Stitch in the ‘swich – Double Feature – October 2024

Presented by Ipswich Civic Centre

Supported by Sit Down Comedy Club

Sit Down Comedy Club brings comedy to Ipswich in the monthly Stitch in the ‘swich series.

This month features an incredible lineup featuring Terry Hansen, Ellen Briggs, Shayne Hunter and Ashwin Segkar!

Terry Hansen 

Terry Hansen has performed for over 30 years as a Stand-up Comedian MC, 20 years as Comic Corporate Compere and over 15 Years in Breaky Radio.

As a stand-up comic; he has compered all 5 Sydney Comedy Stores (and owns 5 of the 6 T-shirts); he told Le Kuan Yew jokes to Singapore officials in Singapore! And lived (it’s how you tell them); appeared as Christopher Skase in Mallorca without being hospitalised or arrested; and was invited to the London Comedy Store 10th Anniversary Best New Comic competition. (He lost!)

As compere or comic character Terry regularly appears on the corporate circuit. Satisfied Customers include McDonalds, Woolworths, Aristocrat, Electrolux, Telstra, Optus ABN AMRO, Deustche Bank AMEX, BHP Billiton, IBM and Coca Cola. Dissatisfied customers won’t be mentioned here.

Terry’s stage credits range from Shakespeare and Classic Literature to Spud Murphy’s Rock’n’Roll Cabarets and a dozen different rabbits in a hundred different kids shows. He danced the tango, singing a duet with Reg Livermore (Reg wore the frock)/ appeared by video link with Douglas Adams; and toured Lang Park with Wally ‘The King’ Lewis. The last of these was a segment on Channel ‘7’s – live to air sports / comedy show – The Hard Yards – Terry fronted seven glorious episodes with a panel of sporting greats, glamorous co-host, live and taped stand-up and sketch comedy, national and international live crosses, rock’n’roll bands, girls not wearing much and very bright jackets.

He can currently be heard far too early in the morning as part of Brisbane’s 97.3fm Breakfast Team.

Other camera credits include commercials for McDonalds, Mitsubishi, Masterfoods, Bob Booty for Instant Scratchits, his wedding video and three red light cameras.

Ellen Briggs 

Ellen Briggs is an author, comedy writer, and professional MC but where she is most at home is on the stage doing stand up comedy.

Early on in her career, she was a finalist in the prestigious RAW Comedy Competition and won a National Foxtel competition that was voted on by peers and managers in the industry.  She has never looked back.

Ellen regularly performs as a comedian and MC at venues all over Australia, and has created a stand up comedy show called Women Like Us with fellow comedian Mandy Nolan that they tour all over Australia to packed houses and rave reviews.  On the 1st May 2018 they released their co-authored book,” Women Like Us” which needed a reprint in the first week!

In 2017 Ellen was selected by the Melbourne International Comedy Festival to perform at the Melbourne Town Hall in UpFront, the women’s comedy gala to over 2,000 people.

In early 2018 she toured with Arj Barker and Gordon Southern with Punchline Comedy through Asia to rave reviews in all those shows.

Ellen has an easy-going, friendly nature that belies the dark wit that lurks beneath. She is completely relatable and it comes naturally to her.  It’s been said that “Ellen says out loud the things other mothers only dare to even think”, and that Ellen takes her audience on an observational and hilarious journey through life as an accidental mother of identical twins and the wife of a husband who is away working for 8 months of the year. She has made an art-form of sneaking really politically incorrect jokes onto the end of “nice” yarns. She launches the punch lines stealthily. You won’t see them coming, but you’ll know when they hit.

Ellen has performed alongside all of the big names in Australian comedy, and is highly regarded and a much loved colleague.  Ellen is a favourite at ladies events, such as Melbourne Cup Lunches, Girls Nights In and numerous other Cancer Council and fundraising events.  She has also become sought after for men’s luncheons and functions, for a hilarious women’s perspective that is not often heard at those events!

Regionally based, she is as comfortable hosting national conferences such as the Agricultural Show Society and Poultry Associations as she is performing in premier comedy clubs such as The Comics Lounge in Melbourne and the Sit Down Comedy Club in Brisbane.

Shayne Hunter

Shayne Hunter emerged as a unique comedic voice in Australia after being handpicked for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival Comedy Zone in 2010. Since then, he’s travelled extensively, refining his act and establishing himself as a trailblazer in the comedy circuit.

Between 2012 and 2016, Shayne’s passion for activism led him to become a left-wing street activist. Merging his love for comedy with activism, he organized fundraising gigs featuring both stand-up comedy and band performances.

2018 saw Shayne present his show tackling addiction, Blaze Against The Machine, at the Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne Comedy Festivals. A year later, he ventured to Southeast Asia, performing in countries like Malaysia and Thailand during the Magners International Comedy Festival. In 2019, he took a deep dive into ideology and cognitive biases with his show, The Cognitive Dissident. In 2020, his ground-breaking show, Crowd Control, spotlighted his unparalleled skills in unscripted crowd work. This unique competition among comedians showcased Shayne’s ability to think on his feet, securing his status as a master in audience engagement.

2022 marked the launch of Shayne’s True Crime Comedy Tours across Brisbane, Sydney, and Adelaide. These tours, exploring the cities’ dark histories with a comedic lens, earned accolades such as,
“… Best value ticket I’ve had this year” – Sandi Shuttleworth
“It was funny, entertaining, and educational…Highly recommend.” – Kristy Simpson

Whether diving into thought-provoking topics or simply captivating audiences with raw, hilarious content, Shayne Hunter stands out.

“Shayne’s performances are both endearing and uproarious, making him indispensable on any lineup” – Josh Armstrong, BASED Comedy

Ashwin Segkar 

Ashwin started his comedy career as a writer, producing comedy cartoon, Boymongoose, that went on to attract over 10 million views online and was featured on TV and radio internationally.

Having been born in India, but dragged through a childhood covering New Zealand, Malaysia, England and Australia, his comedy touches on cultural issues with an often absurd take. His style is slightly dry with elements of physical comedy.

He was a Raw Comedy state finalist following a year of stand up gigs and has performed in country pubs, inner city bars, office parties and political events, adapting to a wide range of audiences. He also recently had spots performing alongside Steady Eddy, Jimeoin and Matt Okine.

Ashwin also performs sketch and musical comedy with a Brisbane production company.

With his cultural background and with the help of some language for dummies books, he’s planning on touring more through Asia and Europe in the future.