British comic Ed Gamble's ethical line is “heavily drawn” well before Riyadh festival
British comedian and presenter Ed Gamble has cemented his status as a major player in British comedy, yet he remains vocal about the ethical boundaries of success. He would have declined the opportunity to perform at the recent Riyadh Comedy Festival and was left somewhat confused and disappointed by colleagues who jumped at the chance for that specific paycheck. It was the only serious moment when he sat down with the Dam Yankee podcast this week, ahead of four upcoming performances in the Netherlands, in which also discussing his obsessive tendencies towards food and, more recently, professional wrestling.
Gamble, 39, kicks off his first proper international tour next week in Lisbon, and then he performs twice at Club Haug in Rotterdam and twice at Boom Chicago in Amsterdam. He built his career with early success as a podcaster, and popular performances at the Edinburgh Fringe, eventually becoming a mainstay of British comedy programs. But his fame rose rapidly when the foodie launched the popular Off Menu podcast with fellow comic, James Acaster, seven years ago. He was offered a chance to be a guest judge in a round on the popular BBC cooking competition, Great British Menu, which netted him an offer to become a regular judge on the show for the past three seasons.
It is fair to say he was taken aback by the decision by some colleagues to perform in Riyadh. He was not offered a slot at the recent festival in Saudi Arabia, but says it really would not have mattered. On the one hand, "It’s always tricky to not be in the mix for a gig," he acknowledged. On the other hand, “Would I have turned it down if I were offered? Yes," he told Zack Newmark, the host of Dam Yankee, which is produced in association with NL Times. Billed as the world’s largest stand-up event, the Riyadh Comedy Festival drew global controversy due to the country's restrictive stance on free speech, political dissent, and LGBTQ+ rights.
Gamble was unequivocal about his moral stance when asked about his boundaries. "I would say the line is pretty much way before performing in Saudi Arabia, I've got to say." He said a key difference between performing at other controversial destinations versus the Riyadh event is being "directly paid" by the Saudi Arabian Royal Family and the country's entertainment commission.
"I think that's my major issue with it. That is money just directly coming from them. So yeah, that line is pretty heavily drawn," Gamble continued. "I'd like to say I would have turned it down if I had been offered, but I wasn't offered. Am I salty about that? It's always tricky not to be in the mix for a gig."
Gamble dismissed the reasoning given by some comedians who were so strong in their stance that they only wanted to bring comedy to the Saudi people, noting, "They’ve never mentioned that in the past." He speculated that the decision for many was purely financial, adding, "I wish the people who did it would just admit why they did it, which is for the giant paycheck.”
Gamble's ability to take a deep dive into subjects can be intense, saying when he gets into something, he becomes "obsessed with it." This trait powered his career in comedy, his lifelong passion for food, and his current, all-consuming fascination with professional wrestling, a childhood love he thought he had outgrown.
His wife, Charlie Jamison, is a television producer and musician who is now learning the craft of professional wrestling, which helped draw him back into the sport. That, combined with a rapid descent down a "YouTube hole" brought him to his latest obsession, which he usually clings to for a couple of years. A few months ago, he took on fellow comedian Phil "Kill" Wang during Clash of the Comics at a sold-out show at the Hammersmith Apollo in London.
For Ed "The Gambler" Gamble, the experience was the highlight of his career. “That was probably the biggest buzz I’ve ever gotten out of any performance of my life,” he said, explaining that the fear of getting it wrong added to the thrill. "It's so exciting writing a joke and then doing that joke to other people, and they think it's funny, as well, but it's not as much of a buzz as being superplexed off the top rope."
While his wrestling matches are heavily rehearsed, the comedian is expecting curveballs and unexpected moments during the Ed Gamble Live tour, especially when compared to the more "rambunctious" crowds in the U.K. "I've performed once in Amsterdam before," he recalled, and the "Dutch sensibility" is a bit different.
"A man sat in the front row and I tried to talk to him and have a chat, and he said, 'I don't want to talk to you.' But in such a sort of friendly way, like it wasn't aggressive, it was just simple, 'I don't want to talk to you.' And I said, 'Well, why'd you sit in the front?' And he said, 'Well, it was the only seat available.'
"And that was the end of that conversation."
The food fanatic also wants fans to tip him off to the best spots to try in Rotterdam and Amsterdam, as well his other tour stops. He posts frequently on his Instagram account, @edgamblecomedy, and has previously discussed Dutch chef Ron Blaauw's Amsterdam location, Ron's Gastrobar, where his podcast co-host James Acaster claims you can get “the best beef Wellington he’s ever had.” That said, Gamble is not a snob, and will happily pop into a bar to "get some bitterballen."
Tickets for Gamble's two shows at Comedy Club Haug in Rotterdam on Nov. 15 are sold out, as is the evening show at Boom Chicago in Amsterdam the following day. Tickets are still available for his late matinee on Nov. 16 in Amsterdam, with tickets priced at 28 euros. More information about the Ed Gamble Live tour is available on his website.
Listen to this entire episode of Dam Yankee on all major podcast platforms, or watch the full videos on YouTube. Ed Gamble goes on to discuss life with diabetes, his 2023 autobiographical work, Glutton, and his plan to bring out his best material on the upcoming tour, especially after his oddly humorous interaction with the audience member at his previous Amsterdam gig.
