Anthony Ackroyd
Anthony Ackroyd (born 30 June 1958) is an Australian comedian, speaker and writer.[1] He is currently a cast member of the ABC radio comedy show "Thank God It's Friday!". He is the creator and Director of the international organisation The United Nations Of Comedy[2] which aims to bring together the best comedy from around the world and build bridges between cultures through shared humour.
Ackroyd was born in Hobart, Tasmania and grew up in the tough working class suburb of Warrane. At the age of 16 Ackroyd became Australian schoolboy public speaking champion when he won "Rostrum's Voice Of Youth" competition. He was also a Commonwealth debating champion.
He began performing stand up comedy at the Sydney Comedy Store in the 1980s. Television exposure quickly followed with frequent appearances on popular TV shows such as "The Video Comedy Store", "Hey, Hey, It's Saturday" and "The Midday Show". From 1989-1991 he was a cast member on ABC TV's pioneering live comedy show "The Big Gig". During the 1990s he appeared on TV shows including "Good News Week", "Tonight Live", "Mornings with Kerri-Anne", and "Pizza". He performed the critically acclaimed comedy monologue "Karma Comedian" on ABC's "The Smallest Room In The House" which detailed many aspects of his life to that point with great honesty.
Ackroyd's one man shows have included "Anthony Ackroyd in His Own Little World", "Ecstasy and How To Get It", "At Last The Truth About Everything", and "The Fruit Of My Lions".
Both the Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian newspapers acknowledged Ackroyd as one of the best comedians of his generation. Cosmopolitan Magazine dubbed him "The Man Of The Moment". "Beat Magazine" declared him "one of the ultimate comedy legends".
He has written for TV and film including the highly successful Australian sketch show "The Comedy Company" and two years writing for an internet sitcom spin off for Jim Carrey's Ace Ventura character. Ackroyd's articles have appeared in publications such as Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, Vogue, Life Etc, Studio, Eco Magazine, Parenting, Men's Stuff, and Good Taste.
Ackroyd's film work includes roles in the movies "Reckless Kelly", Geno", and "Willful". He provided the voice of Dragon on the award winning children's TV show "Magic Mountain".
Seeking meaning beyond fame Ackroyd became a clowndoctor and spent years creating laughter in children's hospitals. He became an official Laughter Group Leader with Laughter Group International and has taught thousands of people techniques for creating their own laughter. During this period he married and devoted much of his energy to hands on fathering. He turned this experience into comic material for his show "The Fruit Of My Lions".
Ackroyd re-emerged into the public eye as a leading international speaker and workshop leader lecturing on the power of laughter and positive energy to transform all aspects of life.
Ackroyd wrote a series of articles in 2007-8 for the Sydney Morning Herald which focused on comedy as a social force and looked at the impact of comedians such as Lenny Bruce, George Carlin, the Monty Python team, and Australia's leading satirical ensemble "The Chaser". He also wrote the obituary for George Carlin published in the Sydney Morning Herald.
This examination of comedy's power in society led Ackroyd to declare that "comedy is the correct response to life". He now devotes himself to writing and performing comedy for stage, print media, TV, and feature films. [3][4][5]