Mike Bubbins

Mike Bubbins is a Welsh comedian and actor. Originally a P.E. teacher, Bubbins has co-written and starred in the BBC sitcom, Mammoth. He also co-hosts podcast The Socially Distant Sports Bar; hosts Scrum V Top 5 for BBC Wales; and works as a stand-up.

Early life

Bubbins was born in Barry, South Wales, and attended Barry Boys' Comprehensive. He played youth rugby union as a flanker for Cardiff and was selected for Welsh Schools U18s and Wales U19s. He has spoken about not making further progress in the game:
He lived in Canada for three years, where he played and coached rugby, before returning to Wales to attend the University of Wales Institute as a mature student. Bubbins spent a decade as a physical education teacher, a profession also followed by his mother, before working the UK stand-up circuit. He credits British sitcom, The Office as inspiring him into the profession.

Television

Mammoth

In 2021 Bubbins wrote and starred in a sitcom pilot for BBC Wales, Mammoth, combining his experiences as a P.E. teacher with his love of the 1970s. Three episodes aired on BBC Two in 2024, and the show was commissioned for a second series of eight episodes, plus a Christmas special. Series two launched on 1 December 2025. As part of the promotion for the show, Bubbins performed in-character continuity announcements across the evening for BBC One Wales and BBC Two Wales. He introduced The One Show, EastEnders, Only Connect, University Challenge, Civilizations: Rise And Fall - and Mammoth itself.
In March 2025, BBC chairman Samir Shah described the show as "brilliant".

Scrum V Top 5

In November 2024, Bubbins' Scrum V Top 5 debuted on BBC Wales. Hosted from the bar in his garden, the show sees former rugby players and sportspeople creating a top-five list. An extended version of each episode is also available as a podcast.
A spin-off, Christmas Top 5, was broadcast in 2025.

#	Date	Guest	Subject	Ref
1		Sam Warburton	Favourite team-mates
2		Dan Biggar	Favourite opponents
3		Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson	Favourite rugby moments
4		Gareth Edwards	Players with whom he wished he'd played
5		Alun Wyn Jones	Favourite Six Nations matches
6		Jonathan Davies	Favourite individual tries
7		Steve Speirs	Rugby heroes
8		Adam Jones	Top-five forwards
9		Sarra Elgan	Favourite rugby characters
10		Colin Charvis	Top-five coaches
11		Will Carling	Top-five Welsh rugby players
12		Jamie Roberts	Top-five centres
		Bryn Terfel	Top-five Christmas songs
		Joanna Page	Top-five Christmas TV shows
		Sian Gibson	Top-five Christmas films

Acting roles

Bubbins has acted in BBC sitcoms, including Warren, where he played Bob; and Josh, in which he made an appearance as driving instructor, Huw. In the BBC Wales sitcom, Tourist Trap, Bubbins played Wyn – with Mari Beard as long-suffering wife Charlotte.
He portrayed an exaggerated version of himself in spoof paranormal investigation show, The Unexplainers – based on the radio show of the same name – and Pastor John in the second series of Soft Border Patrol.
Bubbins guested at desk sergeant Tony in BBC crime mystery series, Death Valley, which starred Timothy Spall in the lead role as John Chapel.

Presenting and guest appearances

Bubbins appeared in episode 12 of Eat Your Heart Out With Nick Helm ; series one, episode seven of Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier ; and in the documentary Rhod Gilbert: Stand Up To Shyness.
In April 2022, Bubbins starred in an episode of Iaith Ar Daith for S4C, in which he learned some Welsh, alongside friend and colleague, Elis James. This led to a viral clip of Bubbins singing Yma o Hyd alongside Dafydd Iwan.
Also in 2022, Bubbins co-presented eight episodes of BT Sports' clip-show, Down The Clubhouse, a spin-off from the Socially Distant Sports Bar podcast.
In 2024, he was a guest on Channel 4's cookery show, Sunday Brunch. He was also a panellist for series 17, episode 8 of Would I Lie to You?, alongside Babatunde Aléshé, Jessica Knappett, and Claudia Winkleman. Bubbins told a story about a schoolboy trip to the Wimbledon Championships, and performed the Ski Sunday theme in the style of Elvis Presley. The appearance came via a recommendation from presenter and author Richard Osman, after the pair worked together on Richard Osman's House Of Games.
In August 2025, Bubbins and his father, Bob, discussed the subject of 'holidays' for episode two of BBC Wales show, Back in the Day. He also guested on Morning Live, alongside Mammoth co-star, Sian Gibson in December 2025.
S4C's One In a Million saw Bubbins attempt to master the Welsh language, as part of the goal to have a million Cymraeg speakers by 2050.
Bubbins has been a contestant on various quiz shows.

Date	Show	Note	Opponents	Result	Ref.
30 Jan to	Richard Osman's House Of Games	Series 6, week 14	Kirsten O'Brien Kai Widdrington
26 Dec 2024	Celebrity Mastermind	Series 23, episode 3Subject: James Garner. 20pts	Kriss Akabusi Nikita Kanda Lindsey Santoro

Stand-up

Bubbins' introduction to stand-up in the mid-2000s came by accident. He told Rob Brydon:
After the course, Bubbins tried stand-up by posting a request on Facebook, which led to his first open mic comedy gig two weeks later. Part of the early material came from his own love of the 1970s, and accompanying wardrobe. A year later, he put on his first show at the Edinburgh Festival.
Bubbins' stand-up special, Retrosexual, was broadcast on BBC Radio Wales in May 2022. It has since been rebroadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra. Later the same year, Bubbins was a featured stand-up on the third episode of Kiri Pritchard-McLean's BBC show, Live From Barry Island. A full-length stand-up TV special, Throwback, was shown on BBC One Wales in December 2024, following a UK tour of the same show in 2023.
A 2026–27 UK and Ireland tour, Ideasman, was announced in late 2025.

Podcasting

Since March 2020, Bubbins has co-hosted The Socially Distant Sports Bar with sports journalist, Steffan Garrero; and fellow Welsh comedian Elis James. Garrero described the inspiration for the podcast.
The podcast toured theatres with a 12-date tour in 2021, culminating in a homecoming gig at Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff, in February 2023. The first time all three of them had met up in person together was on stage at the first gig of the tour.
Bubbins and John Rutledge – Eggsy from Welsh rap band Goldie Lookin' Chain – also hosts the Demon Seed podcast, which is described as "a 21st century, supernatural investigative comedy like no other."
In September 2025, Bubbins announced he was re-starting an NFL-focused podcast, alongside fellow comedian Tom Parry.
Beginning in 2015, Bubbins has played recurring character, Eli Roberts, on The Beef And Dairy Network. He also guested on episode 35 of The Moon Under Water podcast, with then-host, John Robins.
Bubbins is a two-time guest on Richard Herring's Leicester Square Theatre Podcast. In October 2022, he featured alongside James and Garrero; then, in July 2023, Bubbins was the main guest on episode 449.
In May 2023, Bubbins made national news after an appearance on Parenting Hell with Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe, in which he spoke about the abuse he'd received while refereeing children's rugby.
Bubbins has also been on multiple episodes of improvisational comedy podcast, Pappy's, including Pay The Hotel Bill with Joe Lycett in 2016, and Inflate The Airbed, alongside Rosie Jones in 2022.

Radio

In 2013, Bubbins presented and starred in his own BBC Radio Wales show, Mike Bubbins: Day Tripper. Between 2015 and 2018, he co-starred in four series of The Unexplainers with Rutledge. The show subsequently moved to television for a 2019 run, before launching as the Demon Seed podcast spin-off.
He made several appearances as a guest on BBC 5 Live's Fighting Talk and Blood on the Tracks. He has played various characters on Lucy Beaumont's BBC Radio sitcom To Hull And Back; and portrayed Mr. Lazarus in BBC Radio 4 comedy drama Dangerous Visions: Kafka's Metamorphosis.
In the summer of 2021 Bubbins hosted Nothing Beats The 70s on BBC Radio Wales, drawing on his love of the 1970s and asking guests to try to disprove his theory that its music and fashion made it the best decade. As part of the show, Bubbins interviewed American composer Mike Post – who went onto create the theme music for Mammoth.
In October 2024, Bubbins spent a week covering for Eleri Siôn in the 10p.m. to midnight slot on BBC Radio Wales. Shortly after, Bubbins and Sian Lloyd were guests on Ivo Graham's Radio 4 show, Obsessions.