Rhod Gilbert started stand up in early 2002. In his first 18 months, he reached the finals of every major new talent competition in the UK and has now emerged as one of the most promising and exciting talents on the UK and international comedy scene. After being singled out by the Sunday Times as "One to watch" in 2005 Rhod went on to scoop the Chortle Award for Best Breakthrough Act and then made a huge splash at the 2005 Edinburgh Festival with his hotly anticipated debut show 'Rhod Gilbert's 1984' which earned him a nomination for the Perrier Newcomer Award. At the 2006 Edinburgh Festival his second solo show, 'Knocking on Heaven's Door' was a sell out smash and almost earned him an If.com Eddy nomination. Demand for tickets meant extra shows in venues four times the size of the room he was originally booked to play. 2006 was a great year beyond live stand up as Rhod was named in The Times's Top 50 Comedians, alongside Ricky Gervais and Eddie Izzard.