University of Salford Recent Comedy Graduate Wins Prestigious Award

A Comedy graduate from the University of Salford has won a major national competition.

Bexie Archer, who graduated from the University’s Comedy Writing and Performance course last month, has been announced winner of the Chortle Student Comedy Awards at the Edinburgh Fringe.

The 26-year-old – who is only the second woman to have won the award – took home the title after impressing the judges with a routine she performed in a potted plant costume, which she never made reference to.

Chortle editor Steve Bennett said: ‘Bexie has funny bones - she had the audience chuckling along with her infectious giggle before she had said a word, but backed that up with very strong material.

Bexie, who originally studied acting at RADA, creates eccentric personalities and often appears on stage dressed in bizarre costumes – from a Christmas tree to a giant condom to a very hairy and cheeky clown.

Her performances, inspired by her actor training, often tread a fine line between deadpan and the comedy of awkwardness.

She made it through to the finals of the prestigious award along with fellow student James Allen, who has developed an act in which he blends a wry mix of geek revenge and perceptive social satire with an encyclopaedic knowledge of football statistics.

Growing comedy following 

Both have been performing at comedy venues while studying for their degrees and have a growing following.

They were both taught on the course’s stand up module by Kate McCabe, a professional comedian who originally performed in New York City and is now a member of the North West based improv group Comedy Sportz.

The University set up the first Stand Up Comedy module to be taught in higher education in England in 1992, teaching students about everything from farce and improvisation to using comedy as a political tool, and going on to produce such names as Peter Kay, Jason Manford and Steve Edge.

Dr Richard Talbot, Senior Lecturer in Performance at the University, said: “Bexie is an incredibly talented performer and is a credit to the teaching staff here at Salford. This award was well deserved, and I hope it will provide a platform for her to build a national platform as a professional comedian.”