Ben McKenzie: the Man in the Lab Coat

I’m popping up in a few places this week, so look out if you’re up for a dose of enthusiastic science geekery!

Matt Smith – no, not the new Doctor, but the lovely man putting together The Pun’s PunCast interviews – spoke to me the other day about the Melbourne Museum Comedy Tour, the Anarchist Guild Social Committee and Graeme Garden. It was excellent fun, and I hope you’ll enjoy listening to our conversation, which you can find in PunCast Episode 9.

Also, if you’re in Melbourne, be sure to tune in to Channel 31 on Monday, April 20 for Yartz, where the irrepressible (but no less lovely than Matt Smith) Ralph McLean asked me the hard questions about dinosaurs at Melbourne Museum. This one will probably also end up on YouTube, I’m told – I’ll be sure to link to it when it does!

Speaking of the tour, you do all know that it begins this Thursday (April 16), right? And that the first week is nearly sold out? Book your tickets now or get them at the door (there are still a few left for Friday and Saturday), and we’ll see you there!

Yes, National Science Week 2008 officially launches tonight at the MCG right here in Melbourne, and of course your intrepid Planet Nerd science reporter and all-round science fan, Ben McKenzie, will be right there in the thick of it. Hopefully tomorrow I’ll have some photos and stories to share with you, and in the near future even some video of interviews with the stars of Australian science.

Of course I have a few events of my own during Science Week; here’s a quick reminder:

• – my new comedy science lecture at the Royal Society of Victoria, celebrating the twentieth anniversary of that great unread classic of popular science literature: Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time. It’s on the last few days of Science Week – Friday, August 22 is a special matinee, free for schools, and there are two evening performances on the 23rd and 24th. The Historic Theatre is a beautiful venue, but not very big, so be sure to book! Details are .
• Not the Nobel Prize – Melbourne Museum’s comedy panel show returns for a third year! See me and three other comedians – Courteney Hocking, Sam Simmons and Charlie Pickering – try and sort fact from fiction in the stories presented by four actual, qualified scientists! This usually sells out, so make sure you book your tickets! Details are here.

Also during Science Week, but not part of it, are a few other projects of mine:

• The Anarchist Guild Social Committee meeting #3 – Melbourne’s newest comedy sensation, a live sketch comedy show at the Bella Union, Trades Hall, on the third Sunday of every month. It features yours truly as a writer and performer, and always fills to capacity. Details here.
• Set List preview season – an all-new improvised music comedy show premiering at Fringe, but you can catch an early preview at The Butterfly Club from August 21 to 24. I’ll be performing in the first show on Thursday, August 21. Details here.
• Impro Sundae – top-notch improvised comedy with The Crew, second and fourth Sunday every month, also at the Bella Union. Details here.