Kae Kurd

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Kae Kurd
Born
Saqqez, Iran
NationalityBritish
OccupationComedian
Years active2011–present
Known forEdinburgh Festival
Notable workKurd Your Enthusiasm

Kae Kurd (born Korang Abdulla) is a British-Kurdish stand-up comedian and writer.[1] He performed his show Kurd Your Enthusiasm at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2017.[2] He has featured as a guest on the BBC Asian Network[3] and has written for iNews[4] and TotalPolitics.[5] He is the UK's only professional standup comedian from a Kurdish background.[6]

Kurd came to Britain at 6 months old as a refugee. His parents had been part of the Kurdish resistance movement against Saddam Hussein's Iraqi government and were forced to flee as refugees.[2][7] 'At my age, my father was running at tanks', he told one interviewer. As a result of the Anfal campaign against Kurds in Iraq, Kurd's parents fled to Iran, where Kurd was born in 1990. Partly as a result of his father being injured in a poison gas attack in Iraq, his family were accepted as refugees and settled in Brixton, South London, where he still lives.[8]

Kurd's stage name came initially from the fact that his classmates at school could not pronounce his name. People would introduce him as “K, he's a Kurd”. After he was then announced on stage as 'Kae Kurd', decided he liked the name and adopted it as his Twitter handle. He told Festmag that, “I'm not complaining. It's nice to have some separation of your identity and stage persona.”[6]

Kurd's comedy focuses on issues of race, identity, and growing up Kurdish in the UK. He started out on the black comedy circuit in 2011 and some of his material revolves around imagining white comedians trying to pitch their routines to a black audience.[2] As someone from a nation without an independent state, “your whole existence is about trying to find an identity or to speak up for your identity”, Kurd said.[6] Reviewing his Edinburgh comedy show, Chortle noted Kurd as 'One to watch.'[9]

Television

Kae Kurd has made various television appearances notably on Live at the Apollo.[10] Kurd appeared as a contestant on episodes 76–80 of the fourth series of BBC Two's Richard Osman's House of Games.[11] In June 2021 he appeared on Mock the Week.[12] In August 2022, he appeared on Celebrity Masterchef, becoming the second contestant to be eliminated in his heat.[13]

Writing

Kurd has written on numerous television shows, including BBC Two's Cunk on..;[14] Charlie Brooker's Antiviral Wipe[15] on BBC Two and Death to 2020 on Netflix;[16] Channel 4's Tez O'Clock Show; Redknapp's Home Fixture,[17] Redknapp's Big Night Out[18] and Series 15 of A League of Their Own[19] on Sky One as well as BAMOUS[20] on BBC Three and Have I Got News For You on BBC One.

References

  1. ^ Gag warfare: standups in legal row over ‘stolen’ comedy routine | TV comedy | The Guardian
  2. ^ a b c "Kae Kurd: Kurd Your Enthusiasm | Review | The Wee Review | Scotland's arts and culture magazine". The Wee Review | Scotland's arts and culture magazine. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  3. ^ "Kae Kurd talks Edinburgh Fringe, Kae Kurd, Preeya Kalidas – BBC Asian Network". BBC. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  4. ^ "Theresa May, you need personality to play personality politics". iNews. 5 June 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  5. ^ "Kae Kurd: Comedians must be quicker to cope with our crazy politics". TotalPolitics.com. 20 July 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  6. ^ a b c "Kae Kurd: the only Kurdish Kid in the Class". Fest Magazine. 23 July 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  7. ^ "Comedy review: Kae Kurd: Kurd Your Enthusiasm". Retrieved 4 March 2018.
  8. ^ "Comedian Kae Kurd on Growing Up Kurdish and the Responsibility of Representation". Broadway Baby. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  9. ^ Solutions, Powder Blue Internet Business. "Kae Kurd: Kurd Your Enthusiasm : Reviews 2017 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  10. ^ ""Jack Dee Live at the Apollo" Tom Allen, Rosie Jones, Kae Kurd (TV Episode 2019) – IMDb". www.imdb.com. 5 November 2019. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  11. ^ "Richard Osman's House of Games, Series 4, Episode 76". BBC Two. Retrieved 12 February 2021.
  12. ^ "Mock the Week, Series 20, Episode 4". www.bbc.co.uk.
  13. ^ Manning, Charlotte (11 August 2022). "Celebrity MasterChef 2022: Kae Kurd eliminated after John Torode refuses to eat disastrous meringue dish". Metro. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
  14. ^ Guide, British Comedy. "Cunk On... – BBC2 Comedy". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  15. ^ Guide, British Comedy. "Charlie Brooker's Antiviral Wipe – BBC2 Comedy". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  16. ^ Guide, British Comedy. "Death To 2020 – Netflix Comedy". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  17. ^ Guide, British Comedy. "Redknapp's Home Fixture – Sky1 Comedy". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  18. ^ Guide, British Comedy. "Redknapp's Big Night Out – Sky1 Comedy". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  19. ^ Guide, British Comedy. "Kae Kurd". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  20. ^ Guide, British Comedy. "BAMOUS – BBC3 Sketch Show". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
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