| The Pin | |
|---|---|
 Alex Owen (left) and Ben Ashenden (right) | |
| Medium | Theatre; Radio; Television |
| Nationality | British |
| Years active | 2013 – present |
| Genres | Double-act; sketch comedy; surreal humour |
| Website | http://www.thepincomedy.com |
The Pin is a comedy double-act composed of Ben Ashenden and Alex Owen.[1] They wrote and starred in a BBC Radio 4 show of the same name from 2015 to 2019.[2]
The double act met at the University of Cambridge, where they joined the Cambridge Footlights. Whilst members, they co-wrote and performed the sketch show ‘Good Clean Men’ with Joey Batey, Joe Bannister, Mark Fiddaman and Simon Haines,[3][4] and they co-wrote and performed in two international tour shows: 2010's 'Good For You,'[5] directed by Liam Williams and Daran Johnson, and 2011's 'Pretty Little Panic'[6] directed by Keith Akushie and James Moran.
'The Pin' was originally the title of a show written and performed by Ashenden, Owen, and original member Mark Fiddaman in their final year at Cambridge in 2011.[7] After graduating, the three moved to London and started developing shows at the Invisible Dot comedy club[8][9][10] to take to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[11] The Pin became a duo when Fiddaman left to pursue graduate studies at the University of Oxford.[12]
Their shows at Edinburgh have garnered great critical acclaim from the likes of The Guardian,[13][14] The Sunday Times,[15][16] The Daily Telegraph,[17][18][19] and more.[20][21][22][23][24][25]
In 2015 the pair's debut BBC Radio 4 series aired, called "The Pin", with four 15-minute episodes. It is characterised by self-referential humour and breaking the fourth wall, with each sketch followed by brief commentary. It was followed by a second series in 2016, and a third series in 2017, this time in the 6.30 pm slot, with half-hour long episodes. A fourth series was broadcast in 2019.
In 2021, they guest starred in an episode of BBC comedy Ghosts.[26]
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Main article: The Comeback (play) |
The pair wrote and starred in a new play The Comeback at the Noël Coward Theatre in London's West End which opened on 8 December 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic (with a socially distanced audience). The run was due to end on 3 January 2021, however due to the London Tier 3 restrictions announced by the government, the run was paused after 16 December 2020. It reopened on 7 July 2021 and ran until 25 July 2021.
The Pin was the 2013 winner of London Sketchfest's prize for 'Best Act,'[27][28] and the first series of their Radio 4 show won them the award for 'Best Comedy' at the 2016 BBC radio awards.[29]
There were nominated for the South Bank Sky Arts Award 'Breakthrough Act' 2021.[30]