Rik Carranza: A Wee Bit of Relief

For those living under a rock, what can you tell us about what's happened in the Philippines?
Earlier this month, while no stranger to typhoons (there had been 20 already this year), the Philippines was hit by one of the strongest recorded typhoon in history. The immediate fall out was huge areas, being destroyed. This has left millions homeless and thousands dead. My dad is Filipino, so I have a huge amount of family out there. I was born in Scotland and identify myself as Scottish, but am very proud of my Filipino roots.

So you've decided to try and do your bit to raise awareness and help out?
Yup! It's been tough watching everything happening out there. Ideally I would've liked to have gone out and helped, but I don't have the money to, so I wanted to do something, and that's where the benefit sprouted from.

What can you tell us about what you're doing?
Ha! Well, I guess I better start from the beginning! In my evenings I do stand up comedy (like some reverse superhero! Support worker by day, talk shit by night); I've run a couple of charity gigs in the past and I thought I'd do the same thing again. Now, my initial thought was I would ask a couple of my comedian mates to perform, and ask to use a room in a pub, invite some people and maybe raise £100. Last Wednesday I posted on Facebook that I wanted to run something, and would anyone be interested in being part of it. Within a couple of hours it exploded as comedians all over Scotland (and some from England) started throwing their names into the hat! It then escalated, as people started throwing the big names around; Susan Calman, Frankie Boyle, Kevin Bridges... Then I ended up talking to former First Minister Jack McConnell who told me to get in contact with the SECC and tell them “Jack sent you!” 

That must have been a bit of a motivational boost to see so many people wanting to do their bit?
It was unbelievable and I'm not going to lie but I was close to crying a few times. Obviously didn't. Too manly. I did. A little. A lot

How have the plans shaped up?
Venue hunting was tough at first but eventually The Caves in Edinburgh pulled through and offered their venue for free. I've got Scott Agnew introducing six headliners: Mark Nelson, Keir McAllister, StuWho, Vladimir McTavish, Jojo Sutherland and Tom Stade. There will be a prize draw (we’re getting some very cool prizes) and then the night will be finished off by music from Echo Arcadia too. It's gotten bigger than I could've imagined; initially, I thought a few acts, a few audience members in a pub. Now I've got top comedians, top venue, top band, top everything! I'm so grateful for the kindness of everyone involved, and my family in the Philippines is so touched too.

What's left for you to do now?
Now it's all the small technical stuff and promo to do. I've had the help of two amazing individuals (Norma Devlin and Jane Walker) who have helped me, and my awesome wife has kept me grounded and sane throughout the whole thing.

If you could say one thing to encourage people along, what would it be?
'Give us your fucking money.' Not that. Really, it's a great night for a great cause, and every penny raised will make a massive difference and help millions of people rebuild their lives.