ROBIN Williams once said of Tuesday's absurdist headline act at the Burning Duck Comedy Club in York, "Will Franken is a master of illusion and is unchained; he's also very, very funny”.

"Comedy virtuoso Franken has moved to Britain from the United States, since when he has been wowing audiences with his kaleidoscopic tsunami of mind-blowing character comedy, including at our own Woodsduck Comedy Festival last year, where he appeared as Sarah Franken," says Burning Duck promoter Al Greaves.

The night at the Black Swan, Peasholme Green, will be opened by Tom Little, who did a Burning Duck middle spot in February 2015 and has gone on to win the Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year prize. "That's more prestigious than it sounds," says Al. "Previous winners include Johnny Vegas, Josh Widdicombe and Romesh Ranganathan."

Tuesday's 8pm show will be hosted by a Burning Duck regular, MC Jack Evans, and middle spots will go to Stephanie Laing and Gareth Jones. “I’m excited to have booked Will again,” says Al. “He's one of our favourite acts at Burning Duck and the rest of the bill is looking pretty sexy as well.

York Press:

Will Franken: "mind-blowing character comedy"

“Will also records a regular podcast called Things We Did Before Reality, and we were excited to learn that he has created a new character who writes children’s books and is working on a children’s story called Little Jo about a half-pig, half-rabbit who lives in water and in order to stay alive, he’s gotta spin round and round, spitting out water from both mouths for all eternity.”

Looking ahead, Burning Duck will hold its Woodsduck Comedy Festival again this summer, but with one significant difference. "It will be part of this year's Great Yorkshire Fringe," reveals Al. "From July 22 to 24, our festival will present a diverse range of 15 fantastic shows featuring some of the most exciting, challenging, experimental, refreshing and hilarious performers hand picked from across the country, including many on their way to the Edinburgh Fringe." Like last year, all Woodsduck shows will have free entry but with the option of guaranteeing a ticket for £5.

“The Great Yorkshire Fringe has already booked some wonderful acts, so we're very excited to be involved with this year's event, which promises to be weirder, wiser and more wonderful than ever. Keep an eye on their website at greatyorkshirefringe.com to find out about their shows,” adds Al.

Tickets for all Burning Duck shows are on sale at £5, NUS £4, online at burningduckcomedy.com/ or can be bought in person at the Bison Coffee House, in Heslington Road, or The Inkwell, in Gillygate. Alternatively, pay £7 on the door from 7.45pm.