Werribee comedian and radio host Leroy Brown will star in the Melbourne Fringe Festival with his show ‘Long Time Listener, First Time Caller’. 70589 Picture: JOE MASTROIANNI
By Alesha Capone
STARRING in a breakfast radio show with a co-host known as Chicken sounds like great fodder for a comedy routine.
Werribee resident and stand-up comedian Leroy Brown spends his mornings on Geelong station K-Rock FM, entertaining listeners with his antics alongside fellow announcer Chicken of ‘Big Brother’ television fame.
Mr Brown has taken tales from a lifetime of professional radio hosting and turned them into a show called ‘Long Time Listener, First Time Caller’, which will be on in the Melbourne Fringe Festival from 23 September to 7 October.
He does the show with his former colleague and Light FM announcer Luke Holt telling the “embarrassing stories and funny bits we experience all the time”.
“I’ve been in radio since I was 16 years old, younger if you count community radio,” Mr Brown said.
“Sometimes you do get funny calls, people just want to get their jokes on air.
“One guy calls K-Rock all the time and all he wants to do is get away with his jokes, the listener often wants to be the star.”
Before joining K-Rock FM, Mr Brown did the Cold 30 Countdown on Triple M during evenings and a midnight-to-dawn slot which was syndicated in Melbourne and Sydney.
“At mid-dawn, I used to have the freaky (types) ringing up who wanted to tell you their life story and often they would be drunk,” he said.
Mr Brown said ‘Long Time Listener, First Time Caller’ was “100 per cent clean” and contained no swearing.
“There’s a little bit of where we bring the radio studio into the show,” he said.
“There’s visual comedy, live comedy and I do a little bit of a ventriloquist’s act too, with a doll called Franny the Scottish Cleaner.”
‘Long Time Listener, First Time Caller’ will be on 22-23, 29-30 September and 6-7 October from 8pm at The Provincial Hotel, 299 Brunswick St, Fitzroy. Tickets cost $22. See www.melbournefringe.com.au to book.
