EDDIE IZZARD - CIRCLE

Did you know that lizards are in fact vegetables? It's true you know. A mate of mine told me. Eddie the Lizard. He came walking over to me dressed like a piano-mover from Hellraiser, and said 'Wooo! Errr. Lizards are vegetables. Asparagus. Aardvark. And a nice cup of tea'. Well, to be perfectly honest with you, he did tell me this whilst he was recording this 82 minute stand-up show performed in the year of our Lord, 2002. Amen.


Eddie Izzard - Circle

THE STORY:

The date is the 18th of November, 2002. The venue in question is the Belasco Theatre, New York, New York. And the man who is draped in a dominatrix butler's uniform, and geared up to entertain one and all, is none other than the transvestite kid himself, Edward John Izzard.

Yippeeee!!!!

Now in fine form Eddie takes to the stage like John the Baptists younger brother, Clive, and regales the baying crowd with a surrealist and satirical ramble that is two parts medicinal and five parts recreational. Without even breaking a sweat he tackles such subjects as Dinosaurs - Jesus - The Pope - Galileo - Charlton Heston - Monkeys - and Star Wars. Moreover, he's funny too. Which is a bonus, right?

Here, why don't you check out some of these quotes taken from this nutty show:

• By the next millennium you will find yourself dead.
• It's human to be a bastard.
• Catholics are good at keeping flies off of themselves [whilst miming a crucifix with his hand]
• Blaspheme - Blas-for-you - Blas-for-everybody.
• First there was Pope Pious the 1st. Then there was Pope Pious the 2nd. After that there was Pope Pious the 3rd - the revenge. And who can forget Pope Pious the 5th - now in 3D.
• The Spanish Inquisition was too bloody inquisitive. It should have been the Spanish casual chat.
• Theirs a lot of similarities between Christianity and the film 'Aliens'.
• You do know that there are other countries? Right America?
• Jesus is Buddha's baby brother.
• God created Adam in his own image. But two millennia earlier he created Dinosaurs in the image of his cousin, Clive.
• Chaos Theory makes a lot of sense to me. Shit happens.
• Do Tigers play the banjo?
• I don't do active research. I do passive research. I allow facts to come to me.
• We should have a stoned Olympics!
• Yes. I'm Jeff Vader.

Now as soon as Eddie tells his last joke, he takes a bows, he waves at the audience, and then he pisses off to Eddie-land with the other magical-people. Bless him. 

THE REVIEW:

Do you know what? I can't remember when I first saw Eddie Izzard. OK, I know that there must have been a time when I did't know of him or his work. However, for the life of me, I just cannot figure out why this is so?

I suppose I've always thought of him as being there -- in that transvestite way of his -- plying my brain with stuff and nonsense which I really do dig. Maybe it is because in many ways I like to think I'm a bit like Eddie myself. Talking nonsense. Jumping from one subject to another. And generally having that train of thought which is one-half logical and one-half surreal.

Though, come to think of it, I could be right with my presumption, huh? We like similar things. We look conventionally weird. We have a style to our creativity that is not part of the norm. Plus we have both studied humor from a historical stand-point, and understood that we owe a great debt of gratitude to those comics who've come before.

Take this stand-up performance for example. 'Eddie Izzard - Circle'. I could tell nigh on straight away that Ed learnt from some of the greatest British comedians of our time. From Python he's gauged the principle of 'a journey' being far more sweeter than its destination. From Spike Milligan he's understood that words do not have to be logical to make sense. And from people like Alexi Sayle and the 'Young Ones' he's ascertained that confrontation is sometimes more entertaining than appeasement. 

Granted, there's also a lot about Eddie that is purely Eddie. Like his flamboyant appearance and his bold and cartoon-ish delivery. Plus let's not forget the facts as well, huh? (1) Eddie was born in Aden, Yemen, on the 7th of February, 1962. (2) Many of his influences derive from the works of such British stalwarts as Monty Python, Jerry Sadowitz, and Spike Milligan. On a side note, Eddie's father, Harold, knew of Spike during the war. (3) Amidst his adolescence, Eddie lived in Bangor, Skewen, and Eastbourne. This was mainly because his mother, Dorothy Ella, had died, and his father found it difficult to find a permanent place to stay. (4) Eddie dropped out of his Accountancy degree to become a street performer in Covent Garden, London, with his good friend, Roy Ballard. (5) After a tough time of it on the streets, Eddie made a name for himself when he performed at the London Comedy Store and the Edinburgh Fringe. (6) Eddie once owned a comedy club of his own in Soho, London, named 'Raging Bull'. (7) It was legendary American stand-up comic, Robin Williams, who encouraged Eddie to travel to America and perform his stuff over there. (8) Eddie has dyslexia.

Overall 'Eddie Izzard - Circle' is a must watch slice of stand-up comedy for anybody who loves a good laugh. One of my most favourite things about his performance was how Eddie made God sound like James Mason, plus that whole 'Darth Vader' canteen skit was a blast from start to finish. Here, check out this clip to see what I mean...

So go ahead! What are you waiting for? The Spanish polite conversation? Or maybe for a Tiger to play the kazoo? Grab an Eddie DVD today. Or else... errr... don't.

THE RATING: A