When asking a comedian with a track record as shiny as Daniel Muggleton’s about their show, you wouldn’t expect them to admit they haven’t written it yet.
Muggleton, known for his red tracksuit and critically acclaimed shows, brings his new show White Here, White Now to the Fringe from the first weekend. However, he admits that he doesn’t yet know what it entails.
“None of us [comedians] know,” he jokes. “We write [them] in January… [Last] year’s was probably more personal than I’d gone previously, and I’ve done that now. I’m going to go back to talking about the world, and I feel like there is plenty to work with, given everything that’s happened recently”.
Muggleton has been one of Australia’s most prolific comedians of the 2020s, but has not captured mainstream media attention. Given his growing profile, his advertising has leaned into it.
“People absolutely recognise me in the street. I’ve had specials on Australian television before. They just won’t let me on any shows with other people, which, as an only child, I applaud,” he explains.
“It’s just owning the fact that a lot of people might not have heard of me, but that doesn’t imply that I’m shit.”
Like all his shows, Muggleton’s latest hour includes a pun about being white. It first started as a title for his 2019 show Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy (But I Reckon it’s easier for Straight, White Men?), before pushing himself into a “white corner.” “Because you have to name these shows every time, I just thought it’d be fun to have an inside joke where every title involves the word white,” he explains.
“I couldn’t have chosen a worse word to insert into it, especially given the current state of things. Either people are turned off because they think it’s going to be some kind of pride-based thing, which it is not. Or they’re turned on because they think it’s going to be some kind of pride-based thing, and it’s definitely not that.
“It is weird to have literal Nazis come to a show and then leave saying, ‘hey man, I don’t think you went far enough.’ I’m like, that’s fantastic feedback from you, actually. But that’s more overseas than here. I think here, if anyone is aware of me in any way, or if they do the smallest amount of research possible, they will realise that’s not what it is.”
Until recently, Muggleton also hosted his own podcast. While people often conflate podcasting with stand-up, Muggleton feels there’s a distinct difference between the two.
“I don’t know if it translates, because I think a lot of people who are great on podcasts are horrific as stand-up comedians and vice versa,” he says. “The one thing with a podcast is you get these things that resonate with people you would never really predict ahead of time. [With] stand-up, there’s a necessity to be broad, whereas podcasting, you can just say the most specific thing you want to say, and it’ll surprise you how many people are in the exact same boat.
Like many comedians, Muggleton has used Adelaide as the butt of many jokes. Despite a series of short stays this year (Muggleton is doing Friday-Sundays each week), Muggleton insists that he has “a big soft spot” for the city after his 2025 visit.
“As a touring comedian, you come in these towns, doing a show on stage is a great way to get a vibe on a town,” he explains. “To be there for a full month, for the first time and really get a vibe on Adelaide, I came away just loving it so much more as a place.”
Daniel Muggleton: White Here, White Now, Le Cascadeur at The Garden of Unearthly Delights, 20 Feb-22 March, 10pm