Lee Evans (comedian): Difference between revisions
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==Career== |
==Career== |
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===Stand-up comedy=== |
===Stand-up comedy=== |
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Evans rose to fame during the 1990s, becoming noted for his loud, hot, sweaty, energetic on-stage performances, humorous voices and very physical observational comedy. He is regarded as having a [[Norman Wisdom]]/[[Michael Crawford]]–style of [[slapstick]] comedy acting, and in many |
Evans rose to fame during the 1990s, becoming noted for his loud, hot, sweaty, energetic on-stage performances, humorous voices and very physical observational comedy. He is regarded as having a [[Norman Wisdom]]/[[Michael Crawford]]–style of [[slapstick]] comedy acting, and in many SHAG UR MUM for a later generation.{{Fact|date=May 2007}} In his earlier work, he often used a dysfunctional character called ''Malcolm'' to illustrate how he viewed unusual characters in the world. In 1993, Evans won the [[if.comedy award|Perrier Comedy Award]] for his work at the [[Edinburgh Festival]].<ref>{{cite web |title=if.comedy - Past winners |url=http://www.if.com/eddies/past-winners.html |publisher=if.comedy |accessdate=2008-02-27 }}</ref> |
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One of the trademarks of Evans's performances is his sweatiness: he is usually drenched in his own sweat. During most of his headlining performances, he often must take an intermission, during which he changes into a completely different suit; he once said that this was because he was "as nervous as a nun awaiting her pregnancy test results". He has also said that his suits are regularly thrown away after just one performance, mainly because of the sweat, with dry-cleaners refusing to handle them.<ref>{{cite video |title=Lee Evans Interview |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QiTXF0uMcI |date=2007-10-31 |publisher=Daily Mirror |accessdate=2008-02-27 }}</ref> An opening video shown in his Big 2008 Tour parodies his sweatiness by showing Lee panicking in his dressing room before walking on-stage, resulting in his dressing room being flooded. |
One of the trademarks of Evans's performances is his sweatiness: he is usually drenched in his own sweat. During most of his headlining performances, he often must take an intermission, during which he changes into a completely different suit; he once said that this was because he was "as nervous as a nun awaiting her pregnancy test results". He has also said that his suits are regularly thrown away after just one performance, mainly because of the sweat, with dry-cleaners refusing to handle them.<ref>{{cite video |title=Lee Evans Interview |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QiTXF0uMcI |date=2007-10-31 |publisher=Daily Mirror |accessdate=2008-02-27 }}</ref>FUCK OFF U NIGGER An opening video shown in his Big 2008 Tour parodies his sweatiness by showing Lee panicking in his dressing room before walking on-stage, resulting in his dressing room being flooded. |
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A second trademark is The Lee Evans Trio, which consists of him on a bare stage, in a spotlight, miming to a recording of instrumental sound; the spotlight goes out, only to reappear in another location, to which Evans has moved during the blackout, and where he is now miming playing a different instrument. He mimes in three locations, with an imaginary [[drum kit]], [[double bass]] and [[piano]].<ref>{{cite video |title=Lee Evans Trio |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPNxTCp9mEQ |date=2006-03-05 |accessdate=2008-02-27 }}</ref> |
A second trademark is The Lee Evans Trio, which consists of him on a bare stage, in a spotlight, miming to a recording of instrumental sound; the spotlight goes out, only to reappear in another location, to which Evans has moved during the blackout, and where he is now miming playing a different instrument. He mimes in three locations, with an imaginary [[drum kit]], [[double bass]] and [[piano]].<ref>{{cite video |title=Lee Evans Trio |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPNxTCp9mEQ |date=2006-03-05 |accessdate=2008-02-27 }}</ref> |
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Evans has made a number of film appearances, most notably in ''[[Funny Bones]]'', ''[[MouseHunt]]'', ''[[There's Something About Mary]]'', ''[[The Fifth Element]]'', ''[[The Ladies Man (2000 film)|The Ladies Man]]'', ''[[The Martins (movie)|The Martins]]'' and ''[[The Medallion]]''. Evans also provided the voice for Train in the 2005 film ''[[The Magic Roundabout]]''. |
Evans has made a number of film appearances, most notably in ''[[Funny Bones]]'', ''[[MouseHunt]]'', ''[[There's Something About Mary]]'', ''[[The Fifth Element]]'', ''[[The Ladies Man (2000 film)|The Ladies Man]]'', ''[[The Martins (movie)|The Martins]]'' and ''[[The Medallion]]''. Evans also provided the voice for Train in the 2005 film ''[[The Magic Roundabout]]''. |
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From 1993-1994 Evans appeared in the Channel 4 late-night show ''Viva Cabaret!'', both as a host and as a guest performer. In 1996, Evans starred in Channel 4 series, ''The World of Lee Evans''. In 2001, he wrote a sitcom called ''[[So What Now?]]'' which was clearly inspired by [[Michael Crawford]]'s 1970s TV show Some Mothers Do Ave' Em'. |
From 1993-1994 Evans appeared in the Channel 4 late-night show ''Viva Cabaret!'', both as a host and as a guest performer. In 1996, Evans starred in Channel 4 series, ''The World of Lee Evans''. In 2001, he wrote a sitcom called ''[[So What Now?]]'' which was clearly inspired by [[Michael Crawford]]'s 1970s ASH LOVES ABBIE 4 LYF TV show Some Mothers Do Ave' Em'. |
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In 2004 he starred as a paranoid murder suspect in his first non-comic role in the film ''[[Freeze Frame (film)|Freeze Frame]]''. Although warned they may never grow back, he shaved his eyebrows (as well as his hair). |
In 2004 he starred as a paranoid murder suspect in his first non-comic role in the film ''[[Freeze Frame (film)|Freeze Frame]]''. Although warned they may never grow back, he shaved his eyebrows (as well as his hair). |
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Revision as of 18:00, 10 December 2008
| Lee Evans | |
|---|---|
 Lee Evans in 2004 | |
| Born | 25 February 1964 Bristol, England |
| Medium | Comedian, Actor |
| Nationality | British |
| Years active | 1988–present |
| Genres | Physical comedy, stand-up comedy, Observational comedy |
| Subject(s) | Everyday life |
| Spouse | Heather Evans (1984—) |
| Children | Mollie Evans |
| Notable works and roles | Same World, Different Planet (1996) Mouse Hunt (1997) The Fifth Element (1997) There's Something About Mary (1998) Lee Evans - So What Now? (2001) The Medallion (2003) The History of Mr Polly (2007) |
Lee Evans (born 25 February, 1964)[1] is a British stand-up comedian and actor.
Personal life
Evans was born in Avonmouth, Bristol, England, the son of Dave Evans, a nightclub performer.[2] His secondary school was The Billericay School in Billericay, Essex. After a spell as a boxer and two years at art school in Essex, Evans decided to follow in his father's footsteps in the entertainment business. In his teens he moved to Rhyl, Wales,[citation needed] and played drums in a punk rock band called The Forgotten Five.[3]
In 1984, he married Heather Evans[4] with whom he has a daughter Mollie, born in 1993. They currently live in Billericay, Essex.[5]
Career
Stand-up comedy
Evans rose to fame during the 1990s, becoming noted for his loud, hot, sweaty, energetic on-stage performances, humorous voices and very physical observational comedy. He is regarded as having a Norman Wisdom/Michael Crawford–style of slapstick comedy acting, and in many SHAG UR MUM for a later generation.[citation needed] In his earlier work, he often used a dysfunctional character called Malcolm to illustrate how he viewed unusual characters in the world. In 1993, Evans won the Perrier Comedy Award for his work at the Edinburgh Festival.[6]
One of the trademarks of Evans's performances is his sweatiness: he is usually drenched in his own sweat. During most of his headlining performances, he often must take an intermission, during which he changes into a completely different suit; he once said that this was because he was "as nervous as a nun awaiting her pregnancy test results". He has also said that his suits are regularly thrown away after just one performance, mainly because of the sweat, with dry-cleaners refusing to handle them.[7]FUCK OFF U NIGGER An opening video shown in his Big 2008 Tour parodies his sweatiness by showing Lee panicking in his dressing room before walking on-stage, resulting in his dressing room being flooded.
A second trademark is The Lee Evans Trio, which consists of him on a bare stage, in a spotlight, miming to a recording of instrumental sound; the spotlight goes out, only to reappear in another location, to which Evans has moved during the blackout, and where he is now miming playing a different instrument. He mimes in three locations, with an imaginary drum kit, double bass and piano.[8]
A third trademark is his apparent "stage fright". At the beginning of his act he'll often pretend to get the microphone cord tangled up or thrown over his shoulder, or even that it doesn't work (he'll begin to talk but nothing is heard, until the end of a gag or question is suddenly audible). He may spend the first few minutes rambling as if he can't remember what he came on stage for. Often he will tilt the microphone stand and pretend to machine gun the audience, again as a nervous reaction and supposed "time filler".
Evans is also known for performing music skits at the end of every gig, usually his world-famous mime to Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody"[9] is performed as an encore.
In November 2005, Evans broke the Guinness World Record for a solo act performing to the biggest comedy audience, playing to 10,108 at the Manchester Evening News Arena,[10] beating the previous record of 8,700 set by Eddie Izzard.
Evans toured Britain with a brand new stand-up act, "Big", in Autumn 2008, with a DVD of the tour released in on the 24th of November 2008. This was scheduled to involve the first ever performance by a comedian at the O2 Arena in London until Chris Rock announced dates that would take place at the venue prior to Evans.
Evans has just completed his Big Tour around the UK, and has played many sold out shows on this tour, such as in Birmingham and Belfast. During this tour he performed in front of over 500,000 people on 59 dates [11].
Acting & other work
Evans has made a number of film appearances, most notably in Funny Bones, MouseHunt, There's Something About Mary, The Fifth Element, The Ladies Man, The Martins and The Medallion. Evans also provided the voice for Train in the 2005 film The Magic Roundabout.
From 1993-1994 Evans appeared in the Channel 4 late-night show Viva Cabaret!, both as a host and as a guest performer. In 1996, Evans starred in Channel 4 series, The World of Lee Evans. In 2001, he wrote a sitcom called So What Now? which was clearly inspired by Michael Crawford's 1970s ASH LOVES ABBIE 4 LYF TV show Some Mothers Do Ave' Em'.
In 2004 he starred as a paranoid murder suspect in his first non-comic role in the film Freeze Frame. Although warned they may never grow back, he shaved his eyebrows (as well as his hair).
From 2004 - 2005 he played Leo Bloom in the London production of The Producers along with Nathan Lane, with whom he also starred in MouseHunt, in which they played brothers. In May 2007 he also starred in The History of Mr Polly.
Evans is also a singer and musician as is shown on the Lee Evans XL Live Tour 2005. He can play Mandolin, Ukulele, Guitar, Bass, Keyboard, Piano and Drums.
References
- ^ "Lee Evans I". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ^ http://www.filmreference.com/film/55/Lee-Evans.html
- ^ White, Jim (1996-01-27). "Oooh, er, cripes". The Independent. Retrieved 2008-04-28.
- ^ "Lee Evans 2005 Interview".
- ^ "Lee Evans (I) - Biography". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ^ "if.comedy - Past winners". if.comedy. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ^ Lee Evans Interview. Daily Mirror. 2007-10-31. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ^ Lee Evans Trio. 2006-03-05. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ^ Lee Evans - Bohemian Rhapsody. 2006-09-16. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ^ "Comic Evans breaks crowd record". BBC News. 2005-11-20. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
- ^ http://www.leeevansbigtour.co.uk/index.html
External links
- Lee Evans at Off The Kerb Productions (Official website)
- Lee Evans at the British Film Institute
- 'Pinter? You've got to have fun with it'
- Lee Evans at IMDb
- Lee Evans Fan Forum
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