Mike van Acker – Clubs Qld Comedian of The Year 

Mike van Acker has spent most of his adult life trying to stay away from stand up comedy. It was easy when he left high school – there was no stand up comedy in Brisbane. He became a singing telegram performer instead. Keen wasn’t he?

In January 1992 Mike was minding his own business contract cleaning when his acting agent called, reminded him who she was, and told him a new comedy club was about to open at Dockside in Brisbane. It was a defining moment for him. As he stood in his trusty storeroom surrounded by mops and Chux supa-wipes (the extra absorbent type) he received ‘The Comedy Calling’ – a strange, dizzy feeling that seemed to bring stomach cramps as well. Two weeks later, as he failed miserably on his stand up debut, he realised it was not the comedy calling, but the ammonia calling. It really wasn’t a well-ventilated storeroom…

A few years later, having got a bit good at comedy Mike sold his contract cleaning business and began making a full time living as a performer. To facilitate this, there may have been a time when he regularly dressed up as (among other things) A clown, a spy, a waiter, and, at one memorable gig, the Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz. What can we say? He was young… He needed the money.

Mike continued to avoid doing stand up where possible – he even took a year off to sing and ‘dance’ in Dr Shagnsty’s Comedy Clinic – a theatre restaurant that was part of the ‘Dracula’s’ chain on the Gold Coast, but always found his way back to stand up.  A stint as the audience warm-up comedian for Channel 7’s ‘Family Feud’ did little to dampen his enthusiasm, and after his fourth successful tour of New Zealand’s comedy clubs (both of them) he decided to give the street theatre and magic gigs a big miss, and gracefully accept that he and stand up comedy were going to be together a long time.

In 2006 Mike again flirted with the idea of leaving Stand Up, when he took a year off (year off? Never worked so hard in his life!) to do Breakfast Radio on Brisbane’s B105. 

You’ll still catch him most Friday’s on 612ABC Radio’s ‘Panel of Experts’ (with Richard Fidler, Katrina Davidson and Stewart Davidson). 

Mike’s  list of foreign countries worked in reads like a list of foreign countries worked in, and includes England, USA, Indonesia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and New Zealand. Some people are impressed by stuff like that! He’s done heap of corporate shows too, for companies at least as impressive as other comedian’s clients list – maybe even more so! Decide for yourself at the Corporate Comedy section of this site…

Mike van Acker – heaps funnier than he was when he started!

Mike van Acker – QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS  and MORE QUESTIONS…

Name: What the hells wrong with you? It’s written on the top of the page!

Age: 53 (Look good for my age don’t I?)

Years in Biz: I was a child actor/performer, so way too many. Stand up since 1992…

Club started in: Sit Down at Brisbane, but when it was at Dockside and there was no other comedy then…

Best gig ever: Hard to narrow it down because no two gigs are the same. A night at the Powerstation in Auckland with 1400 people going nuts will live with me for a long time; I’ll never forget a corporate show I did for an enormous number of Amway distributers – what an amazingly giving audience; and I’ve had some shows at Dockside I’m really proud of too…

Worst gig ever: Hmm… Well, I once died supporting the Delltones – turns out my version of squeaky clean was not the same as the audiences, or the Delltones’ management for that matter.  Also once tanked in front of a big crowd at a major convention: they put me on first to a completely unfocused crowd and I sank like a stone. The worst part was they had big screens around the room including on the back wall so I not only died, I got to watch me die…  

First Car: Mazda 929;  there - I said it.

Dream Car: The Wiggles Big Red one.

Celebrity you’d most like to get it on with: I think Mr Bean’s really hot…

Fave book: Stephen King’s The Dark Tower series. You gotta read it, we all say Thankya.

Fave film: Loved ‘Snatch’, ‘8 Mile’ and ‘The Dish’

Fave muso/cd:  Blink 182, Paul Kelly, Cake, and my girlie plays guitar and keyboards in a chick band called ‘Tarts on Tour’ I do sound for them (whilst drinking beer – rock on baby!!)  

Fave holiday: We’ve had some awesome times in Montville.

Fantasy dinner party guests:  Stephen King, Steve Waugh, Steve Bradbury, Stephen Hawking, Steve Thompson and Stevie Wonder. I hate it when you go to a party and can’t remember anyones names…

Dumbest thing you ever did: Believed in the sincerity of my bosses at my last job.  

Smartest thing you ever did: Fall in love with my beautiful girl.

5 words that describe you: Too complicated for 5 words.