Bill’s 2001 tour Bewilderness was a commercial and critical success, with The New York Times calling him “a treat for the funny bone, the brain and the ear”, and The Telegraph pronouncing him “a hobbit with a wicked sense of humour”.
Among other things, Bewilderness demonstrated Bill’s wide range of musical knowledge, making him an ideal choice to take over from Sean Hughes as team captain on Never Mind the Buzzcocks in 2002. He has now appeared in 5 series, and the show is still going strong, despite the departure of long-time host Mark Lamarr.
Bill’s next big tour, Part Troll, was met with equal acclaim and achieved success all over the world. Its beginnings were at Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2003, a year when Bill also branched out as a dramatic actor in an extremely well-received production of 12 Angry Men, as the restrained Juror 4. Two years later he assumed the vastly different role of the slouchy, unkempt Oscar in The Odd Couple, and received equally excellent reviews.
In 2006, Bill premiered his show Steampunk in Edinburgh, and appeared on our screens on Sunday afternoons hosting Wild Thing I Love You, a Channel 4 wildlife show calling for Bill and his team to come up with innovative solutions to animals’ problems.
Since the beginning of the year, Bill has appeared in a new series of Never Mind the Buzzcocks, starred in Pinter’s People - a collection of comedy sketches by Harold Pinter playing at the West End, and led the BBC Concert Orchestra in a Cosmic Shindig – a special concert for Comic Relief. Bill Bailey - Cockney Music
These are his top 10 albums, as listed in the Sunday Express S:2 magazine on 24th October 2004:
1. Talking Heads - Remain in Light (1980)
2. The Clash - Combat Rock (1982)
3. Beck - Odelay (1996)
4. Red Hot Chilli Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991)
5. King Curtis - Live at Fillmore West (1971)
6. The Dandy Warhols - 13 Tales From Urban Bohemia (2000)
7. Tom Waits - Blue Valentine (1978)
8. Lamb - Fear of Fours (1999)
9. Elvis Costello - When I Was Cruel (2002)
10. David Bowie - Ziggie Stardust (1972)
Bill has also written that:
“I remain a big fan of The Clash, Elvis Costello, Talking Heads David Byrne of course..I was a hopeless devotee of Chrissie Hynde for many years - I do like a bit of twiddly but followed by something loud, like the Queens of the Stone Age, or Sugar..then quiet again with Yo La Tengo and a smidgen of Javanese Gamelan...then wistful with Beth Orton...then off again with the Chilli Peppers... In the car CD at the moment is PJ Harvey, Snow Patrol and The Streets...Top Geeza! My most recent gig I attended was Kraftwerk which was magnificent.” bill bailey hokey kokey
IF YOU WISH TO CONTACT BILL BAILEY, GO TO WWW.BILLBAILEY.CO.UK
Bill Bailey is a comedian, musician and actor most well known for live shows Bewilderness and Part Troll, and his work on television in programmes such as Never Mind the Buzzcocks and Black Books.
Raised in the West Country, Bill was once in a group called “The Famous Five” – an unsuccessful band with only four members. Although a talented musician, Bill always felt an urge to slip jokes into the music. This didn’t work out so, harbouring theatrical ambitions, he spent the early 80s touring with a Welsh Experimental theatre troupe, and appearing on stage with the Workers’ Revolutionary Party. He supplemented these with stints as a lounge pianist, and a keyboard player in a jazz trio. It was a John Hegley gig that finally inspired him to fuse the music, jokes and theatricality and become a stand-up comedian.
In 1989 he and Martin Stubbs formed double act The Rubber Bishops, using cassocks borrowed from a church in Edinburgh. They became well known on the club circuit for their off-the-wall musical comedy. Sometimes having to travel to several gigs in one night, Bill became something of an authority on motorway service stations.
After Stubbs quit the act, Bill teamed up with Sean Lock for 1994 Edinburgh show Rock, before going solo in 1995 with Cosmic Jam and earning a Perrier nomination. This led to a 1996 TV broadcast of the show, featuring a souped up X-Wing-esque keyboard, and a giant papier mache ant suspended from the ceiling.
In 1998 he wrote and starred in BBC Two show, “Is it Bill Bailey?”; a mixture of musical parodies, surreal sketches, and extended monologues on subjects such as the fine line between genius and madness, and existential biscuit aisles.
The turn of the century brought a starring role in award-winning sitcom Black Books as increasingly deranged ex-accountant Manny Bianco, and guest appearances in acclaimed comedy Spaced as Bilbo Bagshot - comic store owner and die hard Hawk the Slayer fan.
Thanks for the add, saw you in August at the New Theatre Oxford and was completely bowled over absolutely fantastic thanks for adding me too xx Thanks For Add Animals comments and graphics
After you've finished here, you may like to hear this folk-carol on myspace... Poem 230 of 230, WalkaboutsVerse (see my blog for details): CHRISTMAS SUNG SIMPLY
As gospellers have said, Beneath signalling skies, On land dusty to tread, A trough in a stable Was the strawy first-bed Of a divine baby - The forgiving Godhead.
A season for new hope - There then and here now; The yuletide of goodwill - There then and here now.
In respect of this chance, Beneath bright or dark skies, Faith's the star that we glance Attending Christ's churches And trying to enhance, With singing and ritual, Our God-loving stance.
Just a quick note to tell you that Decca is releasing our 4th album this month on November 23rd. Its called Voices of the Valley: Memory Lane and will be available from iTunes, Amazon, and Play.com, Dame Vera Lynn joins us to sing We'll Meet Again. This track is also being released as a single.
You can now be kept informed of our activities by following us on Twitter.
Hi Bill Bailey Love your stand up and your cover of Creep with the Bollywood Pandits Feelfree to check out my spooky songs for halloween + heres my promo animation i made for my song Zombie Raising hope you like it lots of love and have a great halloween!!!
Its been a while and we thought it was about time we updated you on what we've been up to. Our debut EP Little World is now available at our gigs and will soon be available from our myspace and facebook pages, you will also be able to download it from itunes, but we don't have a release date for this as yet.
To celebrate the fact that we have now reached 25,000 plays on myspace, we are giving you a free MP3 of Rockabye Baby. All you have to do is send your email address to queen.elvis@yahoo.ie and we will send it to you.
We have spent the last year rehearsing with a full band and are now ready to bring it on the road. You can get a look at us when we appear on Balcony TV this week with the full line up. We are currently taking bookings for gigs/concerts/festivals and can be contacted on the email above, or through our myspace and facebook pages.
Thankyou for your continued support in what has been a great year for us!
For
those interested in animal rights/welfare fiction, please have a look to my
novel “The Demon’s Trial”. The process of writing it is what made me a vegan,
by the way.
After you've finished here, you may like to hear this poem sung on myspace...
Poem 162 of 230, WalkaboutsVerse (please see my blog): TEES TO TYNE: FIRST IMPRESSIONS - SUMMER 2001
Where traditions are not so rare; Sea, country and works scent the air; A multitude of monuments, Planted tubs and patterned pavements.
The longish pedestrian malls; The remnants of defensive walls; Historic buildings are a gauge Of the respect for heritage.
Wheat, rape and pines in the fields; Estuaries guarded by shields; Long sandy beaches and wide scenes; Romantic-ruin go-betweens.
Rivers in parts licked by trees, Or fringed by boat clubs, wharfs, gantries, And crossed by practical delights - Varied spans, forming pleasing sights.
Fine churches headed at Durham; Football kits ad infinitum; Kept castles - one for study; Masonry behind masonry.
And, with moulding-works out that way, It’s somewhere for a longer stay..?
