Between Two Beers podcast: Guy Williams - my biggest fear from a career in Kiwi comedy
Guy Williams joined the Between Two Beers podcast.
Kiwi comedian Guy Williams is four years into his dream job, travelling around New Zealand finding the most interesting stories for his hit TV show New Zealand Today. But despite his success in comedy, he can’t stop thinking about his future.
In a wide-ranging, long-form chat on the Between Two Beers podcast, Williams revealed how his career outlook has been shaped by the fates of other famous performers.
“I haven’t had a ‘worst part of my life’,” Williams said. “I don’t do drugs and alcohol, my career has been a constant step up every year - I’ve been so blessed. I get to make my own show at the moment and I’m basically about as good as it gets for New Zealand. Not many people get the privilege of making their own comedy show in an original format.
“It’s crazy - and I’m constantly wondering ... eventually I’m going to get dumped. Eventually, the wheels are going to fall off and I’ll have massive career setbacks. New Zealand is a tiny country and a tiny market and I can fall back on standup, but how long can you tour New Zealand without other streams of revenue.”
After starting out in stand-up comedy, Williams won Dai Henwood’s Protégé Project competition – through Jono’s New Show – which saw him opening for Henwood during the NZ International Comedy Festival. He then found himself working with Jono Pryor on his TV show The Jono Project and eventually Jono and Ben.
His well-publicised interactions with Paul Henry, David Tua, and Sonny Bill Williams have earned him cult status in New Zealand and Williams has established himself as one of our most original and successful TV comedians. In 2014 he joined The Edge as a co-host on what became the most popular NZ radio drive show since commercial ratings began.
“I think I’ve built my whole personality and my whole happiness on my career - and slowly moving forward and doing new and challenging work. When that dries up, what am I left with? I’m quite terrified of that challenge that comes forward.
“And on the flip side, which is even scarier and makes me a little bit depressed, every successful comedian you hear of - it never seems to end well for them.
“Most comedians and most famous people, in general, seem to go off a cliff at some point. I’m a little bit haunted by the tale of Robin Williams or Richard Pryor, not that I’m in the league of those guys, but it can be bad if your career falls apart, but almost worse if it gets better.
“All successful comedians seem to go to a weird place. It’s something I’m weirdly afraid of - I don’t know why.
“One thing that really helps is just hanging out with other normal people. As a comedian, usually, all your other friends are comedians.
“We’re a tight-knit group that see each other all the time. And it’s fun. It’s not like normal work where you have your work friends that you don’t like to see outside of work.
“In comedy, every gig is a good night and a good time so you’ve got these really good friends but we live bizarre lives where you’ve got so much spare time and so little going on and it’s competitive and you constantly get rejected, so I’ve found it really helps just dating people who are normal people with different jobs.
“When you date a comedian you’re both in that weird vortex, and when you get out you’re like ‘comedy is not important, it doesn’t matter, other people do much more important things, the least you can do is get up on stage and do 35 minutes of shitty Jetstar and Hamilton material.”
In the podcast Guy also discusses why he was the worst ever contestant on Taskmaster, what it’s really like to be the gag-man at “serious” sports press conferences, his complicated relationship with Sonny Bill Williams, interviewing the Mongrel Mob, Patrick and Roy, why New Zealand Today has been so popular and much more.
Show notes | Guy Williams
2:02: A critique of the Between Two Beers and a history of New Zealand parody
4:25: Front footing yarns with Guy Williams
6:24: A series of scandals: Marc Ellis, Dion Nash, and Daryl Tuffey
11:01: Basketball chat
15:50: The worst contestant in Taskmaster history?
22:19: Gary Williams goes to India
27:48: Comedy: an opportunity for the privileged
31:47: Becoming Dai’s protégé
39:06: Reflections on Dai Henwood
40:53: Contradiction and playing a character
51:05: The Jono and Ben years (and Sonny Bill)
1:03:22: Nerves, anxiety, procrastination, and working hard
1:07:47: The New Zealand comedy “circuit”
1:13:07: New Zealand Today
1:18:30: Patrick and Roy and the stories behind the story
1:28:06: Visiting small town New Zealand
1:36:20: Humanising the Mongrel Mob
1:43:41: Guy Williams on social media
1:46:43: Last words from Steve, Seamus, and Guy