(Because Wikipedia entries don’t tell the full story!)

I was educated at Mt. Carmel primary school, Meadowbank, and then St. Peter’s College, Auckland. Alongside a brief, incomplete stint at university I pursued a career as a stand-up comedian beginning on the embryonic local scene in 1989. I moved to Melbourne in 1993 working the pro-circuit there – the first Kiwi comedian to do so – in the company of some great comedians, famous and non. Returning home 18 months later, and taking part in the first ever Auckland Comedy Festival in 1993, I continued performing around the country but with one eye on more serious writing. My history of New Zealand comedy followed along with writing film reviews for the marvellous but sadly short-lived Quote/Unquote magazine. In 1996 National Radio produced my children’s story Young Horace and Oscar’s Trick. Read by Ian Watkin, it continued to be broadcast for 20 years.
After a couple of years living in Ireland, I formulated and taught a Comedy Writing course in Christchurch which morphed into The Ministry of Chocolate Fisheries radio shows. Through the early 2000s I was based in Wellington performing in local venues and appearing in Fringe and Comedy festivals. For two years I had a weekly comedy show on Access Radio which made use of my large comedy album collection as well as interviewing visiting comedians and promoting local comedy. This also gave me the opportunity to write and produce several hour-long documentaries on the likes of Lenny Bruce and American Civil Rights comedy.
You can see me in several scenes of Peter Jackson’s King Kong (if you know where to look, freeze-frame and enlarge the bystanders) and I have appeared in TV shows such as New Zealand’s Top 100 History Makers, History Under the Hammer, Funny As and documentaries produced overseas on the life of Dave Gallaher.
Being made redundant during the GFC from a position as a legal researcher at a large New Zealand law firm, I took the leap into becoming a full-time author.

You can view my in-depth NZ On Screen interview for the ‘Funny As’ documentary series here

I contributed a chapter on NZ comedy to Glory Days: from gumboots to platforms by Ian Chapman/Dr. Glam. HarperCollins, 2009. ISBN: 9781869507282 and a page on growing hops for Steve Hale’s The Kiwi Man Cave Manual. David Bateman, 2016. ISBN: 9781869539528.

There is a profile of me (alongside some real fishermen!) for The Kiwi Fisherman’s Guide to Life by Mike Rendle and Ian Chapman. HarperCollins, 2012. ISBN: 9781869508975

I’ve reviewed books on Radio New Zealand, The Press newspaper (1997-2012) and North and South magazine (2010-Covid). Contributions to other periodicals include New Zealand Memories (#115, #119, #124, #127, #140, #173) takahe poetry journal (#87), the Phantom Billstickers Poetry on the Streets project, New Zealand Rugby News, Forest and Bird and AudioCulture, ‘the noisy library of New Zealand music’.

Author visits, festival appearances, talks etc: Sacred Heart College, Auckland; St. Peter’s College, Auckland; Kristin Middle School, Albany (2012, 2016, 2018); St. Joseph’s Catholic School, Pukekohe; Takapuna Scouts; Sancta Maria College, Botany; Birkenhead Public Library; Auckland Heritage Festival (2012, 2016, 2019); Gisborne Boys’ High School; Campion College, Gisborne; Ilminster Intermediate, Gisborne; Stanley Ave School, Te Aroha; Auckland Writers and Readers Festival Schools’ Programme, 2013; Birkenhead College (2010, 2018, 2019); 20th Australasian Humour Studies Network Colloquim (hosted by Victoria University), 2014; Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival, 2014; Kelston Boys’ High School, Auckland; World War One Book Club, NZ Book Council event, Wellington; Speed Date an Author, NZ Book Council schools’ event, National Library, Auckland; Bookclub 119, Book Discussion Scheme; Silverdale Normal School, Hamilton (2015, 2016, 2017, 2019); MC, 2016 New Zealand Book Industry Awards; 2016 NZ Defence Force Rugby Tournament, Linton Army Camp; Glenfield Library Messines Centenary talk; Dom Polski, Auckland Polish Society; Polish Settlers Museum, Howick; East Coast Bays’ library Tea and Talks; Beach Haven Kindergarten; Verran Primary; Anzac Day service address, Birkenhead RSA, 2019; Windwhistle Ladies Dinner Group, Terrace Downs; Birkdale North Primary School Book Week; Belmont Intermediate #ForTheLoveofReading week; Knighton Normal Primary School, Hamilton; Marist Alternative Education prize-giving; Glenfield Library children’s holiday programme; Glenfield Library Tea and Topics; Birkenhead Heritage Society; Rangitoto College; North Shore Historical Society; Beach Haven Birkdale Residents Association history talk; Te Ara Whetū Kāhui Ako; Birkenhead Friends’ Group; Westmere Primary School; Devonport Primary School; Milford Probus; Birkdale Beach Haven Community Project ‘Strawberry Land’ walk; Seniornet North Shore;

Kathrin Simon’s FADE. Photographic exhibition of historic Hokianga churches. TSB Wallace Arts Centre Pah Homestead, Auckland Art Week; No 1 Parnell gallery, Rawene; Whangarei Art Museum; Depot Artspace, Devonport. Also featured in Art New Zealand Number 160, Summer 2016-17.

FROM MY COMEDY CLIPPINGS ARCHIVE:

Returning from Australia in 1994, I was in a show called Best of the Fest with Dean Butler (Funny Business) and Andrew Clay. It was part of the Watershed Comedy Festival which grew to become the Auckland Comedy Festival. In the NZ Herald review by Harvey Clarke, he wrote that ‘Elliot[sic] and Clay, home after spending time in Australia, have progressed from their humble, amateurish beginnings on the Auckland stand-up circuit in the late 80s. They have blossomed into confident, fully-fledged comics’ and ‘we are witnessing New Zealand stand-up comedy’s coming-of-age.’

There is a bit of a story to this next review. The evening ‘would have been a complete disaster if it hadn’t been for the reappearance of one of this country’s most experienced ‘stand-up’ comics…Hopefully these younger comics will learn from the slick professionalism and class of Matt Elliott and develop a Christchurch comedy scene.’ – Presto magazine, 1997.
The venue was called a short-lived but vibrant addition to the Christchurch arts scene, The Green Room, just off High Street in Lichfield Street. The ‘younger comics’ were an ensemble calling themselves Four Fingers Missing. I had given them some technical tips on setting out the room, such as lighting and seating, and did a bit of emceeing for them. Among their number were Chris Bryan, Grant Loban, Mark Hutchings and a guy specialising in physical comedy called Rhys Darby. There was, as they say, something about him back then and I can still remember Rhys’ reaction to the review and giving me a bit of stick. I wonder whatever happened to him…

From the 2006 Wellington Fringe Festival; ‘…veteran Matt Elliott. He’s a sublime storyteller of the ridiculous. Whether he’s dealing with the city council checking out a children’s tree house for resource consent (Where are the fire-extinguishers? The wheelchair access?), the threatening behaviour of charity collectors, or bus travelling as an Olympic sport, he and his audience feed off their mutual enjoyment of the material and each other.’ – Scoop, 2006.