KILIMANJARO LIVE IN ASSOCIATION WITH UNITED TALENT AGENCY PRESENTS…
The critically acclaimed comedian Simon Brodkin is currently on a huge 2026/2027 international tour of his latest and biggest stand-up tour to date, ‘Unleashed’. Once better known as Lee Nelson, he’s e’s the comedian who showered FIFA president Sepp Blatter with cash, handed Prime Minister Theresa May her P45, and created the smash-hit BBC comedy series Lee Nelson’s Well Good Show…
But he has since pivoted to performing comedy in his own name, and is continuing his impressive run of hilarious stand-up shows, and still enjoying himself it seems as he told an interviewer. “It’s been absolutely fantastic to get back out there having not done a tour for over a year. What’s great about the UK is that we love joking about how crap things are – there is nothing in Britain that can’t be improved with a gag. And I’d forgotten just how much being on stage in front of thousands of people each night is my happy place. It’s the only two hours of the day when my kids don’t phone me up! Phone off, peace at last. People say ‘oh my god isn’t it stressful?’ I’m like ‘no!’, it’s the calmest two hours of the day… some ‘me time’… it’s my warm bath.“
“The stand-up that I did before was always in character, predominantly as south London lad Lee Nelson. Performing as Lee was amazing – three series on BBC Three, big touring shows. But I was doing and saying things on stage, perhaps a bit of crowd work, and Lee would come out with a great answer that the audience would love… but I’d be thinking, ‘hang on, is that Lee? Lee couldn’t have thought of that… I think that might be me popping through there!’ So my own stand-up has grown from there. It was probably my ego thinking ‘I can’t let my characters take credit for the stuff I’m doing! Damn it, I’m gonna give this a go!’
I have always loved doing crowd work. I think the reason stand-up is still so popular is because it’s in the moment. The audience knows that this is just for them, on that one night. It is another lesson I’ve learnt when performing as myself though. When I first started, I’d often go back to muscle memory and say a Lee line that had always gone down brilliantly, but would be utterly harsh. So I’ve had to remember that this is now a genuine connection I’m getting with people when performing as myself, and so maybe not to insult them quite as much!
“Britain’s broke, the planet’s dying and no one is sure whether Trump, Putin or AI is going to kill us first. So you definitely need some comedy in your life people, and I am here to provide it. Two hours. Have a seat. Have a drink. Enjoy. If you’ve got a babysitter great… if you don’t have a babysitter, leave the kids at home, they’ll be fine“. Simon says, but please note there may also be a reason why his slot is shorter.. “
“My children are asking if they can come and see the show, but I’m trying to put them off… I’m not sure it paints them in the best possible light. So if you do come along to a show and it feels like a particularly short one, that’s because I’ve had to cut out twenty minutes of material about my kids who have come along that evening… sorry everybody.” If you want to hear about Simon’s kids and reflect on your own, or those you know then check out when “Unleashed is at a venue near you via the links below.
SIMON BRODKIN – LINKS:
INSTAGRAM – @simonbrodkin
FACEBOOK – @simonbrodkin
X – @SimonBrodkin
TIKTOK – @simonbrodkin
YOUTUBE – @SimonBrodkin
Photograph (c) Kim Watson
