Jake Mace
What happens when you combine Excel spreadsheet tricks with stand-up comedy? Excel whiz David Benaim, who advises Microsoft on the future of the program, reckons he can bring the two together pretty neatly, all the while describing himself self-deprecatingly as a “piece of sheet”. We caught up with David for a pixelated pint before his first show at Dundee Fringe, so join us!
Catch =EXCEL(IS_FUNNY) at Sweet @ Keiller Centre at varying times from today until September 20th. Tickets are available through the Dundee Fringe Box Office.
Jake: Hi David! Tell us about your show’s journey to ending up on the Dundee Fringe stage.
David: My second ever comedy show was on Excel, after that I did several more and then many shows about maths jokes, many word play jokes. After a couple of years of doing it, I had built up so much material, easily enough to make a full show so I weaved it together into a show.
Professionally, for a decade or so, I have been doing trainings, seminars & YouTubes where I have shown tens of thousands some really useful Excel tips and tricks, I put some of my top gems together with jokes to create this hybrid comedy tutorial.
Jake: So what’s the inspiration behind bringing your love of Excel together with stand-up comedy?
David: I have loved Excel since I moved to Cambodia 11 years ago. I built lots of my life around spreadsheets, I teach Excel, I build data systems for clients. In 2020, Microsoft gave me the MVP award, meaning Microsoft considers me to be in the top 100 or so Excel people worldwide. I share my love for Excel via my YouTube channel, Linkedin, through blogs, webinars and training courses. Once I started doing Stand-Up comedy 2 ½ years ago, doing sets about Excel became my default, I now do various other sets on current events, observational stuff, but Excel and Maths word play remain my niche topics. This show will be mostly Stand-Up comedy but I’ll also give some little known Excel tips & tricks along the way.
So many white collar workers spend more time on Excel than they do seeing friends – hours per week. it’s a point of frustration for many whilst others get so proud of their creations, Excel doesn’t tend to come up in casual conversations yet so people don’t tend to talk about it, so I built this comedy show around it to get people to laugh about the thing they don’t get to talk about.
Jake: So what are you hoping people will take away from the show?
David: Some great jokes about the software they use every day will no doubt trigger some memories next time they use the application. I think audiences will walk away realising that spreadsheets and maths can have more of an impact on your life than they may think and they will definitely learn some new Excel skills. I am being careful to make most of the jokes (and the tutorial tricks) accessible by anyone, super users and novices alike, so even those who come with a friend or partner will enjoy it, even if they dragged down like some cheap formula.
Jake: Now that you’re gearing up for Dundee Fringe, what are you most excited for?
David: I’ve never been to the Dundee Fringe, I live in Cambodia most of the year, but I met a comedian last year who became a friend and encouraged me to join. The Edinburgh Fringe and other larger events felt intimidating to me, but I’m excited for the Dundee Fringe to the community vibe that I’m sure will come with this event.
