A SCOTS-Filipino comedian has been stunned by support from fellow funnymen after he organised a benefit gig for victims of Typhoon Haiyan.
Edinburgh-based Rik Carranza, who has family in the Phillipines, decided to organise a benefit gig after seeing scenes of devastation earlier this month.
Initially he thought the gig would be little more than a few friends in a pub function room, but other comedians rallied together to perform at the gig, including host of ITV’s Funny Farm Stu Who? and award-winning comedians Scott Agnew and Mark Nelson.
The “Wee bit of relief” benefit gig will take place in Edinburgh’s Caves venue at 7.30pm on Wednesday next week, with tickets costing £15.
Rik hopes to raise at least £2,000 for the Disasters Emergency Committee’s Typhoon Haiyan appeal.
The 31-year-old said: “I was born in Scotland but I’m very proud of my Filipino heritage.
“Fortunately my family live more to the west of where the typhoon hit.
“It’s been pretty hard watching it all because I know what the area is like.”
When news of the Typhoon broke he was able to contact his dad Wilfred online to see if he escaped the worst of the storm.
Rik said: “I’ve been trying to get him to use a computer for ages, luckily my dad started using Facebook.
“It’s probably the first time in history a child was happy his dad was using Facebook.”
He initially posted on the Scottish Comedy Forum website about the gig last week, and other comedians soon flocked to perform at the show.
He said: “I didn’t expect it to get as big as it has. The amount of help I’ve had has been out of this world.”
Edinburgh Fringe veteran Vladimir McTavish will be joining former Scottish Comedians of the Year Mark Nelson and Scott Agnew, along with Stu Who? and other acts at the gig.
Tickets can be bought on website brownpapertickets.com.
