Korang Abdulla (born 6 April 1990), known professionally as Kae Kurd, is a British-

Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish language ** Northern Kurdish (Kurmanji) **Central Kurdish (Sorani) **Southern Kurdish ** Laki Kurdish *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern ...

stand-up comedian and writer. He performed his show ''Kurd Your Enthusiasm'' at the

Edinburgh Festival Fringe The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as the Edinburgh Fringe, the Fringe or the Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest performance arts festival, which in 2024 spanned 25 days, sold more than 2.6 million tickets and featur ...

2017. He has featured as a guest on the

BBC Asian Network BBC Asian Network is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station's target audience is people "with an interest in British Asian lifestyles", especially those between the ages of 18 and 34. The station has produc ...

and has written for ''

the i ''The i Paper'', known as ''i'' until December 2024, is a British national newspaper published in London by Daily Mail and General Trust and distributed across the United Kingdom. It is aimed at "readers and lapsed readers" of all ages and c ...

'' and ''

Total Politics ''Total Politics'' was a British political magazine described as "a lifestyle magazine for the political community". It was first published in June 2008, and was distributed freely to all MPs, MEPs, peers, political journalists, members of the ...

''. , he is the UK's only professional standup comedian from a Kurdish background.

Early life

Kurd came to Britain at 6 months old as a refugee. His parents had been part of the Kurdish resistance movement against

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein (28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician and revolutionary who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until Saddam Hussein statue destruction, his overthrow in 2003 during the 2003 invasion of Ira ...

's Iraqi government and were forced to flee as refugees. "At my age, my father was running at tanks", he told one interviewer. Due to the

Anfal campaign The Anfal campaign was a counterinsurgency operation which was carried out by Ba'athist Iraq from February to September 1988 during the Iraqi–Kurdish conflict at the end of the Iran–Iraq War. The campaign targeted rural Kurds because its p ...

against Kurds in Iraq, Kurd's parents fled to Iran, where Kurd was born in 1990. Partly as a result of his father being injured in a poison gas attack in Iraq, his family were accepted as refugees and settled in

Brixton Brixton is an area of South London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th century ...

, South

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, where he still lives.

Stand-up comedy

Kurd's stage name came initially from the fact that his classmates at school could not pronounce his name. People would introduce him as “K, he's a Kurd”. After he was then announced on stage as 'Kae Kurd', decided he liked the name and adopted it as his Twitter handle. He told Festmag that, “I'm not complaining. It's nice to have some separation of your identity and stage persona.” Kurd's comedy focuses on issues of race, identity, and growing up Kurdish in the UK. He started out on the black comedy circuit in 2011 and some of his material revolves around imagining white comedians trying to pitch their routines to a black audience. As someone from a nation without an independent state, “your whole existence is about trying to find an identity or to speak up for your identity”, Kurd said. Reviewing his Edinburgh comedy show, Chortle noted Kurd as 'One to watch.' In 2021, Kurd began a legal case for libel against fellow comedian Darius Davies over allegations by Davies that Kurd had plagiarised his material. In March 2023, Kurd announced his first UK headline tour, set to take place in September 2023.

Television

Kurd has made various television appearances, notably two performances on '' Live at the Apollo''. Kurd appeared as a contestant on episodes 76–80 of the fourth series of

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's second flagship channel, and it covers a wide range of subject matte ...

's ''

Richard Osman's House of Games ''Richard Osman's House of Games'' is a British quiz show hosted by Richard Osman and produced by Banijay UK Productions subsidiary Remarkable Entertainment for the BBC. The show is played on a weekly basis, with four celebrities playing on f ...

''. In June 2021, he appeared on ''

Mock the Week ''Mock the Week'' is a topical satirical celebrity panel show, created by Dan Patterson and Mark Leveson. It was produced by Angst Productions for BBC Two, and was broadcast from 5 June 2005 to 4 November 2022. Presenter Dara Ó Briain and pan ...

''. In August 2022, he appeared on ''Celebrity Masterchef'', becoming the second contestant to be eliminated in his heat.

Writing

Kurd has written on numerous television shows, including BBC Two's Cunk on..,

Charlie Brooker Charlton ‘Charlie’ Brooker (born 3 March 1971) is an English screenwriter, producer, presenter, author, cartoonist, and social critic. He first became known for creating and presenting satirical television shows that featured biting criticis ...

's ''Antiviral Wipe'' on BBC Two and Death to 2020 on

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

;

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

's '' Tez O'Clock Show''; ''Redknapp's Home Fixture'', ''Redknapp's Big Night Out'' and Series 15 of ''A League of Their Own'' on

Sky One Sky One was a British pay television channel operated and owned by Sky Group (a division of Comcast). Originally launched on 26 April 1982 as Satellite Television, it was Europe's first satellite and non- terrestrial channel. From 31 July 1989, ...

. He has also written for ''BAMOUS'' on

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...

and ''Have I Got News For You'' on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurd, Kae British stand-up comedians Kurdish comedians 21st-century British comedians Living people Refugees in the United Kingdom Iraqi refugees Child refugees People from Saghez Iraqi emigrants to the United Kingdom People from Brixton Comedians from the London Borough of Lambeth British male comedians 1990 births