“the finest set of his career… what a show”
Brian Logan, The Guardian ★★★★★
“most will surely be won over… with the delightful, poetic flourish that defines all his work… perfectly structured with overlapping themes and surprising callbacks… It’s all rather wonderful”
Steve Bennett, Chortle ★★★★★
“about as funny as anything this decade”
Dominic Maxwell, The Times ★★★★
“a tender, poignant show, Kearns can deliver big-laugh gags and callbacks in a terrific hour of comedy.”
Veronica Lee, The Arts Desk ★★★★
“This is yet another superb hour from a gifted writer and performer, suffused with beauty, tenderness and frequent, exceptional hilarity.”
Jay Richardson, The List ★★★★★
Friday 1st December – It was announced today that Winner of Edinburgh Comedy Award for Best Show and Best Newcomer, four-time Chortle Award nominee and Taskmaster Series 14 star, John Kearns is adding two shows at the Royal Court, London to his already twice extended, critically acclaimed and sell-out UK tour, The Varnishing Days, on Friday 15th March at 7pm and 9.30pm. Following on from 15 sold-out London shows with two sold-out Soho Theatre runs and multiple sell-out dates at Bloomsbury Theatre added due to demand, John is currently on his largest tour to date with over 100 shows. The new London shows will form part of John’s Spring extension, starting in February 2024 and also including dates in York, Glasgow, Bristol, Birmingham, Newcastle, Liverpool, Cardiff, Leeds and Salford.
Tickets are on sale today at 12pm. Full dates and tickets available at johnkearnscomedy.co.uk
The Varnishing Days is the heart-stopping, glasses-dropping, hard-rocking, wig-shaking, levothyroxine-taking, knee-knocking, boot-licking, justifying, teeth rattling, digressing new show from stand up comedian to the stars John Kearns. Go silent as I walk on! Acknowledge when something funny happens! Leave discussing dinner plans! Others will be implicated. Points will be circled and missed. Hell, it’s a man trying his best! When I visit your town dogs will start barking, as will clergy. Your microwave will go haywire. The lights in your vestibule will flicker and the Bank of England will nervously look at interest rates. On the day I write this, the pound has hit an all time low against the dollar. Mark my words. This show will break that record again and again and again.
Ten years on since he first debuted at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, John is still the only comedian to have ever won the Edinburgh Comedy Award for Best Show (Shtick) and Best Newcomer (Sight Gags for Perverts) in the awards forty-year history. An internationally acclaimed live act, he has delivered his “richly, idiosyncratic comedy” (The Guardian) across the world, notably picking up two Melbourne Barry Award nominations along the way and was twice-voted one of the Evening Standard’s 1000 Most Influential Londoners. Following sold out residencies at the Soho Theatre, Battersea Arts Centre and at the Edinburgh Fringe, he toured the UK for the first time with his third solo show, Don’t Worry, They’re Here, directed by Olivier winning playwright Jon Brittain. John’s fourth show Double Take and Fade Away was praised by critics, making numerous ‘best of the year’ lists including the Evening Standard and The List. The show had a sold-out Edinburgh run, two weeks at London’s Soho Theatre, and a UK tour.
Last year saw John become one of the latest contestants on Taskmaster (Channel 4). Elsewhere on television, John co-hosts Guessable (Comedy Central) with Sara Pascoe, was the lead in cult hit Top Coppers (BBC Three), appeared on Cats does Countdown (Channel 4) and Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled (Dave), went down with the Titanic on Drunk History (Comedy Central), ballsed up a heist in Rotters (Sky Arts) and wrote and performed on Harry Hill’s Stars In Their Eyes (ITV). John also wrote for Harry Hill on HH’s Tea Time (Sky One). On radio, John co-wrote and starred in Lasties (BBC Radio 4) alongside Tim Key, entertained the nation on Christmas Day 2019 with A Very John Kearns Christmas (BBC Radio 4), and wrote and performed his own series The John Kearns Show (BBC Radio 4), as well as hosting and guesting on numerous shows throughout the Fringe (BBC Radio 4/Radio 4 Extra). John also co-hosts Microscope, an improvised comedy podcast, alongside fellow comedian Mat Ewins.
Further praise for The Varnishing Days
“silliness and sentiment together to extraordinary effect… laugh-till-you-fall-off-your-stool”
Laurie Presswood, The Skinny ★★★★★
“a flawless fusion of gut-busting laughter and razor-sharp observations… comedic gold”
Michael Benson, Broadway Baby ★★★★★
“John Kearns is in complete control, a master of his craft, whose act – a decade after it made its debut the Edinburgh Fringe – seems to just keep getting better and better.”
Archie Brydon, WhyNow ★★★★★
For more information, interview requests and press tickets, please contact: Perrine Davari at [email protected] / 020 7598 8000.
