# James Veitch (comedian)
**James Veitch** is a British comedian, musician, and writer known for technology-themed comedy, most notably for replying to email scammers and turning the resulting correspondence into stand-up shows, a TED Talk, a book, and a web series.[1](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/) A former Apple Store Genius, he builds his performances around real digital evidence, including on-screen emails, screenshots, and recordings, rather than purely observational jokes.[1](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/) • [2](https://www.altcomedy.com/comedians/james-veitch)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Known for | Correspondence with email scammers and viral TED Talks about spam email[3](https://www.ted.com/speakers/james_veitch) |
| Breakthrough talk | "This is what happens when you reply to spam email," published on YouTube 1 February 2016; 58,116,663 views and 1,100,000 likes at retrieval[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QdPW8JrYzQ) |
| View-record claim | Described as the fastest TED Talk ever to reach over ten million views[1](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/) |
| First solo show | *The Fundamental Interconnectedness of Everyone with an Internet Connection*, Edinburgh Fringe, 2014[3](https://www.ted.com/speakers/james_veitch) |
| Book | *Dot Con*, published 2015, based on his first live show[1](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/) |
| Radio | Wrote and hosted *James Veitch's Contractual Obligation* on BBC radio, three series, 2019 to 2020[5](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/james_veitch/) |
| Television special | *James Veitch: Straight to VHS*, HBO Max, 2020[2](https://www.altcomedy.com/comedians/james-veitch) |
## The spam-email correspondence
Veitch's signature material began with a practical question: what happens if you answer a scam email instead of deleting it? The starting point was a message from a friend's hacked email account asking him to settle some London hotel bills, the classic "marooned friend" scam.[6](https://londonist.com/2015/02/cyberspace-spam-wars-with-comedian-james-veitch) Rather than cutting off contact, Veitch played along, stringing the fraudsters along with tangents and absurd requests, at one point posing as a medical doctor advising a [Goldman Sachs](https://www.edgepedia.org/goldman-sachs) advisor, while dangling just enough promise of a [Western Union](https://www.edgepedia.org/western-union) transfer to keep the exchange going.[6](https://londonist.com/2015/02/cyberspace-spam-wars-with-comedian-james-veitch) • [7](https://www.chortle.co.uk/review/2014/05/05/20117/brighton-fringe-review-james-veitch)
The correspondence format carries through his stage work. In performance, the actual emails appear on a screen, so the audience reads the exchanges as much as hears them; one recurring scammer in his 2015 London show, an internet con artist named Solomon Odonkoh, provided a running thread across the run.[7](https://www.chortle.co.uk/review/2014/05/05/20117/brighton-fringe-review-james-veitch) • [6](https://londonist.com/2015/02/cyberspace-spam-wars-with-comedian-james-veitch) A reviewer noted the effect of this approach: the exchanges reveal human beings, exasperated and occasionally affectionate ones, at the other end of what audiences usually imagine as faceless spam.[6](https://londonist.com/2015/02/cyberspace-spam-wars-with-comedian-james-veitch)
## The TED talks
Veitch filmed his first TED Talk at the end of 2015. "This is what happens when you reply to spam email" narrates a weeks-long exchange with a spammer who offered to cut him in on a hot deal.[8](https://www.italktelly.com/post/i-talk-to-james-veitch) It became the fastest TED Talk to pass two million views, had reached 7.5 million views by mid-2016, and was later reported as the fastest talk ever to reach ten million views in TED's history.[8](https://www.italktelly.com/post/i-talk-to-james-veitch) • [1](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/) As of retrieval, the talk stood at 58,116,663 views on YouTube.[4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QdPW8JrYzQ)
His second talk, "The agony of trying to unsubscribe," runs 7 minutes 31 seconds and describes what happened when a local supermarket refused to remove him from its marketing emails.[3](https://www.ted.com/speakers/james_veitch) Both talks were posted on the TED speaker page in October 2020.[3](https://www.ted.com/speakers/james_veitch)
## Live shows and writing
Veitch premiered his first solo show, *The Fundamental Interconnectedness of Everyone with an Internet Connection*, at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2014, out of which came his book *Dot Con*.[3](https://www.ted.com/speakers/james_veitch) • [1](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/) His second show, *Genius Bar* (2015), drew on his time working for Apple, applying the six-step troubleshooting procedure he had used on iMacs, iPhones, and iPods to fixing a broken relationship.[3](https://www.ted.com/speakers/james_veitch) • [9](https://www.chortle.co.uk/comics/j/34301/james_veitch/review) A 2014 review of his debut placed his style alongside [Dave Gorman](https://www.edgepedia.org/dave-gorman)'s documentary-comedy tradition, with the caveat that each scam story ended unresolved when the fraudster realized the game was up.[7](https://www.chortle.co.uk/review/2014/05/05/20117/brighton-fringe-review-james-veitch)
He had sold-out runs at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2014 and 2015 and at Soho Theatre in 2016 with his first three shows, *Dot Con*, *Game Face*, and *Genius Bar*, and toured internationally with *Genius Bar* in 2019.[1](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/) • [2](https://www.altcomedy.com/comedians/james-veitch) Later Fringe work included *James Veitch Is Available For Parties* (2017), which broadened the format beyond scam emails to other digital interactions, and a work-in-progress show in 2018.[2](https://www.altcomedy.com/comedians/james-veitch) • [7](https://www.chortle.co.uk/review/2014/05/05/20117/brighton-fringe-review-james-veitch)
In 2026 he ran a [Kickstarter](https://www.edgepedia.org/kickstarter) campaign for *James Veitch's "Comedy" Special*, described as filmed mostly in his living room; 2,761 backers pledged £88,757.[10](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jamesveitch/james-veitchs-comedy-special/posts/3810061?comment=Q29tbWVudC00MDM0MTY0Mg%3D%3D)
## Broadcast work
Veitch wrote and performed *Scamalot*, a comedic web series documenting his interactions with email scammers, made in 2016; sources attribute the production to Mashable and to the BBC.[2](https://www.altcomedy.com/comedians/james-veitch) • [1](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/) He appeared multiple times on TBS's *[Conan](https://www.edgepedia.org/conan-talk-show)*, including a billed show at the Orpheum Theatre in November 2018.[2](https://www.altcomedy.com/comedians/james-veitch) • [1](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/) In 2020 he released the [HBO Max](https://www.edgepedia.org/hbo-max) comedy special *Straight to VHS*.[2](https://www.altcomedy.com/comedians/james-veitch)
On BBC radio he wrote and hosted *James Veitch's Contractual Obligation*, three series broadcast between 2019 and 2020, covering topics including mindfulness, deepfakes, going off-grid, time travel, and the video game [Animal Crossing](https://www.edgepedia.org/animal-crossing); he appeared as a panelist on *8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown* in 2019.[5](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/james_veitch/)
## References
1. [James Veitch, First Avenue performer page](https://first-avenue.com/performer/james-veitch/)
2. [James Veitch: The Digital Comedy Mastermind, AltComedy.com](https://www.altcomedy.com/comedians/james-veitch)
3. [James Veitch, TED speaker page](https://www.ted.com/speakers/james_veitch)
4. [This Is What Happens When You Reply to Spam Email, TED on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QdPW8JrYzQ)
5. [James Veitch, British Comedy Guide](https://www.comedy.co.uk/people/james_veitch/)
6. [Cyberspace Spam Wars With Comedian James Veitch, Londonist](https://londonist.com/2015/02/cyberspace-spam-wars-with-comedian-james-veitch)
7. [Brighton Fringe review: James Veitch, Chortle](https://www.chortle.co.uk/review/2014/05/05/20117/brighton-fringe-review-james-veitch)
8. [I TALK TO James Veitch, I Talk Telly](https://www.italktelly.com/post/i-talk-to-james-veitch)
9. [James Veitch: Genius Bar review, Chortle](https://www.chortle.co.uk/comics/j/34301/james_veitch/review)
10. [James Veitch's "Comedy" Special, Kickstarter](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/jamesveitch/james-veitchs-comedy-special/posts/3810061?comment=Q29tbWVudC00MDM0MTY0Mg%3D%3D)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Theater and dance › Stand-up comedy and comedians › British and Irish comedians › Alternative comedy generation*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license