Ben Elton, autumn 2019 British tour

[Phoenix Lazarus]

Just booked my ticket for his appearance at the De Montfort Hall, Leicester, in October.  Is anybody else going, or thinking of doing, or going to give it a wider berth than a rabid dog?

[DrGreggles]

If he plays Cambridge I might take a look.
Out of curiosity, rather than expectation.

[bgmnts]

I had no idea he was even doing anything ever again.

[Phoenix Lazarus]

I had no idea he was even doing anything ever again.

You thought he was dead, or in an incurable coma?

[garnish]

I will go to find out when he's doing another series of The Wright Way.

[Phoenix Lazarus]

I will go to find out when he's doing another series of The Wright Way.

That's going to be a heckle-question?

[Jockice]

I'd actually quite like to go, just for old time's sake more than with any great expectations. And because last time I saw him in the late 80s I spent the entire gig crapping myself. Not literally, but I'd done a phone interview with him and during the interview he'd mentioned that wherever he played he'd buy that day's local newspaper to see if there was anything he could mention during the set.

Anyway my feature went into the paper on the day of the show. Which is in itself unusual as it's normally a few days before. And upon reading it I realised I'd made a very big mistake in it. Something that if he read he'd undoubtedly notice. I was reviewing the show and spent the entirety of it waiting him to decry the local press and specifically that lying bastard Jockice.

It never happened. But I realised the next day that the interview had been pulled from the late edition (published after I'd gone home. I think I was on a half day) and was replaced with an obituary of a local celebrity (a former council leader or mayor or something) who had died that afternoon. So either Ben was lying about buying the local paper or he'd picked up that edition. Thanks for saving my skin dead local celebrity. Wish I could remember your name.

[DrGreggles]

I saw him in around 1993, one of my first live stand up gigs.
My recollection of it is that it was very good, and very long.
There was a series of 'The Man From Auntie' a few months later and it soon dawned on me that he'd essentially performed the entire series during that show.

[Fried Egg Sandwich]

No London dates?

[Phoenix Lazarus]

There was a series of 'The Man From Auntie' a few months later and it soon dawned on me that he'd essentially performed the entire series during that show.

Not including the filmed sketches like the one about people in hair-conditioner adverts having a condition which makes their head tilt round at different angles as they're walking, or the one about the nervous top-shelf magazine buyer, who sprints to the counter, with his porn inside another magazine (that one now seems very dated).

[Mark Steels Stockbroker]

What about that autobiography I saw listed on Amazon but which never appeared? Was that someone's internet hoax?

[Panbaams]

Before the tour, he's got a Shakespeare movie out: All is True, directed by Kenneth Branagh. (It's not a big screen version of Upstart Crow.)

[Phoenix Lazarus]

What about that autobiography I saw listed on Amazon but which never appeared? Was that someone's internet hoax?

They're waiting for the bit where he's dying, but sells his soul to the Devil.

[Phoenix Lazarus]

Got my ticket through the post today.  I'm seeing Benny-Wenny in October!

[TheMonk]

So this tour starts next week.
In these batshit crazy times it's kind of nice to think Ben Elton will be trading the boards commenting on it all.

Has he done any warm up shows yet?

An interview...
https://www.irishnews.com/arts/2019/09/06/news/comedy-legend-ben-elton-i-hate-boris-johnson-with-a-physical-visceral-passion-1704591/

[Bennett Brauer]

Was Ben Elton the first stand-up to say "My name's —— , goodnight" at the end of a set, which got a lot of others doing something similar ("I've been Nick Jokes and you've been lovely...")?

[Jake Thingray]

Annoyed that Elton, and Paul McCartney, are going to be on The One Show tonight, thereby ruining the marathon masturbation session I'd planned after finding out who the guest presenters are.

[Bennett Brauer]

There's no mention of Jedward in the Radio Times.

[dunelm]

Saw him mid naughties, he repeatedly mentioned how he was doing 'brand new comedy'. He has a proclivity to reuse material.

He was average that night. I love Blackadder but I think as a stand up he's very much of his time. He subsequently said all the 'right on' stuff was just an act. Which is quite incredible. He worked in the 80's and Young Ones and Blackadder were awesome. That's it.   

[Phoenix Lazarus]

He subsequently said all the 'right on' stuff was just an act. Which is quite incredible. 

Unbelievable.  No comedian would do stuff for careerist reasons, surely?

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

He was average that night. I love Blackadder but I think as a stand up he's very much of his time. He subsequently said all the 'right on' stuff was just an act. Which is quite incredible.

Did he say that? In the interview posted above he makes no bones about his utter loathing of the Tories and Boris Johnson in particular. If he's only been pretending to be a passionate, pissed off left-wing fella for the last 40 years, then my God you've got to admire his astonishing dedication to that character.

[Jake Thingray]

I don't think he's ever said it was just an act, just referred to "the ranty Cockney persona" as a way of making him distinctive enough to get scripts accepted for TV.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

Ta, that makes more sense.

[Cold Meat Platter]

Hope he does the "double seat" train stuff. Classic.
'Farties' ahaha.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

Hope he does the "double seat" train stuff. Classic.

That's a good routine.

'Farties' ahaha.

That stuff, not so much.

[TheMonk]

Hope he does the "double seat" train stuff. Classic.
'Farties' ahaha.

Precision sarcasm.

[Urinal Cake]

Keep him there.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

Ben Elton confirms that Blackadder will never ever return. GOOD. As he says, it's best left alone.

https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/news/5478/no_more_blackadder/

[rue the polywhirl]

How about a Blackadder return written by people who aren't Ben Elton? Surely everyone would be up for that. I feel a bit sad that Ben Elton is denying Tony Robinson and the rest of the old crew in this manner. I'd probably write a whole new series out of spite towards Elton.

[Ballad of Ballard Berkley]

How about a Blackadder return written by people who aren't Ben Elton? Surely everyone would be up for that. I feel a bit sad that Ben Elton is denying Tony Robinson and the rest of the old crew in this manner. I'd probably write a whole new series out of spite towards Elton.

A version of Blackadder written by people trying to copy the distinctive style of Richard Curtis and Ben Elton is an absolutely horrifying idea. Good God, man, just think about how awful that would be.

A Blackadder revival written by the actual Curtis and Elton would be like that anyway, so you may as well just hire them in the first place.

Also, Sir Tony and the rest of them are hardly short of a quid or two, so it's not as if nasty Ben Elton is depriving them of a livelihood.