Angry the Clown Posted July 13, 2004 Report Share Posted July 13, 2004 As requested in the Spider-Man 2 thread, I thought I?d provide a little write up on my excursion into London last night to see Ricky Gervais (co-writer and star of The Office), doing his latest stand up tour which yesterday evening played at the Palladium for one night only. Last year his ?Animals? tour was met which much acclaim, though it was a tour I sadly missed out on seeing and whilst it has been on Region2 DVD here since Christmas, and I have yet to purchase it [the cheapest I have seen it recently is 11.99, so I may finally crumble and get it]. I?ve never been able to pin point exactly what makes Ricky Gervais so unique in being able to get away with discussing the things he does, and to say ?get away with? makes me cringe somewhat as it?s a rather clich?d term that I have never been quite sure truly suits him. Still, it?s something about him that has amazed me for about six years since he showed up on The 11 O?clock Show, an irreverent late night comical overview of current affairs (of which in all honesty Gervais was the only gem that made the program worth watching). His weekly five minute stints on that were very in a similar tone to that which he carries on stage. Last night he was able to move from discussing what political messages lay buried in fairy tales and fables, to Ghandi being a bit of a cocky sod all the way to masturbating to Schindler?s List after mistakenly renting it thinking it was German Porn having been sold on the box quote from British film critic Barry Norman that read ?you?ll get through a whole box of tissues.? The show actually began with a video which was edited in the style of a cheesy made for schools documentary about politics (?Politics is alllll arouuunddddd!) and it featured Office producer Ash Atalla in a hilarious sequence that saw Gervais define Atalla as being the very embodiment of all that is politically correct. ?He?s a bit racial, handicapped???. Probably gay??. This ultimately led to a mock argument between the two which ultimately saw Atalla on his arse outside Parliament with Garvais riding about in Ash Atalla?s wheelchair in the background. He took on charity singles during the show too, notably the bad ones like the Boy George effort which saw him go on about how fat Boy George got after quitting drugs. He was going on about the Stephen Hawking abuse allegations as well doing this absolutely genius skit about Hitler misinterpreting the works of Nietzsche. One of the funniest parts of the show is his focus on political rallies in University and public awareness pamphlets he used to collect whilst at UCL, his favourite of which he said was one that suggested ten medically recommended safe sex alternatives for gay men, with each of the ten beginning with ?Why not?? a term Gervais related to being as casual as a chef saying ?why not add an onion!? He claimed the pamphlet was as candid as to suggest ?Why not? wank each other off? as option #1 and I believe suggestion four was his favourite, at least what he said to be his favourite ever use of the ?e.g? example term he has ever heard, which was ?Why not .. ejaculate into some fruit (e.g; a watermelon)?. I think the entire theatre had to take about five minutes to calm down after he stopped telling that story. It took a while before he even got into genuine political discussion. At first he wanted to get some things off his chest like being recognised all the time and the unimaginative things people feel the need to shout at him, he specifically ripped on a guy who spotted him whilst he was at a crummy 2 star hotel that was hosting a wedding. He almost didn?t know where to stop when he began the ?politics? section with discussing fables and fairytales. He started with a fable of two mice which he just started having fun ad libbing with and he went on for about ten minutes deciding one mice would have a pipe and a rocking chair and would have forged a little axe to chop twigs forged out of a small twig, a tiny bit of flint bound with a horses hair. He eventually moved on to trying to establish what the hell Humptey Dumptey is actually about, how an egg could have climbed up on a wall and why it would have eyes, a mouth and trousers with braces. All this, as well as why horses would be sent to put him back together again. His comedy is so difficult to define because when you see it performed, you?re not especially offended despite the fact you kind of feel you should be, yet the subject matter he covered that I?ve mentioned here briefly is more than enough to leave anyone unfamiliar with his style into thinking he is an absolutely repulsive comedian. In England, we have comedians who are generally considered ghastly in their tone, but what makes Gervais an exception I just don?t know, but it?s a deserving exception. He doesn?t approach things in a way of revelling in the fact that he can ?get away with it.? He is simply very, very unique when stood before a live audience. If any of you guys overseas can playback PAL discs, the politics show is due out on Region 2 DVD in October, around the same time as the UK sees the release of Office Christmas Specials DVD. Daniel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustyjaw Posted July 13, 2004 Report Share Posted July 13, 2004 Thanks for the review Daniel, that sounds outrageously funny. I very much hope it shows up on DVD here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry the Clown Posted July 13, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2004 Did you ever see the DVD cover for his 'Animals' show? :green: Interested to know what he's going to do for the cover for Politics. Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustyjaw Posted July 14, 2004 Report Share Posted July 14, 2004 Actually I have seen that somewhere. Is that available in R1? I should check it out. The funny thing is that I haven't finished watching The Office yet, I've seen all the episodes (from both series) except for the last one. For some reason, I don't want it to come to an end, so I'm avoiding the last episode(!)...I'm gonna have to bite the bullet and watch it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iainl Posted July 14, 2004 Report Share Posted July 14, 2004 Originally posted by Daniel Brecher@Jul 13 2004, 11:24 PM Still, it?s something about him that has amazed me for about six years since he showed up on The 11 O?clock Show, an irreverent late night comical overview of current affairs (of which in all honesty Gervais was the only gem that made the program worth watching). Quite apart from the fact that the Ali G interviews were actually quite funny before they tried to expand the one good idea into his own show, I'm going to have to disagree with you there. Iain Lee gets respect from me, and not just for being able to spell "Iain" correctly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry the Clown Posted July 14, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 14, 2004 Actually I have seen that somewhere. Is that available in R1? I should check it out. To the best of my knowledge it is just a UK disc for now. When I get the DVD, I could always master it and make an audio CD recording of it for anyone who'd like to at the very least, hear it. Quite apart from the fact that the Ali G interviews were actually quite funny before they tried to expand the one good idea into his own show, I'm going to have to disagree with you there. Iain Lee gets respect from me, and not just for being able to spell "Iain" correctly. I don't know. Ali G worked fine on the show for about a week, then it became tiresome for me. I am not a hater of Iain Lee though, I actually rather like him and he has a decent knowledge of videogames. I like Daisy Donovan too, but the 11 O'clock show just tried to hard in my opinion. It came at the time my hatred for Channel 4 really started to establish itself. Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Monkey Posted July 14, 2004 Report Share Posted July 14, 2004 Thanks for the write-up -- I definitely need to seek out his DVD's. -j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry the Clown Posted August 10, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2004 Folks, I thought you'd like to know that the final episodes of The Office are coming to region1 DVD on the 16th of November. Extras will be identical to the forthcoming Region2 release with a commentary, documentary, making of the Freelove Freeway single featurette as well as the Freelove Freeway single itself. Rounding it of is the music video for If You Don't Know Me By Now ( :lmfao: ). The US/Canada is also getting a $60 box set of the two series, and the specials disc. Dan PS: Animals is to air on TV here soon, so I've saved myself a few pounds not grabbing the DVD just yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Monkey Posted August 10, 2004 Report Share Posted August 10, 2004 Yeah, I finally saw Animals and it was very funny. Sharks: Brilliant, Nazis: Rubbish. -j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustyjaw Posted August 10, 2004 Report Share Posted August 10, 2004 Dan, what do you mean by "final episodes" - are you talking about the Christmas special? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry the Clown Posted August 10, 2004 Author Report Share Posted August 10, 2004 Yes, the two Christmas Specials. Oddly the US cover art drops all reference to them being the Christmas episodes, and simply dubs it 'The Office Special.' All the info on the R1 is here with shots of the cover art...etc Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry the Clown Posted October 6, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2004 :green: 15th of November on Region2 DVD, Extras: Living With Ricky short film, Meet Karl Pilkington - An Interview With Ricky Gervais, audio commentary by Ricky Gervais and Robin Ince and the short featurette 'The Making Of Politics.' Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustyjaw Posted October 6, 2004 Report Share Posted October 6, 2004 Excellent! I wonder when the R1 will be out. In the meantime I'm really looking forward to the new Office (christmas) special release. BTW, love the sig Dan, all hail Hypno-Toad! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Monkey Posted October 6, 2004 Report Share Posted October 6, 2004 That's great news, Dan, as I really enjoyed Animals. And I went to the vault and resurrected an old avatar in an act of solidarity with your sig. Personally, I always hear the whum-whum-whum sound when I see it. -j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry the Clown Posted October 6, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2004 Damn you to hell! HypnoToad avatar was my next step. :green: Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Monkey Posted October 6, 2004 Report Share Posted October 6, 2004 Well, then take mine and I'll change. Or I'll just change it to something else if you don't want it. This forum ain't big enough for two Hypnotoads. -j Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustyjaw Posted October 6, 2004 Report Share Posted October 6, 2004 I remember that avatar Jay, but I didn't recognize it as Hypno-Toad...so I guess it's working. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry the Clown Posted October 7, 2004 Author Report Share Posted October 7, 2004 Well, then take mine and I'll change. Or I'll just change it to something else if you don't want it. This forum ain't big enough for two Hypnotoads I'll take him when you next genuinely feel like a change. With your image and my signature, together we can hypnotise the rest of these schmucks and take over the forum. Dan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry the Clown Posted December 5, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 5, 2005 Fans may like to know that there is now a Ricky Gervais podcast. 30 minutes every week of him, Stephen Merchant and Karl Pilkington talking about this, that and everything (also featuring 'Monkey News')... http://www.guardian.co.uk/rickygervais Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Monkey Posted December 5, 2005 Report Share Posted December 5, 2005 Ooh, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
General Zot Posted December 5, 2005 Report Share Posted December 5, 2005 I didn't even know he had stand up DVDs available. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Monkey Posted December 5, 2005 Report Share Posted December 5, 2005 I didn't even know he had stand up DVDs available. Thanks! Animals is the only one I saw, but it was very, very good. :tu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Daisy Posted December 5, 2005 Report Share Posted December 5, 2005 That rocks. Thanks for the info. Glen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robot Monkey Posted December 31, 2005 Report Share Posted December 31, 2005 Fans may like to know that there is now a Ricky Gervais podcast. 30 minutes every week of him' date=' Stephen Merchant and Karl Pilkington talking about this, that and everything (also featuring 'Monkey News')... http://www.guardian.co.uk/rickygervais[/quote'] I finally listened to the first one and it was very funny. I went and grabbed the three news ones. Recommended! :tu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelley Posted December 31, 2005 Report Share Posted December 31, 2005 Ricky's podcast is some of the funniest stuff I've ever heard. Karl is possibly the funniest/dumbest man on the planet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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