Australian stand-up comedian and actor Joshua Hauville, who performs as a brash French character, experienced a quintessentially French mishap while visiting Perth. On Friday, before his Joshy in Paris show, Hauville was about to bite into a croissant from Highgate's Chu Bakery when a bird swooped in and snatched the pastry from his hand.
Hauville captured the entire incident on camera, reacting in character while sitting on a bench in Hyde Park. "Hello, I'm a Frenchman in Perth and today I try this croissant from Chu Bakery," he began. After noting the croissant looked "really good," his anticipation turned to shock and amusement. "This bird just take my f.....g croissant! That was crazy," he exclaimed.
A slow-motion replay highlighted the comedian's genuinely stunned expression. Hauville later retrieved the croissant and gave his verdict. "This is maybe the first thing that tastes good in my life and a bird coming and f....g taking from my face," he continued. He then panned to birds in a lake, musing about how the "nasty bird" would feel if he snatched food from its baby's mouth.
Suggesting "one cannot trust anything in this country," Hauville added that "a bird would never do this in Paris." He captioned the Instagram clip: "Frenchman assaulted in Perth in broad daylight ? help me get reclamations against this nasty bird ? comedy show tonight Perth 7pm."
Chu Bakery and fans reacted with laughter. "You couldn't have staged this if you wanted to ?," Chu Bakery commented. One person wrote, "Hahahahaha I'm crying and I can't work out if you're French if from Perth ?." Hauville clarified: "I'm an Australian comedian visiting to do my show tonight — so neither! But the attack was real nonetheless."
Locals shared similar experiences at the park. "Bro the birds in that park are on top it. That exact thing happened to me after I'd taken one bite of a massive cinnamon donut from Chu and I couldn't believe it! Until another guy ran up and said 'did that bird just take your donut?! That happened to me the other day'. Clever birds," said one.
Hauville, known for chaotic cabaret performances, will perform at Oasis Comedy Club at 7pm Friday night.
