
Connor Burns is one of the most exciting emerging acts on the Scottish comedy circuit in recent years. His meteoric rise through the comedy ranks since his first-ever open spot in October of 2017 has already seen Connor create and tour three punchline-packed solo shows. Hilarious, relatable, all-the-while served up with superb material, brilliant delivery and proper belly laughs, Connor is deservedly hailed as Scotland’s fastest-rising comedy talent.
[Click on any of the headings below to expand their text.]
Biog continued
Connor made his solo debut at the 2019 Edinburgh Free Fringe with Eh?, a 40-minute-long, no-holds-barred dissection of his own laughable life.
In early 2020, Connor had written his first full hour Edinburgh Festival Fringe show Loaded&mdashand then COVID-19 cancelled the event for the first time in its illustrious history. Never one to turn down a challenge, Connor was able to quickly adapt to online gigging, guesting on numerous shows, including two memorable appearances on The Stand (Comedy Club) Saturday Live Streams, with over ten thousand people watching in real time from around the world.
In 2022, he toured Australia an unprecedented three times in a single year, and taped a set in Sydney for the illustrious Just For Laughs Comedy Festival. He also made his official full-hour Fringe debut with an all-new show he called Live Laugh Loathe, and he sold out his solo Glasgow Comedy Festival (GICF) debut at the Stand Comedy Club.
In 2023, Connor premiered his follow-up new hour, Vertigo at the GICF, subsequently taking the show on tour for two months across Australia where, on top of selling out his solo shows at all of the country’s biggest comedy festivals, he opened a few dates for Daniel Sloss: CAN’T?, as well as closing the Sydney Comedy Festival gala at the Opera House.
The same year, Connor filmed Vertigo at the Glasgow Stand, his debut comedy special set for release by 800 Pound Gorilla in summer 2025.
Vertigo‘s Edinburgh Fringe season was an extraordinary success—it received universally rave reviews, including 5 stars in The Scotsman, and, even before the press came out, had added an additional 2000 seats to the original run due to enormous audience demand. Without any UK television, purely based on world of mouth on his brilliant show and incredible stand-up, Connor sold over 4,300 seats in total at the fringe. As a result, premiere UK tour producers Phil McIntyre Live Ltd put together Connor’s first UK tour with Vertigo dates all over the country in the autumn of 2023 and throughout 2024.
2024 saw Connor launch his fourth full-length solo show, 1994. An instant smash-hit, it toured all through the autumn of 2024 into the summer of 2025, selling over 10,000 tickets just in the city of Edinburgh alone (extra shows added mid-run) and touring 35 dates in Australia, plus another 50 dates all across the UK. He also sold out two nights at the flagship Glasgow Kings theatre during the GICF, performed in 10 cities across Europe and was awarded a week’s run in New York at the illustrious off-Broadway theatre, Soho Playhouse for their 2024 Fringe Encore Season, as well as being part of the New York Comedy Festival (where he was one of just three Brits on the lineup).
Connor’s 2025 Edinburgh Fringe looks set to be even bigger—his new show GALLUS went on sale in March and, by May, an additional eight shows had already been added due to demand. GALLUS will begin touring in the autumn.
Connor is also an in-demand topical joke writer and has written a sitcom with Graham Duff (Ideal). In May 2025, the premiere of his live-audience podcast with Larry Dean and Stuart Mitchell sold out in five minutes and looks set to develop a life of its own.
Press Quotes
There is a great comedy talent at work here. The material is packed in like chips in a poke and Burns himself is genuinely likeable, with that straightforward delivery that reassures you there is a real person up there and that he is a great bloke… There is nothing he sets his comedic sights on that he misses&hellip he is fearless and it is wonderful… hilarious!
✶✶✶✶✶ The Scotsman
Brilliant… gags coming at you at a terrifying rate, with particularly eye-watering lines scattered liberally throughout. But what elevates Burns’ act is his sheer fearlessness… skilfully balanced and carefully pitched… he’ll go far.
✶✶✶✶ The List
If you want to see the future of Scottish stand-up, then see Connor Burns live—while you can still get a ticket
– Daniel Sloss
Just like seeing your favourite band for the first time, being at a stand-up show when you know they are about to hit the big time is an equally big thrill. And this Edinburgh Festival Fringe will be the chance to have that feeling watching local boy Connor Burns become the next big comedy act out of Scotland.
– Daily Record, July 2023
Absolutely cracking—Great material with fantastic execution… it’s clear that Connor is a comedian with a lot of potential
– The Stand