Adelaide Fringe offers many opportunities to laugh, cry, gasp in wonder, and challenge the way you view the world; and this festival, Bill Egan is giving the opportunity to help yourself.

Self-help yourself, that is, with his special brand of life-coach comedy, that will have your sides splitting and your core centring.

Self Help Yourself with Bill Egan is the latest comedy special from one of Adelaide’s most popular comics and it’s set to be an exercise in spontaneity and spiritualism.

“In this show, I become a life-coach and motivational guru helping audiences with their problems, live on stage,” Bill says. “I channel cosmic energy guiding group meditation, and use a range of techniques I learnt on the internet, such as tarot card reading and past life regression to radically transform lives in a highly improvised, crowd-work driven production. No two shows will be the same.

“My favourite moments of comedy, whether performing it or watching it, are the ones when the audience and comedian are vibing off each other and things happen that couldn’t ever be planned for or repeated. I’m basically setting up a whole framework to foster that.”

But if crowd-participation makes you sweaty and uncomfortable, Bill has a cure for you.

“I want to make everyone feel part of the show rather than just being an observer of it, so I’m doing things like leading group meditations and inviting people on stage, but if that idea scares some people, I have a colour coded sticker systems, so people can choose red stickers and I won’t single them out. But I still want them to feel a part of the little community of ‘Billievers’ (I’ve arrogantly called them).”

Whether you have your life together, or you’re falling apart, you can always use a positive word or two from a guru. 

That’s why Bill, who is definitely not a real guru is coming to show audiences how to ‘believe it to be it’ – a technique he learned in London and brought home to Adelaide. 

“A few years ago, I attended a free, two-day introduction to Life Coaching course, where their mantra was: ‘If you believe it, you can achieve it’” Bill says. “Now, some people might think this was the ground floor of a pyramid scheme, but to me, it was life changing. After the two days, they tried to sign me up to do a full accreditation course for £3000 but I told them I believe I’m already a Life Coach so therefore I am.”

This life-affirming moment took Bill off the broken-down canal boat he was living on, where he journeyed home to spread the good word in Adelaide.

“I wasted years in London becoming an up and coming darling of the comedy scene and living on a broken boat with no running water,” he says. “So when the famous plague hit the world, I decided I’d better head home. There were no gigs, my Life Coaching business hadn’t really taken off yet, and I was sick of looking for a public toilet to empty a jug of my shit into.”

Bill returned to Mother Adelaide, where he now resides in a house that doesn’t float, and his toilet flushes efficiently.  

He’s been moving and shaking in the local comedy scene since he’s been back and he’s also started life coaching online and giving completely unsolicited advice to friends and family who are getting pretty sick of it, to be honest.

“So far it’s all been pro-bono on Instagram, but I reckon this show will kick that up a gear,” he says. “Plus I’ve learnt tarot card reading, past life regression hypnosis, and transcendental meditation guidance on the internet recently, so I’ve got a few bows in my quiver.”

Self Help Yourself with Bill Egan is Bill’s foray into the world of self help guru stardom. 

Like Tony Robbins, Jordan Peterson, Gwenyth Paltrow, and many others before him, Bill is making other people’s problems his life’s work and probably doing more damage than good, but with hilarious consequences.

Having trodden the boards at comedy clubs all over the world, Bill is looking forward to another Fringe appearance in his hometown.

“I love that Adelaide comes to life at Fringe. There is a ‘meat and three veg on the table at 6:30 before we watch X Factor on the couch’ culture here that people throw out the window come Fringe time,” he says. “Out on a Tuesday? Wild. Drinking on a Wednesday? Insane. And it brings out people you wish were here more often.

“You feel a part of the arts world for that month of a year. There are all kinds of inspiring performances. Sometimes what I love more than a slick, beautifully crafted show is some batshit crazy off the wall stuff, somehow filling a tent with confused people. I love seeing the limits of creativity pushed and it makes you want to create more yourself. It’s such a warm festival too, there’s a general air of support and kindness and it’s great to mingle with artists of all kinds. If only it could always be like this.”

Whether you think Self Help is a load of garbage and you’re perfect just the way you are, or maybe you charge your crystals by the light of the moon; either way, this show is for you. 

Tickets to begin the first day of the rest of your life are HERE

Disclaimer: Bill is a comedian, not a guru, and is not likely to help you in any way at all, but he will make you laugh until you expel all of your negative energy, which will exorcise your inner demons. 

Self Help Yourself with Bill Egan

The Squeaker (open-air) at Gluttony – Rymill Park:
Fri 17 Feb – Sat 18 Feb: 10:35pm
Fri 24 Feb – Sat 25 Feb: 10:35pm

The Piglet (open-air) at Gluttony – Rymill Park:
Tue 21 Feb – Thu 23 Feb: 10:20pm

Bedroom at ARTHUR ARTBAR:
Thu 2 Mar – Sun 5 Mar: 7:45pm