Dave Callan Articles

[unfrufru]

Fright night

Triple J's Dave Callan gets a laugh out of horror.

Late-night revellers tuning in to Triple J in the early hours of Sunday morning might think they're hallucinating but it's probably just Dave Callan's new show, The Graveyard Shift. Creaking doors, heavy footsteps, wolves howling in the distance and maniacal laughter, interspersed with readings from Edgar Allan Poe, Vincent Price audio clips and spooky sketches.

Others might think 1am to 6am on Sunday mornings a bit of a backwater, but the Irish comedian is relishing the chance to mix his two favourite genres. "Comedy and horror work very well together," he says. "As soon as you get scared, there's comic relief, and just as you let your guard down, it gets spooky again. It's the light and shade."

Callan was born in the Irish border town of Dundalk. He migrated to Perth with his parents and younger brothers in 1990 at 15 to "escape the threat of violence and the weather".

At university, he started going to The Comedy Club in Perth and was encouraged onto the stage by friends who found him amusing in conversation. "I became addicted to it. It's the thrill of not knowing whether your material is funny or not until you're up there."

A few years later, he turned professional, relocating to Melbourne to work with old friend Rove McManus on Rove Live for a year. After that he concentrated on the club circuit and radio guest spots.
As Callan is accustomed to late-night comedy gigs, he doesn't expect staying awake all night to be a problem. "Before comedy was paying my way, I used to stack vegetables overnight at Woolworths. My job was getting rid of all the rotting vegetables. The smell of asparagus when it goes off is worse than any heckle. So believe me, working in a studio and playing music is a breeze and a doddle."

[Leishpod]

hooray for dave! aww.. i love dave

[unfrufru]

how could anyone not love dave.
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trouser

hehe