Just watched Ben Elton's Get a Grip DVD, from his 2006 tour. Now, Ben hasn't gigged for 10 years, and to be honest, I kinda forgot he existed. I was a big fan a decade+ back, and loved his stand-up, his Blackadder stuff, Saturday Night Live when I was but a nipper, hell, even his glitter suits!
Well, now he's pushing 48 by my count, and I wondered if the old codge had gone all Victor Meldrew on me. I'm delighted to report that the glitter suit was back, and I loved it. Even funnier was his ascerbic wit, his on-the-edge politics, and true funny man routine which showed old Ben hadn't lost an inch of his superb comedy talent. Yes, he's had kids and it was cool to indentify over common problems; but the gag about the finger up his ass, and the stuff about Lady Di. And then the rant about beer and unit levels!!! Well. You need to see it. ;-)
Buy this DVD! It's tops!!
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2 comments:
Ooh - was that in a box set of 4 such as I have seen and coveted in HMV?
I actually went to see a show in that tour. I couldn't get anyone else to go with me... sniff! Consensus seems to be that Mr. Elton has 'sold out' (by fraternising with 'the enemy', Mr. Lloyd Webber), but I thought the intelligent design stuff was ace.
What was not so ace was when he recycled the material from that tour to fit the format of ITV's Get a Grip in which the exchange of scripted banter between himself and Alexa Chung came across a bit like old man lechery...bless!
It's funny, this "not selling out" business. I seriously doubt any anarchist would turn down a half million pound house, selling out or no. That doesn't make you an anarchist, just a muppet. Ben lives in the real world, as do we all, and he has to feed his kids yada yada. Anyway, I have been divorced from his comedy for too long, and GAG was the first thing I'd seen in a decade; and I loved it!!
And anyway, what's wrong with lecherous old men?
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