Our own gallus Gilmerton lad is the best comic not on the telly - Donald Anderson

Connor Burns is Edinburgh born and bred, but more particularly for me he grew up in Gilmerton, in a working-class family which, by his own account, has helped keep his feet firmly on the ground. He only performed his first stand-up gig in 2017, but his rise since then has been remarkable.

I went along some of my best and oldest friends to see Connor at the Pleasance and it was a hilarious show. What struck me was how naturally funny he is. The jokes come quickly, but so does the conversation with the audience.

That interaction was one of the highlights. Like the best comedians Connor has the confidence to involve people in the room and respond instantly to what comes back at him.

It gives the performance a spontaneity that makes the show you are watching unique to that audience.

I really enjoyed his use of Scots words and expressions. I’ll never hear the phrase ‘gaun yersel’ the same way again. It gives the comedy a strong sense of place and authenticity.

His progress has already been extraordinary. He has performed Off-Broadway, toured extensively in Britain and Australia and supported Daniel Sloss on three continents. His 2025 Edinburgh run sold around 12,000 tickets, while this year’s FLOW included performances at the Edinburgh Playhouse.

For someone who started performing less than a decade ago, that is quite a trajectory. But what I liked most was that beneath the success you can still hear Edinburgh – and Gilmerton – in his comedy. I know he’s from Gilmerton because he was in the same class at school as my daughter Gemma.

I came away thinking that Connor Burns is the best comic who’s not on the telly, and a great talent and the best comedian to come out of the city for many years.

And, from a Gilmerton perspective, it is particularly good to be able to say: he’s one of ours.