COMEDIAN Barry Hilton may not be occupying the highest office in the country, however, he rates himself closely to the President as he expects his sixth child at age 54.
Unlike our statesman, the Port Elizabeth-based comedian is going all out to make people laugh about being an expectant father at his age, and the joys and awkward moments that come with it.
Hilton, known as “The Cousin”, is bringing his new show, Fresh Catch, to East London for two nights . Speaking to the Daily Dispatch yesterday, Hilton described the show as current to what is happening in the country and his personal life.
“The show is Barry’s take on things like being a South African, the politics and the Soccer World Cup, especially now that Benni McCarthy is getting so fat that he could qualify to be in the Springbok team. I talk about my wife’s pregnancy and being a father. I’ve figured that if it’s good enough for Jacob Zuma, it’s good enough for me. The guy (Zuma) is trying to build his own part, literally. Him and I are in this thing together and we are going to buy the nappies for ourselves and our children at one place,” said Hilton jokingly.
“It’s a fantastic feeling to be having a child at my age and it also made me realise that I can never stop working until I’m 112 years old and I’m also there.”
He started performing Fresh Catch in December last year in front of 600 people a night at Carnival City in Johannesburg, where he had 27 shows. This was followed by six nights at Sun City.
“People love this show and I think I’m very blessed that I can talk nonsense to make people laugh and get paid for it. Twenty-seven years ago I decided to go professional and I’ve never worked a day since. It’s been fantastic, long and hard, but it’s the best thing I could ever do. I’m very fortunate that I could come up with fresh material every year.”
In 2009, Hilton tried his hand at acting for the first time in a movie called Finding Lenny, which hit the circuit in April to much anticipation. For his role in the movie, Hilton was nominated as best actor in the Feel-Good Film Awards in America. He came second. He has since shot another movie, Outrageous, featuring local comedians, to be released next month. He is soon to record his sixth live DVD.
“There’s a lot of actors that have been in the business for 50 years and they still get the best jobs because they are good actors. With anything, the more new comedians that come up, the better it is for the industry as a whole and therefore you have to work and create stuff. The new guys keep me on my toes,” said Hilton.
Catch the Fresh Catch at the Guild Theatre tomorrow and Saturday at 7.30pm. Tickets are R100 and can be booked on 043 7430704. - By LINDILE SIFILE, Entertainment Reporter
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