Sir Lenny Henry returns to stand-up after 16 years off stage
Sir Lenny Henry is making his return to stand-up with a "comedy lecture" at the Perth Festival of the Arts on May 30.
Sir Lenny Henry is performing his first stand-up show for 16 years.
The 66-year-old star hasn’t stepped on stage for a stand-up gig since he hosted 'Live At The Apollo' for the BBC and he hasn’t embarked on a full comedy tour since 2002, but he will be making his return at the Perth Festival of the Arts on May 30, with what he describes as a "comedy lecture".
In recent years, Lenny has focused on his acting appearing in TV shows like 'Broadchurch', 'Doctor Who' and 'Missing You' as well as appearing on stage in Shakespeare productions, but he admits he has missed making people laugh.
Speaking to the BBC, he said: "The acting has been something I've been very proud of and want to continue. But I love the idea of having an hour of comedy you can do, in your pocket. And if somewhere in there we could use Perth as a foundation for that, it would be a good thing.
"When you're on the set of 'Broadchurch' and it's all about dead bodies, you do wish someone would come on and crash into a bakery by mistake.
"You do wish there were more funny lines. I think comedy is a massive healer and is underestimated.
"It doesn't have its own category at the Oscars and I think that's terrible. Comedy deserves more respect.
"Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Richard Pryor, Steve Martin, Lily Tomlin. So many great comedians in the world who've never been given their flowers and I think we need to start appreciating how wonderful it is."
Lenny shot to fame on television when he co-hosted children's programme 'Tiswas' from 1978 until 1981 and performed skits as his comedy characters Trevor McDoughnut - a parody of newsreader Trevor McDonald - Rastafarian Algernon Razzmatazz and his spoof of nature enthusiast David Bellamy.
He then landed his own comedy series 'The Lenny Henry Show' in the '80s and had viewers in hysterics with characters like Theophilus P. Wildebeeste - the soul singing 'one man sex machine' - Deakus - the elderly philosophising Jamaican - and Brixton pirate radio DJ, the "crucial!” Delbert Wilkins.
Lenny previously teased his stand-up return in January and insisted he wasn't worried about upsetting modern audiences with his jokes.
He said: “It’s been a while. There are plans afoot. We’re writing and we’re thinking about things.“
When asked if he was worried about upsetting people with his new routine, he added: “I think people can say anything they like as long as they edit. As long as you can self-edit you’ll be fine, if you can’t self-edit then you in trouble.”
