Phil Ellis revives his Edinburgh Fringe hit for its 10th anniversary

Cult comedy show Funz And Gamez is returning to the Edinburgh Fringe to mark its 10th anniversary.

Phil Ellis and his team won the Edinburgh Comedy Award’s 2014 panel prize for the project – a genuine kids’ gameshow but with plenty of adult jokes aimed to of over their heads – and was subsequently made into a BBC pilot.

Now it is to be revived at Just The Tonic Nucleus for just two performances next month.

Ellis said: ‘I just don't think there's been anything quite like it since. I think we did inspire a lot of comedians and hosts of kids shows to push the humour a little more and make them an enjoyable experience for the parents as much as the kids (without overstepping the mark - no swearsies!)

‘I also think it would be nice to introduce the show to a whole new generations of kidz to see how much they enjoy it.’

‘Also, doing those first two shows were genuinely the most fun I have ever had on stage. Remembering the times when I was dancing around in platform shoes, making the kids laugh and seeing them revel in the chaos on stage and watching the parents expressions of shock and amusement at certain jokes and sketches will always warm my heart. 

‘I loved having a laugh on stage and being made to laugh by some of my best mates in comedy and hearing the reactions when we told one of our Life Lessons – "Hey kids, Don’t ask for a dog when you’re 7 or you’ll lose it during your A-levels". I’d love to experience all that again and spend time with my friends whilst doing so.’

The show also stars Will Duggan as Bonzo, James Meehan as Jim the Elf, Mick Ferry as Uncle Mick and Tom Short as The Clown. 

Ellis said he had the idea for Funz and Gamez  during his debut show the previous year.

But he explained. ‘My agent at the time was not a fan of the idea. They didn't think I should be doing an "inappropriate" kids show that had so much humour and moments for adults in it. 

‘We parted ways just a couple of months before the Fringe. It was an amicable split in the end and they did point me in the direction of Just The Tonic founder Darrell Martin who loved the idea and took a chance on me. He kindly sorted me out with a venue and the time slot I needed  and all the Just The Tonic crew supported the show every step of the way. 

‘After a week of performing to a handful of people a day, we had a breakthrough when a room full of comics, Michael Legge, Rich Wilson, Silky and many more, started turning up and talking about.

'[Critic] Kate Copstick then turned up from word of mouth and we suddenly had 4 stars in The Scotsman. It snowballed from there and ended up with us selling out the run and eventually winning the Panel Prize and going on to make a BBC TV pilot.

‘It was such an incredible journey and we went from nobodies to the talk of the Fringe. I didn't even have passes to any of the "industry bars" because I didn't have an agent. But producers and agents kept asking to meet me there in the evenings to chat and discuss potential projects so I just stole Darrell Martin’s card and pretended to be him for the whole run. 

‘I'll never forget that year and it really opened up a lot of doors for me and the rest of the gang. We had some amazing sell out runs at Soho Theatre, played festivals all over the country and just had a ball.’

Funz and Gamez will be on at Just The Tonic Nucleus on Aug 13 and 15 only, at 2.30pm. Elis is also performing his solo show Come On And Take The Rest Of Me at Monkey Barrel for the duration of the Fringe. 

Published: 26 Jul 2024