Amazing Mendezies

Formed in 1979 by Chris Adams and Dave Spathaky, The Amazing Mendezies were an almost legendary comedy double act who performed worldwide. They were one of the seminal acts who re-established busking in the renovated Covent Garden in the early 1980s.

There circus skills show was based, in the format of many traditional double acts, on each of them in turn disrupting and upstaging the attempts of the other to perform.

At an early stage they travelled to San Francisco and encountered the emerging busking scene there and also travelled around Europe busking which transformed their style and notably forced them to cut much of the verbal dialogue from their act.

They played at a great many outdoor festivals such as Glastonbury Festival and the Albion Fairs in East Anglia and within a few years had become popular on the emerging alternative comedy circuit in London and in Europe on the summer Festivals circuit. For several years they performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in the street and from there were invited to perform at the 'Last Laugh' cabaret venue in Melbourne Australia and on a TV special, Celebration with Emma Thompson and Gary Wilmot.

Dave went on to form Ra-Ra Zoo and Chris worked in several other double acts. They disbanded in 1983 in Edinburgh after their most financially successful day ever busking and the first time they had ever been asked for an encore after a street show.