FRED MACAULAY

With a popular morning radio show and a string of TV credits that make Carol Vorderman seem camera shy, Fred MacAulay is undoubtedly one of the most famous faces of Scottish comedy today. Yet his on screen reputation and on air witticisms are the product of years of experience on the live circuit, including a stint as the first ever Scottish compere at London's famous Comedy Store.

Fred's brand of contemporary observations and caustic sarcasm is loved by millions, largely thanks to his BBC Radio Scotland morning show and numerous TV appearances - from 'They Think It's All Over' (BBC1) and 'Have I Got News For You' (BBC2) to his own series 'Life According to Fred' (BBC1 Scotland) and 'McCoist and MacAulay' (BBC1). Despite such familiarity, audiences are constantly surprised by Fred's innate ability to talk on any subject and weave rich comic tapestries from the most unlikely of yarns.

Despite his extensive TV and radio commitments, Fred has never lost the ability - or the desire - to play in front of a live audience. Fred is still a regular on the London cabaret circuit, a huge hit on the UK comedy scene and a massively popular after-dinner speaker and corporate entertainer.

A firm festival favourite, Fred has appeared from the Edinburgh Fringe to Melbourne's top comedy club,

The Last Laugh, and a sell-out appearances at the Glasgow International Comedy Festival.

Firmly disproving the myth that accountants are a humourless bunch, this former number-cruncher has a calculated wit - always intelligent, but never overly taxing. Irrespective of whether an audience is divided between young and old, alternative or mainstream, the broad appeal of Fred MacAulay always adds up to a side-splitting night out.