Before he entered the brave new world of stand-up comedy, Wayne Deakin worked in the advertising industry.
Before he entered the brave new world of stand-up comedy, Wayne Deakin worked in the advertising industry. An initial foray into the world of stand-up brought him enough laughs to give him the comedy bug; within a short time, Deakin had ditched his once lucrative advertising career in favour of the immediacy and adrenalin of stand-up comedy.
“In advertising, everything gets diluted by committee,” Deakin says, “so that lone gunslinger aspect of comedy appealed to me.” There were, however, some transferable skills from his previous job. “You’re always pitching a lot in advertising, so public speaking wasn’t so terrifying. And the ability to bullshit runs across a lot of mediums,” Deakin laughs.
Deakin has travelled extensively in recent times, using his various travel experiences as source material for his upcoming shows at the Festival. The first show, Talk Hard, explores Deakin’s observations on culture, from local to national to multicultural. “Things have changed a lot in Australia since I left,” Deakin says. “You’ve got people with southern cross tattoos, and driving around with Australian flags on their cars. That didn’t exist four years ago. When I grew up you didn’t need to do that to prove you were proud of your country – you have to do more than just be born here to have pride in your country,” Deakin says.
Deakin’s other show, At Gallipoli At Least There Were No Seppos, recounts his experiences performing in front of Australian troops at military bases in East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan. “It came about from my agent in Sydney,” Deakin explains. With Deakin’s previous connection with the military limited to a term in the army cadets while at high school, this was an opportunity Deakin had always craved. “It’s something I always wanted to do, because it’s one of the hardest gigs.”
It was while accumulating background material on the base that Deakin became quickly interested with the dedication and character of the Australian armed personnel he encountered. “These are really cracker blokes,” Deakin says. “When I was in East Timor, these guys would be working in 40 degree heat, throughout the day, six days a week. On their rest day, the commanding officer would say ‘OK, I’m off to sink a septic tank in a local school – who wants to help?’, and these blokes would volunteer to help,” he says. “I was prepared to agree to think that these guys were fucking morons, but they’re just top blokes. The Aussies are so well regarded – if you want something done, they’ll do it.”
While the Australian audiences appreciated Deakin’s style of humour, occasionally the other nationalities – especially the Americans GIs, did not. “The Americans don’t like swearing, because a lot of them are religious. So the first time I said ‘fuck’, 200 GIs picked up their M16s and walked out. But it was a matter of pride with the Australians that you didn’t pander to that!” Deakin laughs.
Wayne Deakin performs Talk Hard at Chapel Off Chapel from March 31 – April 23, Wednesday – Saturday at 7pm. He also performs At Least At Gallipoli There Were No Seppos! at Chapel Off Chapel Tuesday – Saturday at 8.45pm and Sunday 0 Monday at 8.30pm. Tickets are $25 (except for Tight Arse Tuesdays) and you can book at chapeloffchapel.com.au or 8290 7000.
