupe. He's also part of the Csz Worldwide diversity and inclusion committee and works for the United Nations.

Sam took time out to chat about the current state of improv in Geneva, what it's like to perform in a multilingual city and how he almost left the world of improv, he wants to make the world a better place, so it's a good job he didn't. Vote for Sam!

Bullet Points:

• The improv scene in Geneva
• Social diversity and inclusion
• Making the world a better place
• Improvising female characters in French

Direct Link

Links: www.cszworldwide.com | The Applied Improvisation Network | Sam's Linkedin Profile

The post Podcast: Sam Al-Hamdani | Diversity and Inclusion appeared first on John Cooper.

Plan as much as you can, then prepare to throw the plan overboard.

Patrick has worked in the improv industry for over thirty years. In this interview we chat about early days of his career, taking improv training into Silicon Valley,  the changes he's observed in the industry and how he prepares for a training event.

He's the owner of ComedySportz Portland, Oregon and has led workshops for over 500 organizations including Apple and Nike. (Pronounced 'Ni-key, not 'Nike as I say in the podcast).

Bullet Points:

• Prepare lots, but roll with it.
• Pitching; start the conversation again.
• This bear will kill people - when to walk away.

www.portlandcomedy.com | Patrick on Linkedin

Direct download

The post Podcast: Patrick Short | Improv for Training appeared first on John Cooper.

In this we interview with Jill Hatcher we chat about the similarities between how improvisers and designer think in order to solve problems and building on ideas. We also digress into comic-book jams and the process if making graphic art. 12.19 Micheal Scott, the office. Strathclyde, Scotland

Gillian Hatcher (@Gillreads)is a Research Associate in the department of Design, Manufacture and Engineering Management (DMEM) at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland.

Bullet points:

• Using 'yes and' to build ideas in product design.
• Build a machine
• Micheal Scott improv

The University of Strathclyde | Barry Kudrowitz study (MIT)

Comic Artist and Illustrator | Gillian's comics | Direct Download

The post Podcast: Gillian Hatcher | Improv in Design (and art) appeared first on John Cooper.

"Story is the way our brain makes meaning of the world."

In this interview with Kat Koppett we discuss her career origins in theatre and how she went back into the classroom to explore the qualities of improvisation as a tool for training. We also talk about improv in different cultures, and get a great viewpoint of the historical development of the improv scene in the US. New York, USA.

Kat (@kopco) is head of Koppett.com, a company specialising in the use of theatre, improv and storytelling techniques to enhance individual and group performance.

Bullet points:

• Connecting to yourself and 'the practice of living'
• Cultural differences
• Raising the bar of training in the improv training field

www.koppett.com

Direct download

The post Podcast: Kat Koppett | Storytelling appeared first on John Cooper.

Leading on your feet.

In this interview, I chat to coach and author Andrew Tarvin about teaching improv in business, introverts and extroverts and life on the road. I'm really grateful to Andrew for agreeing to be the first interviewee for the Bring a Brick podcast, we cover a broad range of subjects. Andrew (@HumorThatWorks) is an award-winning speaker and trainer. His company, Humor That Works teaches individuals and organisations how to use humor to be more effective, and his book was released recently, available on amazon here: Humor That Works: 501 Ways to Use Humor to Beat Stress, Increase Productivity, and Have Fun at Work

Listen to this episode on iTunes
Listen to this episode on Stitcher

Bullet points;

• Introverts and Extroverts, Myers Briggs test
• Psychological safety
• Life on the road
• Improv for dogs
• www.humorthatworks.com

Direct download

The post Podcast: Drew Tarvin | Improv in Business appeared first on John Cooper.

A word from the host.

Hi, I'm John Cooper; stand up comic, improviser and designer. I use improv and play to teach and discover in pretty much everything I do. I've taught workshops for the BBC New Comedy Awards and contributed to a TV show called 'The Speaker'. I've been on the set of the real TARDIS and was briefly the 'face' of North West and Lancashire Life magazine, despite being from the North East. I started the Bring a Brick podcast in September 2016 out of a curiosity to discover how trainers and professionals use the 'how' of improvisation.

To contact the show email info@rocketsteps.co.uk or tweet me at @JohnCooper_uk

Contact John | Linkedin

Credits

All podcast sound and stings by Dave Depper using creative commons licensing.

Presenting skills workshops Manchester. Stand Up comedy workshops Manchester. Comedy Workshops Manchester

The post Podcast: Interviewing people who use improv in the work and life. appeared first on John Cooper.

As a kid I used to go to cub camp most years, and I've had the privilege with sportz' to go a handful of Championships, where improv groups from all over the US meet up once a year for a massive improv jam. It's a pretty amazing experience and if i can recreate even one tenth of that in a 30 bed bunk barn, then I will. I've never run an event like this before. I'm just doing it.

The post Forward the (improv) Retreat. appeared first on John Cooper.

The post Doctor Who themed Improv Show appeared first on John Cooper.

This weekend I was lucky enough to be one on the performers in Liverpool's annual 'Improvathon', a 33 hour long show organised by fellow Mersey based improv troupe Impropriety, and it was pretty amazing. I'll hold my hand up now and say I wasn't in all of it, as a guest being my first one I partook in around 20 hours of it. The theme for the shows was a fairy tale, and it was epic and sweeping but I know what you're thinking, how does such a thing even work?

It's based on a show developed in Australia called a 'Soap-a-thon' where previous shows at the Adelaide Improv Festival have run to fifty two hours! Each performer picks a character and the scenes roll on in hour long chunks with a fifteen minute break after each one for the audience to strech their legs and the performers to re-group. Hang on that's cheating! No, not really.

Before taking part I had no idea how it would work and envisaged an epic 'relay race' where performers tag teamed each other from one scene to the next for the whole duration, which of course would be exhaustive for both performers and those watching, the narrative would sprawl and audience members would be lumbered with an 'if I go to the loo I might miss a plot point' dilemma. Hence very breaks are needed, to keep it fresh and focussed.

The show I took part in had around twenty performers in it, all really talented guys. There was a sizeable contingent from London as well as former Comedysportz guys Mark Rawle and Sally Hodgkiss. I did feel like a bit of an outsider at first but I shouldn't have, these are improvisers, and inclusivity and trust are just what they do. I just plugged in.

In the first half of my stint I was 'Dennis Boggins', the only Hobbit who works, then some hours later Rosie the director indulged my whim to switch character and I did a big fat 'Yes And' on doing some puppeteering. Ian, one on Liverpool's guys had made some pretty awesome Jim Henson style puppets which fitted in really well with the fantasy aspects of the show. I've never done anything with puppets before. In The first scene I didn't nail the lip syncing or a consistent accent. Then went off stage and had a personal crisis about what the hell I thought I was doing and I was rubbish at all of it. Then owned it. A couple of scenes later 'Wispy Neil the forest messenger' was singing and floating around like a pro. Not unlike sticking on my duffel coat for doing Danny Pensive, I could literally stand behind the character I was playing and observe the scene more objectively while still being present in it. Always learning.

As the hours rolled on, Rosie directed, or to be more specific I think, 'curated' the scenes lightly to give the show a narrative direction. In the short breaks highlighting to us performers particularly interesting plot threads which had evolved over time.

Audiences came and went, then came back, then slept, then woke up and carried on watching, both evenings were full until the early hours. Towards the end it became emotional as the lines between tired performers and their character blurred, creating some amazing scenes, powerful, funny and full of pathos.

At the thirty third hour there was still plenty of energy in the room, I could see how it was possible to do a fifty five hours show. Wow. I have a new found love of improv. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Photos by Patrick D'Arcy and Jo Na.

The post Liverpool Improvathon appeared first on John Cooper.

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Chicago put on parties every night and for the first night it's dancing and pizza. This being Chicago the pizzas are immense and I think it's the first time I've seen a real 'pizza pie' which is basically a giant wedge of cheese so big you can loose meatballs inside it. It's so tasty I can almost feel chest pains eating it, but it's so good I don't want to stop. We've also found 'Forever Yogurt', a serve yourself frozen yoghurt shop that does flavours like 'cake batter'.

The team are all here and the next few days are a flurry of shows and workshops. I take a Meisner workshop, which is quite hardcore and somthing I've done breifly before. It's all about learning how to understand and read the emotion within performance, and the theory goes pretty deep and you could spend years studying it here if you wanted to.

Chicago is recognised as the home of improvisation, and evidence of how improv is still in it's infancy in the UK is evident in the wealth of venues here, at least a handful large and small across the city. All dedicated improv theatre venues show 2 or 3 improv shows every night of the week. Some Longform, shortform, drama, comedy, musical and even shakespearean, all unique shows in their own right. Some are ok, some really show high end at it's best.

Saturday. As a group we all head into the city planning to meet up at the beach on Lake Michigan, but we don't find it. Instead we find Navy pier so sit down for a bit. Then we go for food at the Chicago Cheesecake factory and it takes us one hour and forty minutes to get a table, so I sit there for a bit. Once we get served I decide I don't want cheesecake after all.

The Tournament final is L.A versus Chicago and Chicago win. My money was on LA. At the final wrap party the bar, at my request, has ordered in some cider. There is cause for rejoicing.

Monday. The final day of our honeymoon, and I'm ready to go home. I feel like I've been ready to go home for the last week it's been so hot. We make good on our gift from Bron's mate Liz and have a grilled cheese sandwich at 'Cheesie's!' which is awesome and I promise it will be the last fattening thing I eat...apart from the frozen yogurt and the pulled chicken sandwich. Myself Bron and Lynn and see the Bean, a giant shiney metal baked bean shaped object in the middle of a park. Temperatures have soared again the walking close to it is like being in an oven.

For the last day we stay with Nate and Nick, two comedysportz guys from Chicago, Nate is big on borad games and has a really impressive collection, and Nick is gearing up for the Edinburgh festival with Baby Wants Candy, his musical improv group.

The rest is a blur of taxi's and aeroplanes and awkward goodbyes as I wave bye to Lynn as she disappears up an escalator only to see her minutes later. The British airways flight to London is probably the worst flight I've ever had with it's broken in-flight entertainment, seats designed for people with one leg and and stale buns. I am however quite excited about getting home. Bron's mum takes us from the airport and everything I've seen on the route home that I've seen a million times before has a weird 'otherness' to it because I've been away so long.

Open Door. Stroke Cat. Kiss Wife. Well done. It's over. Oh yeah, I can now say I've been around the world in 44 days.

The post The Long Hot Scenic Way Round. appeared first on John Cooper.

Next afternoon we went too Voodoo Donuts, a 24 hour donut shop where I get their signature confection, a little man shaped sugary treat with a twiglet stabbed into him, and another donut which has maple icing and bacon on it. It's well tastey. Bron's friend Jill has helped me souce a couple of open mike comedy nights, as I want to see how Danny Pensive fares out here. I've gigged in the states only twice before, one gig was good, the other not so much. Even the simplest cultural references can get lost easily. At the curious comedy theatre there's an all inclusive improv night on beforehand, Bron and Jill both get in on it and have fun.

This boded well for the comedy gig, or at least I thought it would, as the place slowly empties, and only the stand ups remain. Almost all the acts do their short spot and leave, the greater percentage of them talk about what they want to do with thier willies. Oh dear. The female compere never addressed it, or sought to even the odds, as a night it's all a bit flat. I get on, do my thing, slowly prise a few laughs out of those that have stayed, then just before I finish she comes back on stage to usher me off...oh the indignity. I'm really not where I'm wanted tonight. I try not to judge, it's one night in one venue and Portland is a big town, and besides I'm off to see the comedysportz show tomorrow.

For our final day in Portland I take a break and head into the city alone to wander and explore. Portland is laid back, and easy to get your head around on foot. I resist the urge to shop until I come across a shop called 'I like comics', which is the best named comic shop I've ever been in. I buy the new Star Trek/Doctor Who crossover, where the doctor walks on the bridge of the enterprise. what are the chances? That evening we go to the comedysportz Portland match, which is loads of fun, and get ready to leave Portland.

The post Independence Day in Portland. appeared first on John Cooper.

James is an amazing host showing us the sights, as well as blagging us a swanky hotel in Beverley Hills on Rodeo drive. As we arrive knackered and see the glamour is hanging out all over, valet parking attendants and smart bellhops can smell our worth quicker than a pawnbroker with a cheap watch. Its posh, the bed is great but I remember that America doesn't really do kettle's, so I can't have the batman flavoured pot noodle for supper that I stashed in my suitcase.

Saturday we head out to Venice Beach. I look for the pier where the movie Falling Down was shot. It's hot and bustling, a bit like Blackpool with hippies and hip hop, worth seeing. The wife is also here to play Comedysportz with the LA team and lucky happenstance, James offers me the chance to play too. This team are slick and professional, all jobbing actors and improvisers and even though I feel 'game on' I'm concerned that I'm a bit rusty and have a might not gel with the beautiful people, a bit like Doctor Who on the bridge of the starship enterprise. I worry about nowt. It's a great show and Rick, Holly and Scott are giving, fun and funny. I even get to do a scene with Derek Mears who was Jason Vorhees in the Friday 13th (2009) and the lead Predator in Predators (2010). This presses my awesome buttons, it's a great night.

The post Los Angeles and Hollywood appeared first on John Cooper.

 Gag Reels at the Frog and Bucket - Tuesday 25th October

The Frog & Bucket comedy club are showing another of their 'Gag Reels' night where a comedian gives a running commentary over one of their favorite films. I've been invited to do this one, and I'll be doing a big colourful movie from 1965 which has Peter Cushing and Bernard Cribbins in it and lots of angry sink plunger wielding mutants and a plan to invade the earth.

Expect lots and lots of affectionate digs, possibly a drinking game involving Sugar Puffs product placement, and also possibly a full re-enactment of the robomen-eating-dinner where everyone gets a paper plate with peas rolling round on it.

http://www.frogandbucket.com/manchester-shows/

DANNY PENSIVE'S MAP OF BRITAIN - WEDNESDAY 26th

I'll doing my Edinburgh 2011 show at the manchester comedy festival on the 26th October at the Lass O’Gowrie pub. Show starts at 9.15pm and is £3. More info over  on Danny's proper website

LET'S SEE WHAT HAPPENS - SATURDAY 29th

I'm joining the Comedysportz improv gang to do their longform show, at the lass O'Gowrie

DOCTOR WHO TRIBUTE IMPROV - SUNDAY 30th

What is says, an improvised episode, or maybe two, at the lass O'Gowrie

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