Hard Knock Knocks
Ready to take your stand-up comedy game to the next level?
If you’re grinding through open mics but feel like your progress is stuck in slow motion, the Hard Knock Knocks podcast is your shortcut to success. Each episode features candid interviews with Australia’s most seasoned stand-up comedians—unpacking how they got started, what they’ve learned, and what they wish they knew when they began. Get insider tips, avoid common pitfalls, and sharpen your craft with real-world advice from the pros who’ve been there and crushed that.
Learn more about the Hard Knock Knocks comedy school.
- Update frequency
- every 10 days
- Average duration
- 31 minutes
- Episodes
- 102
- Years Active
- 2017 - 2022
023: Dave Ivkovic – Overcoming the mental barriers to comedy success.
What good can come out of a dare? Well, for Dave Ivkovic, a stand-up comedy career spanning over 20 years. Today, Dave travels all over Australia for comedy, and as you'll hear, has been a regular 'f…
022: Doug Chappel – Overcoming challenges to build a comedy career.
It's a paradox, but some of the best comedy can come from difficult and challenging times. This has certainly been the case for Doug Chappel - born on the metaphorical wrong side of the tracks and wi…
021: CJ Fortuna – The Actor, joker, and midnight toker
TV commercials, movies, stage and stand-up comedy - not to forget, although he's prefer that you did, an appearance on Hey Hey, It's Saturday's 'Red Faces' - makes CJ Fortuna a man of many talents. …
020: George Kapiniaris – From Stereotypes to Stage Shows and Changing Aussie Culture
If you lived in Australia during the late eighties and early nineties, then no doubt you know George Kapiniaris. An actor by training, George, or Kappa or G-Kap, as he is known around the block, firs…
019: Greg Fleet – The Accidental Comedian
Greg Fleet is Australia's bad boy of comedy. On stage and off, 'Fleety' has made a name for himself for pushing the boundaries and living life to its fullest. TV, movies, theatre, breakfast radio, an…
018: Steve Hughes – The Arduous Journey of Stand-up Comedy
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock 'n roll. Comedy's just as arduous. Coincidentally, Steve Hughes has done both. Starting out as a drummer for extreme metal band, Slaughter Lord in Sydne…
017: Mayumi Nobetsu – From Monty Python to the MICF
If there's one word to describe Mayumi Nobetsu it's 'persistent'. In this School of Hard Knock Knocks podcast episode, you'll hear how the quiet Japanese teenager first became obsessed with Monty Pyt…
016: Dave O’Neil – From Captain Cocoa to Captaining Aussie Comedy
Chances are you've laughed at a Dave O'Neil joke. This is because not only is he a seasoned stand-up comedian, but dave's been writing for Australian TV comedy shows since 1994 - television shows suc…
015: Urzila Carlson – Getting robbed at gunpoint can lead to a comedy career
At times, the universe can send out subtle signals, that help guide our life's journey. That's not what Urzila Carlson was thinking, standing in her underwear and huddled with co-workers in a locked …
014: Dane Simpson – Yarns by the fire bucket to being ‘Deadly Funny’
Some people seek greatness, other's have greatness thrust upon them...on a stage in Narrabri, New South Wales. This is the yarn of Dane Simpson - one moment a DJ, the next a supporting act for vetera…
013: The Nelson Twins – Double trouble from Walbundrie to China
The Nelson brothers - you've seen one, you've seen them all. Well, that's a bit unfair. They might look alike, but as you'll hear in this School of Hard Knock Knocks interview, The Nelson Twins, as t…
012: Michael Shafar – How Jewish-ish and community TV led to comedy success
Michael Shafar is a stand-up comic and writer for The Project on Network Ten. But this success hasn't happened overnight. Like most stand-up comedians it started off with bombing at his first open mi…
011: Simon Taylor – From tweets to television, the winding road of comedy
If you haven't heard of comedian Simon Taylor before, then you soon will. Seven years into the comedy game, Simon has already made his mark in Australia and the USA, writing for Shaun Micallef and Ja…
010: Evan Hocking – The leap of faith in going full time.
Eighteen months ago Evan Hocking became a full time comedian. Leaving a permanent job Evan "packed the job in" and took the biggest leap of faith a comedian can make in his or her early years. Since …
008: Johnny Kats – Luck and persistence lead to comedy success
From humble beginnings, performing at open mics at the Corner Hotel in Richmond, to winning a guest spot alongside Dave Chappelle in New York, Johnny Kats’ comedy career is incredible. You’ll hear th…
007: Dave Callan – Winning friends and influencing people in comedy.
Dave Callan's first show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF) was in 2000. Seventeen years on, he's performed internationally, hosted on Triple J radio, and been a regular on TV. In…
006: Dilruk Jayasinha – Never let a good education get in the way of a dream
Dilruk Jayasinha is one of the hottest stand-up comedians in Australia today. His talents have led to sold out shows at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival and a regular guest spot on Network…
005: Chris Franklin – How one bogan became a successful ‘bloke’.
Chris Franklin has an inseparable relationship with his flannel shirts. The self described bogan, who has performed his beer swilling larrikin humour all over Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Scotland a…
004: Brad Oakes – Stand-up to TV to radio. The many careers of a comedian.
Brad Oakes is one versatile comedian. Starting as a stand-up comedian, Brad graduated to writing skits for TV shows Full Frontal, the Comedy Company and Hey Hey It's Saturday. He's also had a stint a…
003: Samuel See – Be inclusive when insulting your audience.
Samuel (Sam) See is a Singaporean stand-up comedian who has found fame on the comedy circuit and Singapore TV. With only four years in the game, he is already a regular at all of the comedy clubs, ha…