Dan Clark

Daniel Gregory Clark (born 3 July 1976) is an English actor, comedian, writer, director, and singer. He is best known for playing Don Danbury on the BBC Three sitcom '' How Not to Live Your Life'', which he also wrote, co-produced, and sometimes directed. He has been a regular on the British comedy scene as both a sketch and stand-up comedian.

Career

Early career

Clark started his career in comedy at the age of 19 by taking a play he co-wrote and starred in with old school friend Oliver Maltman to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. In the years that followed, Clark formed a comedy trio called Electric Eel and they performed at the Edinburgh Festival in 1998 and 1999. Also in 1999, they made a pilot for C4's Comedy Lab series, called ''Roy Dance is Dead'', and the following year a full series was commissioned.
In February 2002, retitled '' The Estate Agents'', the series was broadcast. Electric Eel followed the series with a UK tour and another Edinburgh Festival run.

In 2003, Clark took his first one-man show to Edinburgh. ''57 Minutes'' was a mix of monologues and sketches. The following year, he began a career in stand-up. He took a full hour show to the Edinburgh Festival in 2005, 2006, and 2007. He also began his monthly comedy night, Clark's, which he would host and curate. In the summer of 2006, Clark wrote and performed in a series of shorts for the Paramount Comedy Channel (now Comedy Central UK) called ''Dan Clark's Guide to Dating''. That was followed by another series called ''Dan Clark's Guide to Working''. The shorts were broadcast between main TV shows on the channel but were subsequently put online and gathered huge numbers of views on YouTube.

''How Not To Live Your Life''

After the success of the ''Dan Clark's Guide to...'' series, there was interest from the BBC to develop the format. The pilot was shot in the summer of 2007 called '' How Not To Live Your Life''. It combined a traditional sitcom narrative with the quick fire "what not to do" lists from the Paramount shorts. A full series was commissioned and went out in August 2008. In 2011, BBC3 controller Danny Cohen left the channel to go to BBC1. New controller Zai Bennet cancelled many of the comedies on the channel, including ''How Not To Live Your Life''.

Other television work

Clark has various TV credits to his name. His first television appearance was in a December 1996 episode of ''Only Fools and Horses'', where he played a mugger in the iconic "Batman and Robin" scene.
In 1998, he appeared in season 10 of '' Hale and Pace''. In 2003, he appeared in the British sitcom ''Mad About Alice'' as Jason.

In 2004, he appeared as Johnny Two Hats in ''The Mighty Boosh'' episode " Electro". The same year, he had guest appearances in ''French and Saunders'' and in the 2005 Christmas special of '' My Family''. In 2006, Clark appeared in the ITV comedy drama series ''The Complete Guide to Parenting''. In 2008, Clark played the character Astroburn in an episode of the ITV2 sitcom ''No Heroics'', written and created by Clark's ''How Not To Live Your Life'' script editor Drew Pearce.

Clark performed alongside fellow comedian Noel Fielding in the E4 series '' Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy'' in 2012. On 28 March 2013, Clark starred in the comedy '' 30 & Counting'' as part of Sky Living's ''Love Matters'' series. The show, about three recently single friends, also featured comedian Brett Goldstein and reunited Clark with one of his ''How Not To Live Your Life'' co-stars, Daniel Lawrence Taylor.

Stand-up comedy

On 25 March 2011, Clark began his first full national tour with a stand-up show entitled ''Dan Clark Live!'' The show received generally good reviews. ''The Guardian'' said, "Clark is that of a rare combination − a great gagsmith and actor, and the result is a stand-up show that is both strong on jokes and drama."

In May 2012, Clark put together a band and performed the show ''These Songs May Contain Jokes'' at London's Soho Theatre for a week. It was a mix of comedy songs and stand-up.

Clark's

In 2006, Clark established a monthly comedy night called Clark's. He was the host and curated every show. Its original home, between 2006–2009, was at the Lowdown at The Albany, a fringe venue below The Albany pub on Great Portland Street. In 2009, it moved to London's famous 100 Club on Oxford Street. It was revived for three nights in July 2013 at London's Soho Theatre.

''Dan Clark & The Difficult Three''

In 2012, Clark recorded his debut comedy rock album. The album titled ''Dan Clark & The Difficult Three'' was released on 1 July 2013 via Absolute Records.

Filmography

Film

Television

;As actor

;As himself

Writing credits

References

External links

*
Dan Clark
on Myspace
BBC InterviewThe Times Interview with Caitlin Moran and Dan ClarkScotsman Q&A

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Dan
1976 births
Living people
English stand-up comedians
English male television actors
English television directors
English television writers
People from Bromley
20th-century English male actors
21st-century English male actors
British male television writers
English male comedians
Comedians from the London Borough of Bromley
Male actors from London
Actors from the London Borough of Bromley