Alexander Lamarque

Sydney’s exclusive exhibition of Ancient Egyptian artefacts has finally landed, and lovers of history and all that glitters are trying to remain cool. That overly-excited, Prince-doppelganger in the pictures (and in Time Out's First Look video of the exhibition) is me, AJ Lamarque: comedian, presenter and amateur egyptologist. I suppose anyone can call themselves an amateur egyptologist in the same way that anyone who’s ever been to Holey Moley can call themselves an amateur golfer. But I did spend a year learning Hieroglyphs at UC Berkeley (instead of actually doing my course subjects) so I do have some credentials to back up my claim.  Like many people, I was enamoured by Ancient Egyptian culture from a young age, and that fascination has only grown as I’ve gotten older. The grandeur and mystery of this civilisation that spanned more than 3,000 years has captured the minds and imaginations of nearly every culture since its demise in the early BC. As soon as I heard that the Australian Museum had managed to secure this exhibition, I knew I had to get my nerd on.  Photograph: Alannah Le Cross | AJ Lamarque poses with bust at 'Ramses & The Gold of the Pharaohs' Now, the fact that this exhibition even is in Australia is quite a big deal in itself. So, unless you venture to Egypt yourself, there’s a very good chance that this may be the only time in our lifetimes to see these items in Australia.With some 182 priceless artefacts on display, there’s definitely a lot to check out

Sydney is Mixed Race – and I don’t just mean that this city is multicultural (although that is also true). Sydney is Mixed Raced in the sense that it continues to live in a complex rhythm of navigating different identities simultaneously. It’s equally as artsy and vibrant as it is corporate and barren. Beautiful and lush yet also comprised of ugly ‘Ikea-kit’ high rises and vacant office squares. It’s brand new whilst also being on the land of the oldest continuing cultures on Earth. Sydney – it’s a complicated city. But being complicated is something I can relate to as someone who is also Mixed Race. Well, multiracial but who’s counting (me, I’m counting). To explain, my heritage is British, Indian, Chinese, South African and Jamaican. I was born in London, which you can tell because people have a habit of hearing my accent and then regurgitating the following line: “YoU sOunD liKe yOu’Re fRom LoNdOn”. Trust, it never gets old. If you’re wondering how one human ends up with all those cultural legacies, the simple answer is colonialism. I suppose in some twisted way I owe my existence to colonisers (geez, I really should book my next therapy session). My whole journey through life has been spent frantically darting between cultures, societal pulls and overwhelming imposter syndrome. This is why, when I moved to Sydney officially in 2015, I could relate to its “complicated” nature. Photograph: Katje Ford At first, I encountered Sydney’s barren side. Two years after the rollout