Comic overwhelmed as millions watch slo-mo footballer routine

A comic whose slow-motion impression of a footballer celebrating has been watched by millions online has said the reaction has been "overwhelming".

Karl Porter's routine has been widely shared online, with his Instagram post receiving more than 3.3 million views.

It has also garnered thousands of comments, including one from the Premier League asking who inspired it.

The 30-year-old said it was based on what he saw during his time as a binman at Manchester City's Etihad stadium.

The Cheetham Hill-born comedian, who now works at Blackpool's Winter Gardens between stand-up shows, said despite the routine recently winning a competition at a comedy club in London, he "really didn't expect it to go as big as it did".

"It's been overwhelming," he said.

"It's just been non-stop since I posted it."

He said he had been performing at comedy clubs since 2019 and hoped to "make it a full-time living".

The routine was something that had developed organically through those shows, he said.

Spanish commentary

"A lot of people do ask me if I've rehearsed it, but... because my comedy is physical, I tend to try stuff on stage and then develop it that way," he said.

"So I don't tend to practice it at home or anything.

"I've just developed it more and more on stage over the last six to 10 months."

However, he admitted that the nucleus of the routine might be much older.

"When I was a kid, if I watched football, I would always just act out every celebration on my own in my bedroom," he said.

"But I've also definitely got a lot of material from when I worked at Manchester City.

"I've got a lot of stuff from observing managers and players and I've kept a note of it."

He said he was already working on a follow-up, which he said would be an impression of an enthusiastic Spanish football commentator.

"When I worked as a binman at the Etihad I found a mic cover with the Champions League logo on it, so I put that on my mic and do an impression of Spanish commentary," he said.