Al Murray interviewed by Oliver Double Al Murray interviewed by Oliver Double, by telephone, 2nd April 2012. This interview was conducted by Double for his book 'Getting the Joke: The Inner Workings of Stand-Up Comedy', 2nd Edition (2014) . Summary: [0.37] Discussing the Pub Landlord character and the origins of the Landlord. [3.23] The clear separation between Al Murray and his character. [5.58] Licence to being rude and playing the fool. [9.00] How much of the character is onstage? [11.13] The background of the Character and his audience. [14.41] The complexity of the Character. [16.21] Parody in Performance. [20.03] The Landlord's Crowd work. [24.01] Preparing for a show. [28.30] Performance. [30.43] Stadium arenas and the difference of venue. [33.45] Steve Martin and his book. [38.24]The set of a comedy show and not using a microphone. [42.00] "Edgy Comedy". [44.30] Comedy Boundaries to different comedians. [48.14] Recording ends [Analysis by Matthew Hoss] - Murray didn't decide to choose to do the character but it just happened. - The character is a good starting point to start talking about anything. - You can make every gig uniquely different - there is a different audience every day. - The landlord has the licence to take things quite far because he is playing a fool, and not myself. - Socially the Stand-up Comedian is the fool where the audience is the king. - The character is not necessarily Stanislavski and calls himself "Not an actor". - Only bringing up topics that are funny. - The background of the character is very rich. - Ambivalence in ideas is integral to his act- Murray says he does not like certainty and suspects comedians that sew certainty. The comedians' job is to be ambiguous according to Murray. "We are cosmic pranksters not cheerleaders." - The audience is equally performing in the same way Murray is performing - the audience is doing the same Pantomimic performances. - The performance is a ritual; everyone has the roles and makes them richer with stories and comedy. - The biggest joke to Murray is the person who continues to by his ticket and to NOT get the joke. - Murray makes it different every night so that he does not get bored and the act stays fresh. - In crowd work, you can't think of everything, so don't. - The audience can tell everything instantly - they can tell when you are bored, tired etc. - You have to write some stuff, rehearse it and persuade the audience that you are funny. - "Stagetime is the best preparation". - Write, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite etc. - The material comes from the nuances of Murray's performance - like the Nazi Twinkle Twinkle. - Steve Martin is a pioneer and communicates his comedy across very well. - Murray does not use a microphone as he seems that tethers a comedian's imagination and shows lack of faith. - Big sets because "Why not" and helps sustain the comedy. - Comedy does not HAVE to push the boundaries, it is just one in the quiver. What are boundaries. Your job is to make people laugh! - You can't always get it right - sometimes you have to make mistakes. 02/04/2012