Just listened to Eddie Izzard being interviewed by Frank Skinner on the Radio 4 programme "Chain Reaction" (not something I have ever listen to before - just stubbled upon it on the "listen again" service)
It was so inspiring. The man seems to have clear long-held ambitions and no sense of fear. And in combination those 2 traits have served him well.
He talked about how he started off in comedy by doing street performing, which is the most embrassing experience he's ever had - yet he would keep going back, doing it over and over, sometimes performing to audiences of zero, until he progressed up the ranks to being allowed to perform *inside* a building. (Although he says lampposts were a great audience - they wouldn't hurl insults...)
Skinner pointed out that he broke many rules of stand-up, for example arriving for a gig with no notes or prepared material. Izzard said he would sometimes try to write it down ("what if cats ruled the world?..") but once in writing he'd instinctively rationalise ("of course cats couldn't do that!") - it killed all the best ideas because it opened them up to his own censorship.
He would always try and push his own boundaries. The best moments in stand up, he said, are the newer, embryonic ideas. Once a routine becomes established and routine, it loses that spark and edginess. So the script has to keep changing. They recalled an incident when Izzard was pushing Skinner to try out his new material in a London club (whereas Skinner would normally only tiral it in safer smaller gigs). Izzard was saying that it didn't matter if the material fell flat - he'd make better progress by trying and failing.
A lot of his wise words resonated with stuff I've learnt about improv; the importance of taking risks, pushing past accepted norms, the comedy of failure, the value of spontaneity, and avoiding self-censorship.
And if it works in Improv, it also works in life...
Hi
I went downtown to Hollywood in the USA. Geroge and Hisham came with. We had a fun. LA is LA and pretty much what you expect it to be (including the smog). The kids like to see the McDonalds menu in different places, you may have noticed some pics of Macca's menu from India, so I took one in the US for them, and got kicked out of McDonlads for it, 'no photos in Mc Donalds'. Paraniod? Anyway I got my pic taken with Sandra Bullock's star, which made me happy and we caught a train back to the hotel, which was fun (I can't remember the last time I caught a train.)
Hello, I went to South Africa, the best part was the game reserve that we went to. We saw so many animals in the wild it was so fantastic. We didn't get to see any big cats, but basically seen everything else. I'm not sure whether I would recommend a visit to South Africa, but I definitely would say that if you ever thought of going on a safari make sure you do, it is heaps worth it. Check out the pics...
I went to New Delhi, Jaipur and Agra. What can I say about India? It is amazing and beautiful, yet there is high poverty, there is a madness, especially on the roads that I have not seen before, lots of honking and veering all over the place. I have no idea why there are lanes marked on the roads as no-one seems to use them, they drive madly in a direction, but they don't drive fast so there is a casualness about it all. It is very different to Australia and the food was great, and I did not get sick!!! The Taj Mahal is an absolute must see. Anyway, if you have not been, you need to go. Check out some pics that Sam, Tina or I took (not sure who took which - and yes I'm slack so you'll need to look sideways at some). And check out the McDonalds menu (for a nation that does not eat beef!).
I took the kids to the EKKA, Brisbane's version of the Royal Easter show. Nowhere near the size of Sydney's, but just as hideously expensive. Anyway, they had fun...
Estonia - a place I probably never thought I'd visit, but am very glad I did. This place is amazing, really worth a visit and you can hop on a ferry and cross the Baltic sea and about 40 minutes later you'll be in Finland. This place is cold and at this time of the year the sun sets very late and rises very early, there is about 4 hours of darkness each night and it plays with your sleep pattern (if you're not used to it), so mid summer there is even less dark time and of course during winter it's the reverse and freezing cold. The Old Town is spectacular, the buildings there are medieval and many have original fixtures and gates, it is surrounded by a fort and it's like a picture from a movie. These are the pics, some that I took and others that my friends Sam or Ed took.
Netherlands! Amsterdam is cool - it is very flat, no hills. There are over 100 canals connecting around the city and out to the harbour. It's pretty cool! The buildings are old and amazing, as are the old windmills. Everyone seems to cycle everywhere and all round it was a cool place to go. And yes I did smell the wacky tobaccy coming out of coffee shops as I walked by (but kept clear of it! promise!) and I walked through the red light district which was a bit different to the streets of Brisbane. My friend Leo lives in Amstrdam and he showed me around the city, we also went on a canal ride, which I recommend if you're ever in Amsterdam. Here are some pics (plus another 1 of Leo, but I need to scan that pic).
While I was in the US I went to Maryland, my friend Ed took me there and showed me around. We went to Anapolis, it is so cute there, there is a whole section that is just historical buildings and it leads all the way down to the water. Great to walk around. Also it is where the oldest State House in the US is located and was, in the 18 century, the capital of the US for a bit. I really dug the heritage sites here. So here are some pics, some I took and some Ed took.
I went to the US and met up with my friend Ed who took me out for the day, he showed me around Washington DC. It was cool, very touristy and very presidential, but worth going to if you're ever nearby. Here are some pics, some I took and others Ed took.
Puerto Rico! Pretty cool place, if you're thinking of going - do - but it is a lot way from home and a little bit of a bother to get to, so include some other places too because it's a long way to go for one destination. The island isn't that big and I didn't get around all of it, but I hope to re-visit the Carribean and will jump over to Puerto Rico because I want to see the Rainforests. I stayed in San Juan and I loved the Old town, the fort and terrace houses there were amazing. I have included some awesome pics, some that I took and others that were taken by my friends Sam or Ed.
