Interview with Max Fulham about Full of Ham

conducted by Bookmarks and Stages – Louise Cannon

It gives me great pleasure to welcome Max Fulham to Bookmarks and Stages for a Q&A session on his comedy act, playfully named, Full of Ham.

Max Fulham likes to make people laugh through ventriloquism (vent). It’s perhaps not quite all as you’d expect. He has put his own twist on this art-form. He’s worked with some of the biggest stars in show-biz like Craig-Revel Horwood and Mel Giedroyc. He started out in Linlithgow, which is not too far from Edinburgh

Without further ado, let’s find out more through the interview.

You’re known for modernising and bringing new audiences to ventriloquism, but who or what inspired you to take up this artform and create stage shows with it?

How did you train to do ventriloquism?

I taught myself as a child and there was a little worn patch of carpet in front of the mirror in my bedroom where I used to stand and practice. My first puppet was a little pink hand puppet and it was the first of many over the years I asked for for subsequent birthdays and Christmases. It probably took me a few years before I was even half decent and I am grateful I was still a child because being a bit rubbish can be sort of endearing then!

I took up ventriloquism (or vent if you’re really cool) after my parents bought me a puppet for Christmas when I was nine. I have been hooked on it since then! Having done it for a good few years now, one of the things I realised is that a lot of audiences had never seen ventriloquism live before and also had a few preconceptions about it being a bit old and naff. I suppose that is the main inspiration for trying to take it in some new directions or simply to use it to create the funniest things I can. I have been inspired by many of the greats over the years like Ray Alan and Terri Rogers and I think looking back has what has gone before can be a great jumping off point when wanting to take things in a different direction.

Your style is very different from having a dummy on your knee. You’ve decided to create an inner monologue, use inanimate objects and expressions.

What inspired you to do it this way and what themes do you tend to lean towards in this show and why?

It’s fun to play with what people expect from a ventriloquist and twist it into something slightly different. There may be a puppet as you’d expect at one moment but it becomes something unexpected. I have also really enjoyed exploring stuff that doesn’t use a puppet, what happens if there are multiple characters onstage but I’m the only person there? In terms of themes I feel that the show really goes from the everyday to the absurd, from supermarket checkouts to a box full of intrusive thoughts.

You started life in Linlithgow and then headed to clubs and cruise ships, now home to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. How has your travels influenced what you bring to your shows?

My travels have enabled me to perform for such a wide variety of audiences which is invaluable experience for any performer. What will sometimes work in one scenario will not work in another and I hope that I am slightly better at working that out now after performing all over the place. The vibe I always want to create in my shows is a sense of unity that we are all there in a room and I have some fun things to show you.

Rowan Atkinson, Mel Giedroyc, Craig Revel Horwood and Terry Fator famously highly rate you, which is fantastic. How did that come about and how does this add to shaping your career as you progress ever forwards?

I have been lucky enough to work with or meet some phenomenal people and some true comedy heroes. I worked with Craig Revel Horwood in pantomime last year, he was the Hook to my Smee and we had a great time! I worked with Mel Giedroyc on her show Unforgivable and she has been encouraging me to do the Fringe since then! Getting to meet and work with these wonderful people is often a nice reassurance that I’m getting at least something right… it also looks good on the poster and I’m very grateful for their kind words!

You’re billed to be appearing in Panto with Alexandra Burke and Dr. Ranj, how are you preparing for that and are you able to share what it will be and where?

Yes! I’m off to Neverland this Christmas (read: Southampton). It is shaping up to be a fantastic show from what I have heard in the meetings I have had so far. One of the amazing things about panto though is that it comes together so quickly and we only start rehearsals a week and a half before the show opens so preparations come a lot later in the year!

What’s next for your solo ventriloquism shows?

I would just quite like to continue doing my nonsense and making people laugh. I am excited to see where the characters and ideas from this Fringe show go, I have a feeling a few of them may have life beyond this show!

Where can people follow you on social media?

You can follow me on Instagram @MaxFulham and on TikTok and Facebook @maxfulhamcomedy.

Max Fulham has brought his show ‘Full of Ham’ to the Edinburgh Fringe the August, every night at 6.40pm in the Pleasance Courtyard. For tickets and more information, visit:: https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/max-fulham-full-ham