Henry Sir’s particular take on political comedy is striking a chord.
The year started out well. In January and February, the Edmonton comedian sold out three consecutive shows at the 350-seat Orange Hub Theatre, then three more in Calgary, as well as a smattering of dates across the country.
“It’s exciting and I’m really grateful,” he says. “This is such a hard, ridiculous thing to try to make a living at. When you can actually move tickets, that’s everything.”
The entry point for many fans: his mile-a-minute Instagram videos — dubbed the Current Events Chirped By A Canadian series — in which he adopts a stereotypical hoser accent (you know the one: a little nasal, droppin’ the Gs, peppering conversation with “mahn” and “buddy”) while deftly weighing in on news of the day as accompanying images flash underneath. While you’re still laughing over a one-liner, Sir has already unleashed three more.
“When I was a teenager, I started working labour jobs and it was really eye opening,” he says. “I grew up around these Alberta dudes, but when I was in the belly of the beast — thick hoser Alberta accents and every other word is an F-bomb — I just got such a fascination with it. It became an ongoing bit, a character we were all doing. I think a lot of Canadians relate to that and that’s why it resonates.”
Part of the humour in the series is also the dissonance between delivery and message.
On President Donald Trump’s speech after Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Davos address: “Buddy following Carney was like Lightfoot opening for ICP.” He’s referring to Gordon Lightfoot and Insane Clown Posse.
Or the possibility of Alberta separation: “Like the first coldie of patio season, don’t take ’er for granted.”
In a November post he warned: “Saddle up boys, this shit is darker than 3 p.m. in Fort Mac,” before a monologue about the UCP invoking the notwithstanding clause on laws affecting transgender youth.
Sir primarily focuses on America and Alberta for good reason: he’s a dual citizen through his father, but he grew up in Edmonton, entrenched in playing basketball. He worked his way up to All-Canadian basketball player, then in college, he began to chase a childhood dream of pursuing standup and script writing.
That meant doing indie comedy nights around the city, though he quickly found he was getting more traction south of the border.
“Oftentimes, if you can prove yourself in the U.S., you’ll be taken seriously here, which I think is really silly,” he says. “It’s one aspect about Canadian culture that is hopefully changing now.”
But his career hit a turning point in 2023 after the death of his brother, Ben Sir, a musician, music promoter and staple in the inherently political Edmonton punk scene.
“Life punches you in the gut and it’s a bit of a wake-up call,” Sir says. “I feel it more with everything going on in the world. There are so many ugly, bad things happening that people are choosing not to acknowledge. I’d rather feel like I’m contributing something that’s of use. I don’t want to say what I’m doing is important, but instead of just trying to put out dumb clips of goofy jokes that I don’t care about, I’d rather feel sincerity in what I’m doing.”
And, at its core, that’s the appeal of his work and it’s clearly resonating. Without realizing it, you feel the anger, urgency and authenticity, delivered with the balm of comedy.
Aside from his run of sell-out shows, Sir has also appeared on Comedy Central, Just For Laughs New Faces, and The New Wave of Standup on CBC.
Last year, after a stint living in New York City and performing at famed Manhattan comedy clubs like The Comedy Cellar, Sir and his wife returned to Edmonton — to an appreciative fanbase, ready to help him sell out shows.
“I’m such a pessimist,” Sir says. “This is new to me; I’m trying to be more optimistic that this will result in more opportunities and good career stuff. But I’m also keeping in mind to go with the flow of things. It’s a big part of why I came back to Canada. There’s a lot more opportunity in New York, but I found myself getting lost with the obsession of, ‘Where is this going?’ And it came at the expense of life. This is still just a career and a job and if you’re not going to enjoy other aspects of life — friends, family, loved ones, getting outside, enjoying nature — what’s the point?”
This article appears in the July/August 2026 issue of Edify
