Crowning the king of comedy

Q AND A WITH DONOVAN GOLIATH The judge and jury are out as Fresh, Darren Simpson and John Vlismas choose a winner.

ichelieu Beaunoir was the last man standing at the Comedy Roast finale.

Going head to head with five other comedians – Mark Banks, Donovan Goliath, Dillan Oliphant, Thabiso Mhlongo and Dave Levinsohn – Beaunoir battled it out for the title of South Africa’s funniest comedian.

Roastmaster John Vlismas, 5FM DJ Fresh and 947’s Darren “Whackhead” Simpson were the judges for the Comedy Central Roast Battle.

One of the contestants, Donovan Goliath, spoke to us about the experience. It definitely was an interesting experience. It was one of the weirdest and hardest things I’ve done – very different to traditional stand up. It’s quick, it’s unpredictable and you’re basically doing that material for the first time because you can’t practice it anywhere. Brutality. These are the six winners from each one of the battles. They’re fierce, they don’t hold back and they’re talented as hell. Prepare to laugh and to say “ooooooh” a lot. As I said before, it’s very different to what I am used to. And the fact that there is no time for rehearsal makes it extremely challenging. Write, write, write. Keep writing and performing everywhere until you develop your style or voice. You’re going to die on stage A LOT and that’s ok. You have to die to kill. It’s not easy. You need a lot of heart and you need to be smart and open minded. I’ve never had one comedian I love. I love elements from different comics. Jerry Seinfeld, Dave Chappell, Louis CK, Patrice O Neal, Tats Nkonzo, Loyiso Gola, Trevor Noah and many more. They’re all so different and have their own great attributes.