‘Lies! Subterfuge!’: Irish comedian Dylan Moran brings new standup show to Prague

Anyone familiar with Moran’s work and attuned to Czech humor knows there is a special affinity between the two, some kindred type of humor that makes for a good pair.

No surprise, then, that every time the Irish standup comedian, writer and actor has come to Prague, the show rather easily sold out – whether in Lucerna, Hybernia or, a little over three years ago, in the Prague Congress Centre.

It’s bound to be the same next month on October 25, when Moran brings his latest show ‘Looking for Trouble’ to the same venue as three years ago as part of his European tour.

Known for his sharp humor, zinging cynicism and (sometimes) joyful nihilism, the 51-year-old comedian’s new show promises to take a look at, dissect and unravel the oddities and eccentricities of the strange times and skewed society we live in.

A show, as the Telegraph put it, where Moran “reduces life to four ages: ‘child, failure, old and dead.”  That sets the tone.

Born in the early 1970’s in eastern Ireland, Moran got into comedy at the age of 20.

Just four years later, he became the youngest recipient of the prestigious Perrier Award given for best comedic performance at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

A regular performer at European and international standup and comedy festivals, he had a small role in the 1999 classic rom-com Notting Hill, alongside Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts, and additional cinema acting roles throughout the years – most famously in Simon Pegg’s horror comedy Shaun of the Dead.

In 2000, Black Books, which he co-wrote and starred in, premiered on Channel 4.

The three-series show, which brought international fame to Moran and earned him two BAFTA awards, follows the daily lives of three misfits in a London bookstore, including Moran’s own alcoholic, bitter and antisocial onscreen alter-ego Bernard Black – a character that has since reached cult status in the world of British sitcom.