Manx Tails: Interview with comedian Alan Davies

MANX TAILS

Alan Davies talks to Hayley Richardson on family, football and why he wants to shut down Wikipedia…

H

aving enjoyed years as one of TV’s most-loved right-hand men, playing the affable magician’s assistant in Jonathan Creek and comic foil to Stephen Fry on QI, the curly-haired comedian is going back to his roots.

His latest stand-up show Little Victories is touring the UK and arrives on the Island on December 11, showing at the Villa Marina.

Dubbed ‘one of the best standup comics out there’ by the Guardian, Alan is no stranger to the stage.

He began his career in stand-up in 1988 and was named Time Out’s Best Young Comic in 1991.

He went on to win an Edinburgh Festival Critics Award for Comedy in 1994 and subsequent nominations for Perrier and British Comedy Awards.

‘Everyone wants to be famous ‘til they are.’

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His previous sell-out show Life of Pain was critically acclaimed in Australia, New Zealand and the UK and extended twice due to unprecedented demand.

Life of Pain was Alan’s first stand-up show for 12 years and he admitted he never intended to be away from the comedy scene for so long.

“I found it was quite hard to keep doing stand-up with doing lots of TV dramas,” he said.

Looking back on the moment he re-trod the boards, Alan said: “Going back on stage really felt like coming home.”

This will not be Alan’s first visit to the Island.

Having a father and grandfather both into Motorsport, Alan came over for the TT as child in the 70s and returned a few years ago with his wife Katie.

MANX TAILS acting when I was a teenager.

That’s what I managed to do; I’m 48 now and I’m still hanging in there with it.

“Sometimes you just wish, if you’re getting on a train or a bus or you’re going down the high street, you just wish you could have a different face!

“It affects your life in lots of negative ways, but I wouldn’t change what I do for a job. You have to count your blessings and not dwell on the negative things, and that’s true whatever you do in life.”

The good news for QI fans is that, after 12 years, there are no plans to call it a day until the team have fulfilled their plan to film a series for each letter of the alphabet.

The couple borrowed a Honda and took it for a spin round the TT course - a lifelong ambition of Alan’s which he described as alarming but thrilling at the same time.

“Going back on stage really felt like coming home.”

Being a father of two young children, Alan said he’s never short for material, laughing: “They pay their way!”

On being away from home, he said: “It’s not great being away, but if you’re doing a drama you can be away for 5 or 6 days a week, 12 hours a day, and then you get home and they’re asleep and you never see them.

“So long as you manage it and only do three or four shows in a week, rather than six, it’s quite a nice life.”

“So all being well, I might be doing QI until I’m 62! And then I will definitely consider retirement.”

A ‘Quite Interesting’ fact about Alan is that, despite what it says on Wikipedia, he doesn’t class himself as a pescatarian.

“It’s an old quote, I think it’s Ronnie Wood or one of the Rolling Stones said it, everyone wants to be famous ‘til they are.

“That’s a nonsense thing someone put on Wikipedia, and I can’t do anything about Wikipedia. I tried to change the page and I ended up getting banned from editing my own page because I couldn’t verify the things I was putting on there.

Can you believe that?

“The pros outweigh the cons, as I really enjoy my work and I always wanted to work in comedy and

“I don’t just eat seafood – if I just ate seafood then you might want to invent a word for it, but that’s

Having enjoyed a successful career, Alan admitted to sometimes craving anonymity.

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“We’re up to L so far, so there are a lot of letters to go, and I think the general feeling is we all want to stick together and get to Z!” said Alan.

MANX TAILS Wikipedia for you, I wish I could shut it down.”

He admitted he’d never heard of Manx kippers, but said: “They sound enticing – I’ll make a note of that.”

You have to count your blessings and not dwell on the negative things, and that’s true whatever you do in life.”

Outside of his work Alan is a devoted Arsenal fan, and, though he admitted to feeling frustrated by their recent defensive woes, he remains loyal to the manager.

“What Wenger did at Arsenal is an absolute miracle in the face of the kind of budgets that Manchester United and Chelsea and City are spending,” he said Being a Manchester United fan myself, I asked Alan his thoughts on their current form.

“It’s certainly true that there’s a great deal of mirth and merriment around the plight of Manchester United at the moment because, at the same time, there’s the screaming reality of them returning at some point!

HOWARD’S

WAY

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a hazard to air traffic unless you live in Castletown, he moves his head from side to side to welcome visitors - or scare the poop out of them if they’re not expecting it. His “large eyes, smiling mouth and twin young antlers . . . . with pert tail and ears . . suggest an alertness and eagerness to entertain”. In addition, as his belly is almost ten feet above the ground at its lowest point, it just “invites carolers to walk underneath”. Delightful – carollers being well known

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for their interest in reindeer nether regions.

And finally, if you’re really stuck and it’s getting close to Christmas Eve, throw caution to the wind, raid the piggy bank and order the “celebrity robotic avatar”. True, he costs $345,000 dollars, but that does include delivery. The adultsized robot is controlled by an intuitive wireless remote which allows him to move backwards and forwards, create graceful, lifelike motions, spin 360 degrees and dance alone, or with a partner who “stands on his sturdy platform”. Phnaar, phnaar. What better way to welcome in the new year - quite possibly in someone else’s house, as presumably you’ll have had to sell yours in order to acquire the gift. But your silver pal can engage in banter with

“But the sad thing is, I think their club’s ruined. The fan base has been destroyed; the ticket prices are too high, and the changing the strip every year and charging 80 quid a shirt, and trying to have more fans in China than they have in the north-west – that’s the reality of modern football clubs and it’s all a bit grim.

“I went to see Plymouth Argyle play when I was down in Plymouth and just sitting in a rattly old ground and watching actual blokes playing football surrounded by people who are real fans of their local team, it’s a very different world from the premier league!

“In lots of ways it’s all the more charming and fun. It sort of reminded me of what football used to be like – there’s no going back!”

For Little Victories tickets, call the Villa Marina Box Office on 600555 or visit www.cfvg.gov.im

guests – via a discreet wireless microphone – and can be programmed to make all sorts of body movements, so perhaps he can help you build a new home. Failing that, send him along to help grandad with his log cabin, assuming the former hasn’t got his acrylic beard trapped in the chainsaw.

It really is a veritable bible of Christmas gift ideas for the last minute shopper – though of course I must stress that other catalogues are available. Hundreds of them, usually. Whichever you choose, there’s really no excuse this year for a present that is anything less than entirely practical. Ish. A Happy Christmas to all and I wish you all a healthy and peaceful new year.