The RTE New Comedy Awards, which were held recently at Dublin s Vicar St.and screened last week by the national broadcaster, saw the fresh faces on the Irish comedy scene give a fairly decent account of themselves, especially given that they were sandwiched in between one of the slickest performers to have ever come out of Ireland Ed Byrne, who MC-ed proceedings.

Some, like James Gouldsbury and Matt Sadlier, have been putting themselves about on the Dublin stand-up circuit, while others were new to the game having been plucked from obscurity by Mary Kennedy of Platform Events, the producer of this year s awards, who went through the sack of tapes that were sent in and separated the bleats from the laughs.
The six participants Greg Prendergast, Matt Sadlier, Karl Spain, Killian Power, Toby Murphy and James Gouldsbury - who made it past the heats (held in Cork s City Limits Comedy Club and Dublin s Laughter Lounge) were competing for a chance to follow in David O Doherty s footsteps, who last year used his success in the New Comedy Awards then sponsored by the BBC to launch a now thriving comedy career, going on to win the coveted So You Think You re Funny competition in Edinburgh and returning to the Scottish capital this year with his own one-man show.
It s not unimaginable that this year s joint winners Limerick s Spain and Dublin s Gouldsbury could emulate O Doherty. Spain s act consisted of a wonderfully delivered routine about a traffic cop that spoke volumes about the way things are done down the country while Gouldsbury was more animated, building his act up to a manic conclusion that huffed and puffed and eventually blew the doors of resistance down. The judging panel of which I was a member consisted of established comedians, promoters, TV comedy writers and venue managers and could not separate the two, who therefore had to split the #1,000 prize money.
Spain took off to Wolverhampton the day after the awards with his stash and enrolled in one of the local colleges! Gouldsbury stayed and talked to Hot Press about how he got into the whole comedy thing in the first place.
I just decided to have a crack at it, he says. I d been writing short scripts for years. Then one day I went into the International and asked one of the barmen to give me a phone number of someone who could get me an open spot. So I rang Ian Coppinger that was two years ago. I ve been trying to get as much stage time as I can since then. I just got stuck in.
Who would you say inspired you to take up comedy?
I d like to veer towards Peter Sellers-type character comedy, he answers. I like a lot of energy on stage. I m not really into laidback comedy. I veer towards a more physical type of comedy; it s more visual than a lot of acts.
I can do maybe about thirty impersonations of accents from around the world so I ve been trying to get some voiceover work as well. I try and work them in with the gags.
Gouldsbury is mindful of the opportunities that (joint)winning the award will throw up.
It s definitely a big step. The exposure is worth as much as the few bob - just getting seen by people. Before you know it you start getting calls. There s even talk of getting on to The Late Late Show. It didn t do Tommy Tiernan any harm! Maybe I ll say something controversial!
Does Gouldsbury think there s a healthy infrastructure in Ireland for new comedians breaking through?
There definitely is, he says. It s a lot better than it has been these past few years. There s a few more clubs opening up. For instance there s a guy who runs a pub in Meath who gives young comedians stage time. You can just turn up and try out new material. And there s another guy who s trying to start something up in Ashbourne.
Was he nervous doing his routine in front of the cameras?
No, it made no odds. I d probably be a bit nervous alright on the Late Late, but it s just a fantastic buzz doing it in front of a crowd.
Gouldsbury, though, is no stranger to winning or to be pedantic, sharing - awards. He previously was the co-winner of the RTE/Filmbase Short Script award. It s about a fella who holds up a Chinese restaurant with a ferret.
Oh, that old trick.

James Gouldsbury plays the Comedy Cellar at the International Bar on Wed, October 25th with Bob Reilly, Paul Bonny and Gerard Meehan