Smiles from old flicks with Bulgaria’s best-loved actors or the virtuoso performances by the stage’s one-man-show Kamen Donev, Radoy Ralin’s biting satire or P.G. Wodehouse’s inimitable humour – the list of things that make Bulgarians laugh is a long one. And if you ask them what makes them laugh in their everyday lives – they’ll tell you they laugh at trivia, but also at witticisms that take the edge off embarrassing situations.

“There are many things in life that make me laugh,” says Zhelana Yankova, a musician and violin teacher. “First - witticisms, but also foolishness that is a fountain of laughs. I love an atmosphere in which there is always something that will make you laugh. People in the Scandinavian countries or in Britain laugh if they see someone trip and fall, we here laugh at witty thoughts or situations.”

Bulgarians are always apt to find something to laugh at. And if they don’t take themselves too seriously, they can always find something to ridicule even in the most tragic times in their lives, especially when the situation has blown over. You can hear them tell their stories like real anecdotes ready to be included in any collection of funny stories. It was, in fact, just such stories that inspired the Bulgarian classics, as well as latter-day stage directors and actors such as Marius Kourkinski and Kamen Donev. Tickets for their shows are usually sold out a month in advance. But the laughter is guaranteed in sufficient quantity as to last a whole week. This works for young chef Plamen Kisyov, who loves to go to see the plays at the Sofia Theatre of Satire. He says he goes there to have a hearty laugh and forget his daily concerns:

“Laughing is a way of life for me, I laugh a lot,” he says, “though not the people around me. There are so many problems in our lives that April Fool’s day is seen as just any other day. Because of the burden of problems most people spend their leisure time watching TV just to get away.”

But what does comic mean to Bulgarians? It is a way to let off steam, to recharge one’s battery with positive things or a philosophy of life that helps us all keep a grip on reality. Perhaps laughter is the mask that keeps us from getting hurt. Do we need the comical?

“Of course we do,” Zhelana Yankova says. “Without the things that are comical our lives would be so drab. The sense of the comic helps us emerge from any trouble refreshed and have a good laugh. But most of all humour helps lessen pessimism which we, Bulgarians definitely have an aptitude for. Complaining is a bad habit we have and I came to realize that after I lived some time in the Scandinavian countries.”

The older generation looked upon whining and complaining as a way to “ward off evil eyes” and banishing “bad luck”. So, even if you pay someone a compliment, instead of thanking you, they generally try to belittle your words – the pretty blouse they are wearing would be old, or the new hairdo wouldn’t be exactly what they had wanted; there will always be something negative to dampen the good intentions. Thank goodness the younger generation are not like that – they make the most of every little thing but don’t go into ecstasies where ecstasies are not due. One such young person is Elena Dimitrova, who is soon to become a mother for the second time – here is what makes her happy:

“The good times, the jokes, the positive things in life. Most of the times children have big smiles on their faces. But we don’t seem to be smiling so much nowadays. Our everyday lives burden us with problems and cares and we have little time left to enjoy the small things – even the fine weather we are having today, for example. Every little thing can give you occasion to smile.”

English version: Milena Daynova