| Description | Laughing Matters' with Eddie Izzard (edited programme as broadcast on British Airways Radio).
[00:06] Audio begins, sting “You’re listening to Laughing Matters…” [00:13] we feel like the Americans invented stand-up, Woody Allen stand-up recordings [00:44] Clip of Woody Allen’s stand-up plays
[03:06] Clip ends, Eddie Izzard [E.I.] discusses the influence of Woody Allen’s surrealism on his own stand-up, but describes his alternative delivery from Allen as being a mix of Billy Connolly, Steve Martin and Richard Pryor. [03:58] E.I. talks about not being on television [04:25] he was offered to do stand-up for an older audience at Pebble Mill Studios and turned it down, he put the TV shows he turned down like Wogan and Jonathan Ross on his CV rather than television credits like most people had, did straight-acting so he wasn’t known as Eddie Izzard the comedian [05:50] Clip from Eddie Izzard’s stand-up plays
[09:42] Clip ends, British Airways sting plays “You’re listening to Laughing Matters…” etc. [09:51] E.I. discusses his beginnings as a street performer in Covent Garden and South Bank, where he did knife-throwing and escapology, and how he learnt about energy of performer and audience [12:02] doing street performance first informed his stand-up, and the straight-acting, Shakespeare, so he would have a different experience than someone who went to RADA.
[12:43] British Airways Sting plays, [13:13] E.I. discusses early Benny Hill as an influence [13:16] Clip from Benny Hill plays
[24:45] Clip ends, E.I. discusses Benny Hill, [25:14] BBC, The Goodies and Morecambe & Wise, particularly Eric Morecambe [25:27] Clip from Morecambe & Wise plays.
[28:24] Clip ends, E.I. used to hold the tape recorder up to the TV and record comedy programmes, The Goodies, Monty Python, and his Dad introduced him to The Goons. [29:08] Clip from The Goons plays.
[41:50] Clip ends, E.I. discusses meeting Spike Milligan at the British Comedy Awards, they were both based in Bexhill and he tried to define a link, [42:41] he also went to the same school as Peter Cook for a similar reason [42:50] Clip of Peter Cook & Dudley Moore plays
[48:11] Clip ends, E.I. briefly mentions Peter Cook & Dudley Moore releasing tapes of filth [Derek & Clive]
[48:30] British Airways sting [48:40] Robin Williams, E.I. has difficulty getting into the high-speed delivery, but likes his breadth of material [48:58] Clip of Robin Williams Live at the MET gig plays.
[52:51] Clip of Robin Williams ends, E.I. talks about Williams going into films, [52:59] first saw him in Mork & Mindy [53:16] Fawlty Towers, John Cleese sitcom; it was more farce than a general sitcom like The Simpsons [53:59] Clip from Fawlty Towers plays
[59:51] Clip ends, British Airways radio Sting plays [01:00:31] E.I. talks about Monty Python, particularly liked Michael Palin, used to play characters [01:00:54] John Cleese mainly played himself whereas Palin played different and hyper characters [01:02:03] Clip from Monty Python plays.
[01:05:20] Clip ends, John Cleese told E.I that it was originally from At Last The 1948 Show from 1967-1968, with Eric Idle, Graham Chapman John Cleese, Mary Feldman. Michael Palin and Terry Jones weren’t in it. [01:06:00] Sting.
[01:06:17] E.I. talks about his own new sitcom “Cows”, he had the idea in mid-1991, [01:07:30] Talks about script writing and [Ray] Galton & [Alan] Simpson who wrote with Tony Hancock [01:07:50] he was more into punchy Python sketches and free-form Goons [01:08:01] E.I. got into Tony Hancock later [01:08:28] Clip of Tony Hancock plays
[01:15:40] Clip ends, E.I. discusses as a later influence, he preferred the adrenalin of punchy influences. [01:16:09] as a street performer, E.I. found that visual jokes did better than verbal jokes. [01:16:17] Discusses Billy Connolly’s style as an influence [01:16:32] Clip of Billy Connolly plays.
[01:21:41] Clip ends, E.I. modelled himself on Connolly’s style [01:21:54] E.I. developed this style when doing street performance at the Edinburgh Festival [01:22:31] E.I. talks about wanting to crack America like The Beatles, but discusses how with Python it was accidental and with Connolly it was luck from being on Letterman, and how America is unsure about other British comics. [01:23:32] Clip of Eddie Izzard plays
[01:27:55] Clip ends, Izzard discusses the clip “Raised By Wolves”, and how he offers enough information to the audience to allow them to fill in the details in their heads [01:28:53] Richard Pryor did jokes about animals [01:29:54] Clip of Richard Pryor plays
[01:31:45] Clip ends, E.I. says that Richard Pryor was very assured and powerful, [01:31:53] Steve Martin was another influence, surreal areas [01:32:12] Clip of Steve Martin plays.
[01:33:19] Clip ends. E.I. discusses Steve Martin. [01:33:38] The Jerk, [01:33:44] Steve Martin’s Parkinson interview, [01:33:49] The Standard did preview tickets, [01:33:56] E.I bought a record of Steve Martin live in Portobello Road [01:34:01] Steve Martin’s interview with Jonathan Ross on The Last Resort [01:34:23] Steve Martin on David Letterman chat shows [01:34:35] Steve Martin is more quiet in journalist interviews [01:34:44] Straight-acting in Parenthood
[01:35:58] Blackadder, Miranda Richardson, Tim McInnerny, straight-actors doing comedy [01:36:12] Discussion about how Blackadder changed between series one high-budget locations and actors who weren’t in weird BBC2/Channel 4 comedies [01:36:42] and series two getting away with having Queen Elizabeth I’s entire palace represented by a box room and corridor and actors who have the alternative comedy mind-set like Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie and Miranda Richardson [01:37:28] Clip from Blackadder plays.
[01:39:25] Clip ends, E.I. talks about Rowan Atkinson in Not The Nine O’ Clock News, he hitched down three times from Sheffield to see Atkinson’s London show, and bought the Belfast album [01:39:42] Clip from Not The Nine O ‘Clock News plays.
[01:44:04] Clip ends, E.I. discusses Rowan Atkinson’s last show in London [01:44:50] Richard Curtis also performed in the show which wasn’t his strong-suit, he did writing on Not The Nine O ‘Clock News and then wrote Four Weddings and a Funeral.
[01:45:06] Sting Plays [01:45:18] Harry Enfield and his characters [01:45:43] Clip of Harry Enfield plays
[01:49:53] Clip ends, E.I. discusses Harry Enfield’s material, [01:50:46] and how he kills his good stuff to stay fresh. [01:50:52] Talks about seeing the Boomtown Rats and how they didn’t do “I Don’t Like Mondays” [01:51:15] E.I. talks about the importance of killing your good stuff and how Benny Hill and mainstream comics sit on old stuff [01: 51:23] Steve Coogan & Patrick Marber with Alan Partridge [01:51:38] Clip from Alan Partridge Knowing Me Knowing You audio plays.
[01:59:25] Clip ends, [01:59:46] discussion about alternative comedians changing their material in the 1990s. [02:00:12] British Airways Sting, and show ends [02:00:32] Recording ends
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