Woman finally makes shortlist

The nominees for this year’s Perrier award have been announced.

They are Chris Addison, Reginald D Hunter, Epitaph, Jackson's Way and Sarah Kendall.

London-based Australian Kendall, right, is the first woman to have been shortlisted in the nine years since Jenny Éclair won the coveted award in 1995.

Hunter was nominated last year, while Chris Addison’s show Civilization was one of the few universally tipped for the top.

Jackson’s Way has been the sleeper hit of the festival, extending its original one-week booking to a full run, based on word-of mouth acclaim.

It is the creation of 30-year-old actor Will Adamsdale, who performs in the guise of American life coach Chris John Jackson.

The inclusion of Epitaph, a two-man American sketch show, is something of a surprise as it features in the theatre section of the Fringe programme rather than the comedy section. However, it still fits the Perrier criteria for eligibility.

The show, written and performed by Ethan Sandler and Adrian Wenner, won a sketch comedy award at the Aspen Comedy Festival earlier this year.

The nominees for Perrier best newcomer are Alun Cochrane, Will Hodgson, Joanna Neary and Sabotage.

Cochrane is a regular on the stand-up comedy circuit, as is Hodgson,left, a Chippenham-based anarcho-punk former wrestler, while Neary is a character sketch act.

Sabotage is a New Mexico comedy duo, Shenoah Allen and Mark Chavez.

Their trip to the fringe has been fraught with problems after their original venue, The Wigwam, failed. Their show In Fine Form moved to the George Square Theatre, where it has been mostly overlooked Despite having a capacity of around 500, just a dozen people saw yesterday’s performance.

Mark said: “It has been an uphill struggle to get the show to the Fringe and a huge blessing to be recognised by such a prestigious panel on such a prestigious award.  We would like to thank Perrier for giving two unknowns a chance at stardom.”

The winner of the main award, which will be announced soon after midnight on Saturday, will receive £7,500 in prize money.

Published: 25 Aug 2004