Des Bishop

Des Bishop
Bishop playing football during the 2008 Cat Laughs comedy festival in Kilkenny
Born	Desmond Ryan Bishop (1975-11-12) 12 November 1975 (age 41) London, UK
Residence	Rialto, Dublin, Ireland
Nationality	Irish-American
Education	Bachelor of Arts History and English from University College Cork
Occupation	Stand-up comedian
Relatives	Aidan Bishop (Brother)
Website	http://www.desbishop.net

Desmond "Des" Bishop (born 12 November 1975) is an Irish-American comedian. He was brought up in New York and is now primarily based in Ireland.

Bishop's comedy was originally heavily based on his observation of Irish society, supported by his talent for impersonating the regional variations of the Irish accent. His website says, "Des has developed a unique style of observational comedy, most critical of his adopted home in Ireland and the America he left behind."

Bishop's comedy has since grappled with social issues, such as poverty. In 2000, Bishop was diagnosed with testicular cancer; rather than shy away from this subject, Des went on to turn his experiences into comedy material.

Bishop has worked as a comic in Ireland since the late 1990s. He began hosting shows at the International Comedy Cellar - a venue set up by Irish comics such as Ardal O'Hanlon, Kevin Gildea and Barry Murphy. It was here that Bishop honed his act.

Bishop first reached a TV audience in early 2000, after appearing on Don't Feed the Gondolas, a news based topical TV show. He later had to pull out of this show due to personal reasons.

Bishop created a "hip-hopera" called "RAP ÉIRE" along with Arthur Riordan. "Rap Éire" was a satire following the story of an ambitious American who finds himself mixed up with a group of political types during the throes of early Celtic Tiger fervour. The show had two runs - firstly in the Project Arts centre in February 2001 and afterwards in the Andrews Lane Theatre the following summer. Bishop performed every night of the first run while receiving radiotherapy for testicular Cancer (the original premier date for the play at the Dublin Fringe Festival 2000 had to be cancelled as a result of the original diagnosis of cancer).

Bishop appeared in the 2002 film, In America, in which he played a high stockbroker rapping in the back of a NYC taxi cab.

He reached a broader audience after his TV show The Des Bishop Work Experience screened on RTÉ Two in 2004. The show featured him attempting to survive for one month working a minimum wage job in various parts of Ireland. During the series, he worked at Abrakebabra, Waterford; The Aqua-dome, Tralee; Superquinn, Dundalk; and the Central Hotel, Dublin.