Harry Baker: Unashamed
Who Is Harry Baker?
Harry Baker is a poet, mathematician, stand-up comedian and writer. Aged 20, he became the youngest ever World Poetry Slam Champion in 2012. In 2014 he released his debut collection The Sunshine Kid with Burning Eye, and the 5-star Edinburgh show of the same name was voted Best Spoken Word Show of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2015. His work has been shared on TED.com and seen by over 5 million people and translated into over 20 different languages.
Having graduated from a mathematician-who-sometimes does-poems to a poet-who-sometimes-does maths, Harry has spent the last five years performing all over the world (plus a few years stuck at home in a pandemic), from the sold-out Dubai Opera House to featuring at both the American and German national poetry slams. A regular at festivals such as Latitude, Glastonbury and Bestival, Harry’s schools work has also reached a cumulative 50000+ students in local and international schools all across the globe, gaining new fans from Jacqueline Wilson to Ice Cube along the way.
Harry’s versatility had led to him being one of the only poets to be featured on BBC Radio 1, 2, 3, 4 and 1xtra, and has led to him being as (un)comfortable rising to the top of the UK rap battle scene as sharing stages with the likes of Carol Ann Duffy and Simon Armitage. More recently he has formed the UK’s leading Comedy-Rap-Jazz-Duo as part of Harry and Chris (as seen on The Russell Howard Hour) taking shows up to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2016-2019, as well as returning last year with a solo show I am 10,000 to a 5-star sellout run.
Unashamed tour
World Poetry Slam Champion Harry Baker had a lot of time to think about the important things in life during lockdown(s), and after initially penning reflective poems about missing hugging people he started making German pop bangers and reviewing toilet seats online. He also very quickly realised how much he missed performing live to people! A show of new poems and realisations celebrating the little things in life that make us who we are, focussing on the connection at the heart of it all and what can happen if we lose that. Including the story of how a spontaneous decision to run a marathon dressed as a falafel turned into a diss track to Chris evans that raised £5000 for charity, it is a show about lifting ourselves and each other up, and more than anything after the years we’ve had it’s an excuse to have some fun. His most playful, heartfelt, uplifting, unashamedly Harry Baker-y show yet.
What The Press Have Said:
“Simply put… The greatest performer on Earth” ★★★★★ Scott Mills Show, Radio 1
“The spell over the audience is tangible” ★★★★★ Broadwaybaby
“Spectacularly witty” ★★★★★ Whatsonstage
Previous Tours
As well as taking 8 shows to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival (four solo shows and four as Harry and Chris) including 5 star reviews and sellout runs 2011-2012 and 2015-2019, Harry has toured around the UK with Harry and Chris 2017-2019 and began a UK solo tour of his I am 10,000 show in spring 2020. This is currently finishing up two years later in March 2022 at Soho Theatre due to overwhelming demand/multiple rescheduling due to a pandemic. In total this show will have been performed in 35 different cities to thousands of people.
Pre-pandemic times Harry enjoyed selling out 100-200 seater venues in cities like Bristol, Manchester, Leeds, Exeter, and Edinburgh, as well as filling 50-100 seater smaller theatres in places like Margate and Bordon. Whilst previous tours have been organised in conjunction with comedy agency Avalon, Harry is looking to book his next tour independently and focusing on areas where he already has an existing fanbase and local connections, as well as theatres he has had previous success and a positive relationship with, as well as building new relationships and reaching new audiences in venues and towns he has always dreamed of playing in.
Harry’s unique blend of poetry, maths, stand-up and playfulness has attracted audiences of all ages, from comedy fans to poetry aficionados, and built up a loyal following who are delighted to return and bring friends, as well as being able to wow those experiencing it for the first time.