If you’re a comedian who speaks English, it might seem easy to break through in other countries who share the language. There are some who do, but the truth is, Americans who can fill theaters here can’t always do the same in Australia and the UK. Similarly, there are lots of standups from those nations who no one here has ever heard of. Here’s an example.

Bill Bailey has been a comedy star in Britain for a long time. He’s a regular on some of their TV panel shows and sells out venues across the country — yet I’d never heard of him until I saw this. It’s a portion of a performance he did at a 70th birthday celebration for Prince Charles called We Are Most Amused And Amazed. The lineup of performers included several other you-don’t-know-them comedians, magicians, and singers, as well as a few you might.

After watching this short clip, I was so entertained by Bailey that I spent another hour browsing through his stuff on YouTube. A very clever and funny man.