Arj Barker is an American standup comedian with a worldwide following. Arj Barker has firmly established himself as one of the golden boys on the international comedy circuit. Australian audiences have grown to know and love his unique observations, heavy sarcasm and loud anger.
As a standup he won the coveted Perrier Best Newcomer Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and has performed regular sell out seasons at the Adelaide Fringe Festival and Melbourne International Comedy Festival. He now tours Australia and New Zealand on a regular basis attracting sold out audiences at the largest theatres in the country. He has also performed in Holland, Sweden, Norway, USA, Canada, England, Scotland, Ireland, South Africa, Singapore, Malaysia and New Zealand
He has made numerous appearances on late night talk shows; including Letterman and Conan O’Brian shows, as well as his own half hour special on HBO produced by comedy central. Arj also plays ‘Dave’ on HBO’s hit series ‘ Flight of the Conchords ‘. Arj has also appeared on Bill Maher’s Last Comic Standing and Multiple “Just for Laughs” Galas.
Arj is also a favourite on Australian TV; having appeared on “Thank God You’re Here”, “Rove”, “Spicks and Specks”, “Good News Week”, “The 7pm Project”, “Talkin ‘bout Your Generation”, “Have You Been Paying Attention”, “The Footy Show” as well as numerous Melbourne International Comedy Festival Galas.
Arj cowrote and performed in “The Marijuana Logues”, an Off Broadway Show parodying the feministically geared production, “The Vagina Monologues.” Barker also has his own Flash series, Arj and Poopy; based on some of his standup material and starring him and his cat, Poopy, who talks by farting. The series has been sydnicated to AtomFilms.
Arj also just recently released his online musical comedy video, “Disgracebook”, that pokes fun at the ways in which we are misusing and abusing social media.
Though acting is a consideration, Barker seems to enjoy doing standup and travelling most. And so he continues to tour the world, bringing his original brand of humour wherever there’s a stage and an English speaking audience.
He has released five DVDs in Australia and New Zealand, all achieving minimum Platinum sales status with his second release ‘Balls’ nominated for an ARIA (Australian Record Industry Award).
- Comedy Style: Known for using heavy sarcasm, loud anger, and deadpan, observational humor.
- Breakthrough: Won the Perrier Best Newcomer Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1997.
- Television & Film: Appeared on Letterman, Conan, and Comedy Central specials. He also appeared in What We Do In The Shadows and the 2024 film The Nut Farm.
- Career in Australia: Often referred to as “Australia’s adopted son of comedy,” he is a regular at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival and has won an ARIA Award for Best Comedy Release (for Organic in 2019).
- The Mind Field: Launched a new live stand-up show in 2024.
- 2025 Tour: Appeared at the North Australian Festival of Arts in September 2025