James and his Idiots of Ants have the last laugh
SINCE bursting onto the comedy scene last year, it seems James Wrighton, from Little Gomersal, and his three friends Benjamin Wilson, Elliott Tiney and Andrew Spiers haven't paused for breath.
The Idiots of Ants have quickly become renowned for their uniquely off-kilter take on the world around them.
After a sell-out Edinburgh Festival debut in 2007, the slick foursome have gone on to perform at festivals and gigs all over the UK and boast a rapidly increasing fan-base.
"It's been completely mad since we started," said James.
"We got our big-break at the Edinburgh Festival last year – a comedy programmer called Ryan Taylor got us a 6pm slot and we sold out."
The group then clinched the Charlie Harthill Reserve which is awarded to comedians, meaning the festival didn't cost them anything.
"The Edinburgh Festival is like our annual marketing project, where for three weeks, we perform and get seen," said James.
"It's great because it can lead on to other things."
Over the last year, the Idiots' work has hit the small screen, with their critically acclaimed sketches being piloted as part of BBC3's The Wall.
They have also completed a short film for Friends of The Earth with Tomboy Films and have performed on BBC Radio 4's Loose Ends.
But it was their Facebook 'in real life' sketch which really propelled the Idiots into the spotlight - securing the lads a staggering 1.2million hits on YouTube.
James said: "The Facebook sketch went crazy. It aired on BBC3 and then someone from America put it on YouTube.
"It had about one million hits and Fox News rang us up and asked us if we'd like to be interviewed. It was a strange experience.
"We'd just got into the swing of it and the interviewer just cut us off in our prime!
"I think the Facebook sketch was so popular because it came at exactly the right time. People were starting to get fed up with the whole social networking thing and it seemed like we hit the nail on the head with it."
In addition to their success, the group have had their own show commissioned by E4.
James added: "Channel 4 gave us a budget to make a pilot show to see if they liked our stuff.
"It's a 15 minute slot of our fast-paced sketches. They pretty much gave us a free rein so it's been brilliant, it's just meant that I've not been able to get home to relax much!"
Although James now lives in London he say's he's still a Yorkshire lad at heart. "I love coming back to Gomersal and seeing my mum, he said.
"We're going to be heading off to New York and Los Anglees later in the year and hopefully going on tour, so I'm hoping we can get up north soon!"
Idiots of Ants are performing at the Pleasance Courtyard at the Edinburgh Festival from July 30 to August 25 (not 11 or 18).
For tickets contact the box office on 0131 556 6550. www.idiotsofants.com.
For a link to the Facebook sketch, visit our website www.spenborough
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Sunday 27 May 2012
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