Addison Cresswell

Comedy agent Addison Creswell has been known by any number of terms, from cockney wide-boy to the ‘Darth Vader of the Edinburgh Fringe’ but one is thing is certain, he is one of the biggest movers and shakers on the UK comedy circuit.

As the head of comedy agent Off the Kerb he best known as the man responsible for the golden-handcuff’s deal which earned Jonathan Ross his £6-million-a-year contract with the BBC. With that much cash flowing about some could say that he’s a man with money to burn, and they’d be right. It’s been widely reported that Cresswell was seen burning a £50 at Assembly Rooms artist bar at the Fringe after that particular deal was struck.

Through Off the Kerb Cresswell looks after some of the biggest names in the industry including Michael McIntyre, Jack Dee, Lee Evans, Dara o Briain and the up-and-coming talents of Kevin Bridges and Josh Widdicombe.

Off the Kerb’s acts often appear on a number of the UK’s most well respected comedy panel shows and many of the UK festival comedy tents including Latitude.

However with a comedy career stretching back over 30 years, Cresswell has worked his way up to the top of the comedy tree from a desk in his kitchen. He first represented John Hegley back in 1981 when working as an events officer at Brighton Polytechnic.

Any good story needs an arch-nemesis and Cresswell’s rival is fellow mega-promoter Avalon’s Richard Allen-Turner. Who Cresswell once jokingly named as his own agent.

Established as part of the Guardian’s Media Top 100, Cresswell has kept himself -and most of his acts - out of the headlines most of the time and is known as someone who is on hand to help his acts, any time of day or night.