Meet the Improvisers!
Karen Benjamin
Nine Douwes Dekker
Nine started doing improv in 2017, then through that course in Arnhem she found a group in Utrecht (both The Netherlands) called Tegen Weter Weten In (Against Better Judgement). She played with them until late 2019. After doing several workshops Birmingham improv (Jon Trevor et al.) she joined Breakfast of Champions in 2022.
John Guelke
David Harvey
David wandered into an improv drop-in over a decade ago and has been terrorising audiences and fellow improvisers ever since. He can also be found doing shortform improv with Box of Frogs, and is weirdly proud of making people cry whilst performing in a Birmingham Improv Maestro. David has also appeared in plays at the Crescent Theatre and occasionally threatens to return, with credits including The History Boys, The Tempest, and The Lady in the Van.
Bex Lewis
Breakfast of Champions is Bex’s first regular performance group, after a few years of hanging around the improv scene and sneaking onto the stages of whatever jams, Maestros and workshops would let them in the door. When not performing they enjoy eating, sleeping and generally keeping themself alive for another day. Oh, and bad reality TV.
Shak Mohammed
Shak has been performing improv for almost 2 years after winning an improv competition. He has also tried playwriting, short film making and most recently, stand up in Edinburgh where some radio and tv people enjoyed the human jokes he wrote the night before.
Emma New
Emma has enjoyed doing silly things onstage since being a student but only converted to the Dark Side/improv a few years ago when she realised that learning lines is hard. When not waxing lyrical about everything X-Men, she spends her time getting up to mischief with Improv Wolves, Breakfast of Champions, Behind the Headlines, and Noteworthy: The Made Up Musical.
Louise Stringer
Lou started her improv journey several years ago when she took a level 1 and 2 improv course in Birmingham. Since then Lou has been active in many groups including Wayward Souls, Foghorn and, SupHERgroup. Over lockdown Lou enjoyed performing in Extreme Improv online. As well as being a proud Breakfast Champion, Lou is also in Behind The Headlines. Lou can also be found partaking in The Birmingham Maestro. Outside of improv Lou is a leadership specialist and qualified coach, both of which come in handy in improv! Her favourite big breakfast item is a hash brown and she struggles to function without her morning cup of coffee.
Jon Trevor
Jon has been performing and teaching improv for 16 years, and is hoping one day to get it right. He founded, and performs with, Box of Frogs, Birmingham’s longest running shortform team. In the past he performed with longform group The Kneejerks, and musicl improv group Off Broad Street. He is frequently invited to teach at festivals and retreats, and is always available for more! He is the director of the fabulous biennial Birmingham Improv Festival. He even brings improv to the corporate world with Improv Initiative and Medical Improv GB. Outside of improv, Jon enjoys whizzing about on his motorbike.
Matt Vaughan Wilson
Matt has been doing improv since 2009 and peaked in 2010. He is a former member of Foghorn Improv, the Ministry of Improv, and the Improlectuals – as well as a future former member of Breakfast of Champions if he doesn’t buck his ideas up. Outside of improv, Matt has a range of regular hobbies like a normal human man, such as Jazz, whisky, and fathering children.
Stags Woodward
Stags has been performing improv regularly since c.2019, & has performed stand-up for almost 20 years. Initially forming part of the “Squares In the Round” improv troupe, he now performs regularly as part of Birmingham’s “Breakfast of Champions” and Nottingham’s “Vox Pops” (both longform groups). Along side numerous Edin fringe & festival runs, he also co-runs “Chewy Improv”, a weekly drop-in in Derby for improvisers of all levels, and “Petri Dish”, a monthly long form night in Nottingham as part of Missimp’s regular workshops.