| Bilal Zafar | |
|---|---|
 Zafar in the 2023 film Meeting Dad | |
| Born | 16 October 1991 |
| Medium | Stand-up comedy |
| Nationality | Pakistan |
| Years active | 2013–present |
| Genres | Observational humour, Satire |
| Subject(s) | Islamophobia, Racism, Cakes |
| Website | www |
Bilal Zafar (born 16 October 1991) is a British comedian who won the New Act of The Year Award (NATY) in 2016 [1] and was nominated for Best Newcomer at the Edinburgh Comedy Awards in the same year. [2] He has written for The Independent [3] and The Guardian . [4]
Zafar is from Wanstead, London, and he studied at Wanstead High School before moving to Manchester to study screenwriting at The University of Bolton. [5] [6] He worked part-time as a concierge and a care assistant while living in Manchester. [7] Zafar moved back to London in January 2016. [5]
Zafar began performing stand-up comedy in his final year of university in 2013 and is best known for performing material about racism and islamophobia. He cites Simon Amstell and Chris Morris as influences. [5]
In 2015, Zafar was runner-up in the New Comedian of the Year competition run by Leicester Square Theatre. [8] [9] The following year he won first prize at the NATYS Awards in London at the same venue. [10] [11]
Described as a "wry storyteller", [10] Zafar appeared on the BBC Asian Network's Comedy Show in 2016 and 2017. [12] He has also appeared on BBC Radio Four's Loose Ends [13] and presented one of the station's Stand-Up Specials. [14]
Since 2020 Zafar has attracted a small regular audience and gained the status of Partner for his channel on live-streaming platform Twitch, where he portrays the manager of a football team within the videogame Pro Evolution Soccer 5. The manager character frequently engages his audience of “assistant managers” whose participation in the stream’s chat room and enthusiasm for in-jokes Zafar encourages. [15]
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