Biography
James brings a unique perspective and skill set to public performance as both a working comedian/writer/columnist and also a practising lawyer with a specialty in media law.
James has performed in front of audiences as diverse as stand-up comedy crowds in NZ, Australia and the US, to conference delegates across a wide range of industries and professions, to judges and lawyers of all types.
James prides himself on creating bespoke and entertaining material for each and every speaking brief.
As a conference MC James is able to blend his skills as lawyer and comic to sum up sessions, facilitate Q&A, conduct interviews all the while sprinkling humour and energy where appropriate.
Testimonials
On three occasions in March 2013, 2015 and 2018 James Elliott, lawyer, professional comedian and MC orchestrated resoundingly successful fundraising events for Ambury Park Centre, both as MC and a stand-up comedian. These were "Horsepower" themed dinners held in the Centre's large indoor arena with the purpose of raising funds to sponsor our herd of 28 horses, to keep them warm, blanketed, well fed and cared for. The horses are the key in the Centre's intensive and remedial riding therapy, schooling for students with a variety of particular needs and vocational training for adults with intellectual challenges. James was totally skilful in creating an atmosphere that balanced humour with fostering empathy from the wide-ranging audience, for the cause of the therapeutic power of the horse. This he did on these glittering occasions in a unique, somewhat rustic environment in Mangere Bridge. At the first dinner in 2013 James appeared as a flamboyantly garbed yet still slightly-harried jockey. He rose us to a $30,000 profit for the evening from pledges and an auction. Without James this would most likely have been impossible. Somehow he auctioned a jar of Marmite for $1,000 and "absolutely nothing" for $500. You have to be a first class organic intellectual psychologist to do such things - and all amongst cascades of laughter. For the 2015 dinner James was equally enterprising and adept in creating laughter and unity among the guests with humour that included a very funny interactive engagement with the guests. Again it was no problem for James to run a hilarious and fruitful auction making $37,000. In 2018 James shared the comedic slots with the Topp Twins, which his ingenuity and superb MC talent made it a night to remember. James can equally be the sole comedian or interact humourously with others. On this occasion James recounted the history of Ambury Park Centre poignantly and with many touches of brilliant humour. The Topp Twins and James were joint auctioneers resulting in an unexpected take of over $45,000. In James' stand-up comedian slots on the three evenings his witty and perfectly contextured ideas and wordplay had the place rocking. He is a prime-time comedian who has the intellectual wherewithal to play, unscripted, the rather worried and put-upon persona with bursts of (tangential) superbly in-contexted humour. The kind of humour you talk about for years afterwards. James Elliott is a comedian and comedic master of ceremonies to celebrate. Ambury Park has been deeply honoured with his presence on all three occasions.
President of the Board
Ambury Park
AJ Park engaged James Elliott to speak at our 2016 IP Roundtable conference. This is our flagship client event, and the audience is made up of general counsel, IP managers, C-suite, and other senior executives. The brief we gave James was to provide a light-hearted and engaging presentation on anything he liked. We just wanted him to entertain our clients for 30 minutes between courses!
James astutely used his legal background and comedic skills to morph himself into a visiting expat Kiwi with vast experience and erudition in the world of IP law, innovation and technology. He did such a good job of staying in character for the entire evening (including pre-dinner drinks and the dinner itself), that a number of our guests were still asking the day after whether he was for real or not.
Not only did James meet the brief, it was an absolute pleasure to deal with him throughout the process.
Chief Marketing Officer
AJ Park Intellectual Property
I cannot speak highly enough of James' comic ability and entertainment value. He was also extremely flexible and accommodating and stressed that we could continue to make changes to any announcements or format on the night, or give him anything else we wanted him to do. James has a warm and engaging personality and is extremely pleasant to deal with.
Dr Jan Reeves
James did a fantastic job, he was witty, clever, articulate and polished. He took the scripts we gave him and transformed them into fabulous entertainment. The audience loved him. James is so easy to work with, he is clear about what needs to be done in order to do a great job.
Gregory Fortuin
Chair
WriteMark
James did a great job in engaging with the audience; keeping things working smoothly.
Vikram Kumar
Chief Executive
InternetNZ
James is intelligent and astute, with a sharp wit an unerring ability to recognise the absurd in everyday situations. I have no hesitation in recommending him to any organisation looking for an engaging speaker who tailors his presentation to his audience. He is well prepared, well informed, professional and highly entertaining.
Jo Buckton
Executive Officer
New Zealand Institute of Legal Executives
James delivered a very engaging and funny speech, cleverly working in a number of topics particularly relevant to the medico-legal audience. The audience reaction was very positive and there was excellent feedback subsequently. James' careful use of language and style of delivery make for an especially good combination.
Ian Gualt
President
Auckland Medio-Legal Society
