Bram Krikke has some explaining to do

For 99% of friendships, it will be recognizable: driving each other completely crazy by forwarding the funniest TikToks, Insta-reels, and posts. A bit less recognizable: when all your friends, and even acquaintances, send you the same reel. Specifically one where Bram Krikke imitates your father's TV show and gets surprised as if he is a participant in ‘All you need is Love’. Exactly this happened to me. So when I heard that Bram is participating in the third season of ‘LOL: Last One Laughing’ (streaming on Prime Video from today), I naturally seized my chance to ask him about it.

In LOL, the idea is that no one laughs at each other's jokes. What is it like to make jokes without the audience laughing at you? That seems super awkward to me...
Yes, that is very uncomfortable! My form of comedy is of course always online. You think it through well, and if a piece is just a bit less funny, you can easily cut it out. That's different for people who perform on stage weekly; I don't have that experience. And then you stand on stage at ‘LOL’, you have to do something you're not really familiar with, the curtain goes up, and you only have people in front of you who do have that experience and then don't laugh... You feel very small! But it's also a fun challenge; it's wonderful when you do manage to get someone to laugh. No one wants to laugh and thus fail, and that challenge to drive people to laugh is really fun.

Last season you were out super quickly, while I was mainly looking forward to your jokes! Have you practiced extra this time with not laughing? Thought of new techniques? 
Haha, you saw me as a winner! Well, the advantage is: you've done it once, so you know what to expect. But that's also a pitfall. I thought, ‘last season I laughed once, I'm just not going to do that now.’ But then you see who is participating, and you really have no use for experience. There's not much to practice; it's mostly hoping you won't laugh.

Do you have a particular weakness? A word or subject that always makes you laugh?
No particular word, but looks. Leo has such a look, a bit silly with those jam jar glasses. Then I already have a hard time. Just like with Plien and Bianca, they only have to look at me in a certain way, and I have to laugh. Leo only washed dishes last season; I was really saved by that.

Because who did you see as the biggest threat beforehand?
Leo. That vibe, I'm super sensitive to that. Spoiler alert: this season he won't be washing dishes. And then there's the Leo you know available, and he is really a danger. One look is enough. But there are also actors and actresses in this season, whom you initially think ‘what are they going to do’, but that's precisely dangerous. You really don't see it coming from them; it seems like a booby trap.

You also work a lot with Bianca; you do hilarious ‘Help my husband is a handyman’ sketches. Did this come about because of ‘LOL’?
I already knew Plien and Bianca before, but you meet a lot of fun people through ‘LOL’, which has indeed led to new collaborations. Like with Leo and Bas; I really know them through the show.

Imitating TV shows is something you enjoy. You also made fun of my father's show with Ricardo Ras! Are you secretly a bit of a fan of the show?
Oh really?! How funny! I say my name is hare, haha! Of course, I'm a fan; actually, I'm a fan of all the shows I imitate. That makes it even more fun to tick off all the clichés and make them even bigger or bizarre. So that people recognize things, but then take them to the extreme. Did you think Ricardo's imitation was good?

Well, I know my father too well, so I probably don't see it.
I was once parodied by the TV canteen; then I thought, ‘well, that's not so bad, I don't do that at all?’ But I heard from others that it really looked a lot like me.

And you're getting married! Do you have trouble being serious at those moments? Are you afraid you'll feel awkward and then make a silly joke?
No, fortunately, I don't have trouble with that! We're keeping the wedding very small, so I won't be tempted to make jokes. We only have the core around us, so it won't feel awkward.