Episode 17 of This Week in Comedy brings together Morry Morgan and Lily Geddes with special guest Canadian comedian Lars Callieou for a full-episode deep dive into comedy culture, festival life, and the chaos that comes with it. From the opening moments, Lars settles in as more than just a guest, sharing stories from his career across Canada and Australia while immediately matching the show’s fast, irreverent energy.
The episode moves through a mix of industry insights and absurd tangents, covering everything from the Melbourne International Comedy Festival to the strange realities of being a working comedian. There’s discussion around visas, the grind of building a career, and the subtle differences between comedy scenes around the world. Along the way, the trio unpack classic “inside comedy” moments, including the universal joke about comedians wearing shorts on stage and what it really signals to other performers.
A highlight of the episode is the ongoing love letter to The Exford Hotel, a venue that holds a special place in both the Melbourne comedy scene and Lars’s personal journey. His story about discovering the venue, and how it mirrors his early days running comedy rooms in Canada, offers a rare mix of sincerity and humour that captures what makes live comedy spaces so important. It also ties into appearances from figures like Chris Franklin, whose presence looms large in the stories shared throughout the episode.
Naturally, no episode would be complete without a drink in hand, and this week’s choice is Foster's Lager. What starts as a simple tasting turns into a nostalgic and surprisingly thoughtful discussion about Australian identity, international perceptions, and the strange cultural journey of one of the country’s most recognisable beers.
The episode also leans into the bizarre, with stories ranging from a French performer who famously ate an entire airplane to offbeat “funny in the moment” encounters that highlight the unpredictable nature of comedy. Balancing industry talk with ridiculous anecdotes, Episode 17 captures the essence of what This Week in Comedy does best: blending insight, storytelling, and spontaneous humour into a conversation that feels both unfiltered and deeply connected to the comedy world.
Hard Knock Knocks Comedy Course with Lars Callieou: Click here
Lars Callieou's Instagram: Click here
Foster's Larger: Click here
Business of Comedy Conference: Click here