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Phil Wang

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Phil Wang
王兴贵
Wang in 2026
Born
Philip Nathaniel Wang Sin Goi

(1990-01-22) 22 January 1990 (age 36)
Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England
EducationKing's College, Cambridge (BA (Hons), MEng)
Comedy career
MediumStand-up, television, radio
Websitewww.philwang.co.uk

Philip Nathaniel Wang Sin Goi[a] (simplified Chinese: 王兴贵; traditional Chinese: 王興貴; pinyin: Wáng Xīngguì; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: Vòng Hîn-kùi; born 22 January 1990) is a Malaysian-British stand-up comedian and comedy writer who is a member of the sketch comedy group Daphne,[1][2][3] and co-creator of their BBC Radio 4 series, Daphne Sounds Expensive. Until 2025, he hosted the comedy podcast BudPod with fellow comedian and Footlights alumnus Pierre Novellie.

Early life and education

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Philip Wang[4][5][6] was born on 22 January 1990[7] in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England.[8] His mother is English and his father Chinese-Malaysian of Hakka and Kadazan-Dusun[9] descent from suburban Tuaran district in Sabah's northern West Coast Division.[10][11] A few weeks after his birth, his family returned to the city of Kota Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia, where his parents had first met in 1982.[12]

Wang was raised in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, and educated in Malay, Mandarin, and English.[11] He first started secondary studies at Maktab Nasional[13] in Kota Kinabalu before later moving on to the Jerudong International School in Brunei. He then moved to Bath, United Kingdom at 16.[14] Wang attended Kingswood School and then completed a four-year engineering degree at King's College, Cambridge, where he was president of the Cambridge Footlights in 2012.[15][16][17][18][19]

Career

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Live stand-up

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Wang won the 2010 Chortle Student Comedian of the Year Award[20] and, in 2011, Comedy Central's Funniest Student Award.[citation needed]

He performed at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in March 2015.[21] In that year, he was a member of the sketch comedy group Daphne, who performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August of that year.[22][23][24][25]

Wang embarked on a worldwide comedy tour ending in 2024.[citation needed]

TV and radio

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Wang has made numerous television and radio appearances, including on shows such as Taskmaster, Would I Lie to You?, Have I Got News for You (including as compère in 2024), and 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown.[citation needed] He has performed stand-up on Live at the Apollo and competed on Roast Battle. His BBC Radio 4 comedy special Wangsplaining aired in 2019.[citation needed]

Wang performing in 2021

Wang released the Netflix specials Philly Philly Wang Wang in 2021[26] and Wang In There, Baby! in 2024.[27]

He acted in the sitcom Top Coppers, appeared in the 2023 film Wonka,[28] and played a role in the Netflix series 3 Body Problem.[29]

In 2021, he launched the Audible podcast Phil Wang Hates Horror.[citation needed]

Other activities

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Wang's first book, Sidesplitter: How to Be from Two Worlds at Once, was published in 2021.[30]

He hosted the British Academy Games Awards in both 2024 and 2025.[31]

From 2026, Wang is a judge on Great British Menu, replacing Ed Gamble.[32]

Works

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  • Sidesplitter: How To Be From Two Worlds At Once (Coronet Books, 2021) ISBN 978-1529350272

References

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  1. ↑ In this Malaysian Hakka Chinese name, the surname is Wang (王). In accordance with custom, the Western-style name is Phil Wang and the Chinese-style name is Wang Sin Goi (simplified Chinese: 王兴贵; traditional Chinese: 王興貴).
  1. ↑ "Edinburgh comedy 2015: what to see". The Telegraph. 12 August 2015.
  2. ↑ "My Comedy Hero: Phil Wang on Leslie Nielsen". The List.
  3. ↑ Edinburgh festival 2015: 10 comedy acts to watch, The Guardian
  4. ↑ "Phil Wang's Chinese name". 16 December 2018.
  5. ↑ Insert Name Here (BBC), Series 3, Episode 2. (First broadcast 27 November 2017.)
  6. ↑ Phil Wang, Alex Horne (4 September 2018). Phil Wang Interview Taskmaster S7 - Dave (Video). UKTV. Event occurs at 1:37 – via YouTube.
  7. ↑ "Aisling Bea and Phil Wang head to Netflix". Chortle.
  8. ↑ "Interview: Phil Wang – The Comedian Who Isn't Afraid to Make You Laugh About Race". weareresonate. 2 March 2017.
  9. ↑ Wang, Phil (2022). "A Note on Ethnicity". Sidesplitter: How to Be from Two Worlds at Once. Hodder & Stoughton. ISBN 978-1-5293-5031-9.
  10. ↑ Wong, Gabby (2 March 2017). "Interview: Phil Wang – The comedian who isn't afraid to make you laugh about race". Resonate. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  11. 1 2 Wang P (2019) Phil Wang: Wangsplaining, BBC Studios.
  12. ↑ Bennett, Steve. "Phil Wang: I broke my arm filming Wonka : News 2023". Chortle. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
  13. ↑ "'Funniest' UK comedian remembers his Kota Kinabalu roots". dailyexpress.com.my. 15 January 2023. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
  14. ↑ "How JIS Brunei enabled these students to enter the world's elite universities". Study International News. 19 October 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  15. ↑ Chong, Kan Yaw (15 January 2023). "'Funniest' UK comedian remembers his Kota Kinabalu roots". Daily Express.
  16. ↑ Gil, Natalie (14 September 2015). "Learn from our mistakes: freshers' week regrets". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  17. ↑ Goldsmith, Stuart (13 February 2017). "Episode 197 – Phil Wang". The Comedian's Comedian (Podcast). Archived from the original on 27 February 2017. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  18. ↑ Banerjee, Rohan (18 July 2017). "Phil Wang on engineering comedy, Footlights, and why Brexit is a cock block". The New Statesman.
  19. ↑ Simon Bajkowski (27 March 2011). "That's Number One, Wang". The Tab.
  20. ↑ "Wang wins – Chortle student king crowned". Chortle. 18 August 2010.
  21. ↑ Stephanie Bunbury (23 March 2015). "Melbourne International Comedy Festival: Phil Wang engineers a laugh with 'high-status' comedy". The Sydney Morning Herald .
  22. ↑ "Edinburgh comedy 2015: what to see". The Telegraph. 12 August 2015.
  23. ↑ "My Comedy Hero: Phil Wang on Leslie Nielsen". The List.
  24. ↑ Edinburgh festival 2015: 10 comedy acts to watch, The Guardian
  25. ↑ "Phil Wang – Edinburgh Fringe 2015 – British Comedy Guide". British Comedy Guide.
  26. ↑ Logan, Brian (10 August 2021). "Phil Wang review – standup's Netflix special skewers PC panic, Covid racism and himself". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  27. ↑ Bennett, Steve. "Phil Wang: Wang In There, Baby! on Netflix : Reviews 2024 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2025.
  28. ↑ Bennett, Steve. "Phil Wang: I broke my arm filming Wonka : News 2023 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 24 December 2025.
  29. ↑ "Meet the cast of 3 Body Problem on Netflix". Radio Times. 22 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
  30. ↑ "Sidesplitter". The Guardian Bookshop. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
  31. ↑ Gardner, Matt (11 March 2025). "Phil Wang to host BAFTA Games Awards 2025". British Comedy Guide.
  32. ↑ "Comedian Phil Wang takes over from Ed Gamble on Great British Menu's judging panel". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
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