Jump directly to the content
COMEDIC COUPLE

Nish Kumar: All about the comedian’s life and girlfriend Amy Annette

NISH KUMAR is known for his work on BBC comedy show The Mash Report and his 2019 headline-stealing Brexit joke at a charity gig.

The British comedian, and host of podcast Pod Save the UK, is in a long-term relationship with fellow stand-up Amy Annette.

 Nish is a comedian who has done several successful stand-up shows
1
Nish is a comedian who has done several successful stand-up showsCredit: WARNING: Use of this image is subject to the terms of use of BBC Pictures' Digital Picture

Who is Nish Kumar and what's his background?

Nish Kumar is a comedian who was born in Tooting, South London in 1985.

The star was raised, and still identifies as, Hindu.

Kumar studied English and History at Durham University before beginning his comedy career in 2006.

He initially performed as a double act with his fellow Durham student Tom Neenan but began performing solo in 2013.

Kumar has performed three stand-up shows and had two  sell-out runs at The Soho Theatre.

He has also appeared at a number of festivals, including Edinburgh and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

Who is Nish Kumar's girlfriend Amy Annette?

Kumar is in a long-term relationship with fellow comedian Amy Annette.

As of 2024, the couple have been together for 13 years.

Kumar and Annette live together in South London but keep their relationship out of the spotlight.

As well as being a comedian, Annette is a co-editor of, and contributor to, the book I Call Myself a Feminist.

She has also appeared on the Reasons To Be Cheerful and Evil Genius podcasts, as well as Stuart Goldsmith's Infinite Sofa.

What TV shows has Nish Kumar appeared in?

Funnyman Kumar was the host of BBC Two comedy news show The Mash Report before its cancellation in 2021.

The series briefly moved to Dave but was cancelled again in 2023.

Kumar has also taken part in Sky One sport show Comedians Watching Football With Friends and the Comedy Central series Joel & Nish vs The World.

Throughout his career he has regularly featured on panel shows like Have I Got News for You, Mock the Week, 8 Out of 10 Cats, and QI.

He was also a cast member on series 5 of Taskmaster, starring alongside Bob Mortimer, Sally Phillips, Aisling Bea and Mark Watson.

What is Nish Kumar's net worth?

Kumar is reported to have a net worth of around £1million.

He has amassed this fortune through his various stand-up and TV projects.

What happened when Nish Kumar made a joke about Brexit?

Kumar was reportedly booed off stage and had a bread roll thrown at him while he made jokes at a charity Christmas event at the Grosvenor Hotel in Park Lane in 2019.

The Lord's Taverners charity - which raises money for vulnerable children - was set up in 1950 at the world-famous, invite-only London cricket club the MCC - considered to be the holy grail of the sport.

Kumar was heckled as members took offence to his jibes about Brexit and the comedian reacted defiantly to calls for him to leave and refused to budge.

It was only when an event compere stepped in to cut the set short that Kumar agreed to leave the stage.

BBC Radio One DJ Greg James as present at the charity event and took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share his thoughts about the incident.

He wrote: "Because I’m seeing some inaccurate press reports, I'd just like to say that the treatment of @MrNishKumar by some members of the crowd at the @LordsTaverners fundraising Christmas lunch yesterday was appalling.

"It's a charity I was proud to be an ambassador of and the work they do with disadvantaged young people is extraordinary. But yesterday served as a timely reminder that disagreeing with someone doesn’t mean you have the right to abuse them verbally or physically."

He continued: "I was devastated for Nish (who gave his time for free)... I was embarrassed to be there.

"On an afternoon that was supposed to be about kindness, there was a distinct lack of it in the room."

Did Nish Kumar comment on the Brexit joke incident?

Addressing the incident in the aftermath of the event, Kumar compared himself to music icon Bob Dylan, sharing newspaper articles that said the folk musician found it funny that people had walked out of his shows after booing him.

He went on to joke on X: "In my defence, it was only one bread roll and it missed me."

Kumar then added: "Someone from @BBCFrontRow just contacted me about doing an interview about the 'politics of comedians doing corporates' because of what happened last night.

"Just to be clear, it was an unpaid charity. I had bread thrown at me doing an unpaid charity gig. What a life."

Speaking to The Guardian, Nish later explained: "I made what I considered to be some extremely mild jokes about Boris Johnson, Jacob Rees Mogg, Theresa May and the Brexit process for not going well."

He continued: "I sort of knew what I was doing and I knew the risk. They were more easily offended than I thought they would be. I would like to apologise if I triggered any of them."

 

Topics