Cutting his teeth in the North East’s resolute working men’s clubs, self-proclaimed Smoggie and Middlesbrough native Chris McGlade will be taking his brand-new show Forgiveness on tour around the UK, following a series of impressive performances at the 2019 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
A fiercely powerful show about a brutally shocking story; Chris’ father was murdered in 2011. How do you forgive your father’s murderer? Only Chris knows… Inspiring uproarious laughter, tears of sincerity and standing ovations, Chris’ conscientious comedy and cutting-edge poetry makes for a truly unforgettable show.
Speaking on Forgiveness, Chris says:” This is my father’s legacy. He was a funny, bighearted, inclusive, tolerant, forgiving man. Humour, passion, inclusivity, tolerance, and forgiveness are things I feel the world could do with a little more of today, peace
Chris is passionately political; he spearheaded a fractious six-year campaign opposing a large housing scheme earmarked close to home on Redcar’s Coatham Enclosure (which he won). He brings that same fire and energy to his performances, looking past the liberal comedy consensus, and taking apart and revealing the hypocrisy in Britain today.
It might not sound funny and is certainly un-PC, but this is a must-see show.
Chris continues: “I want free-thinking people coming along prepared to laugh at others and themselves. I don’t want people thinking ‘can I laugh at that?’ It’s like the comedic part of the brain has been lobotomized”
McGlade is a stalwart of the comedy scene having been performing for 30 years. He’s performed on both sides of the Atlantic with some of his career based in the Los Angeles scene – a vastly different scene to the uncompromising environments of the northeastern working men’s clubs. He played alongside Frank Carson at the Sunderland Empire Theatre and ravished his audience at the prestigious Leicester Square Theatre and Soho Theatre with his own one-man show. After a seven-year pause from Comedy, Chris took stages by storm at the Edinburgh and Glasgow Comedy Festivals, getting as far as being a finalist for Old Comedian Of The Year award. He is also a successful actor and has been seen in the West End Run of Billy Elliot, as well as a role in Ken Loach’s ‘I Daniel Blake’. Chris’ working-class voice and views are not often heard without vilification or without the intention to split the UK further, but Chris’ powerful message of Forgiveness transcends this divide.
You can find a full list of dates and tickets here
