Bill Bailey - Part Troll

Synopsis

British Comedy Award winner Bill has enjoyed success on the live stage for many years. In 2001 he took his show Bewilderness to New York for an eight week run at the Westbeth Theatre. The New York Times wrote of him, "Bill is an unalloyed pleasure, a treat for the funny bone, the brain and the ear" and The Telegraph pronounced him "a hobbit with a wicked sense of humour". In 2004 he performed his show Part Troll at over fifty venues around the UK, culminating in an extended run at London’s Wyndhams Theatre. In 2007 he embarked on a sold-out UK arena tour with his audio-visual, comedic extravaganza, Tinselworm. He took the show down under during the summer of 2008, touring Australia and New Zealand, before returning to London in December 2008 for a ten week run of the show at The Gielgud Theatre. The summer of 2009 saw Bill tour the UK once again with his live show, Bill Bailey Live. Last autumn, following his performances at London’s Royal Albert Hall and the resulting critically acclaimed BBC2 television broadcast, Bill enjoyed a very successful UK tour of his musical comedy extravaganza, Bill Bailey’s Remarkable Guide to the Orchestra. Performing alongside some of the UK’s finest orchestras, the show provided fans with the opportunity to see Bill’s surreal comic and musical imagination at its best and was described by The Telegraph as "a glorious achievement," The Guardian as "sublime hilarity" and Stephen Fry as "wonderfully enjoyable... like driving a Rolls-Royce off-road."

Our Review:

27 October 2004

He strides on to the musical accompaniment of no less than The Clash’s “London Calling” and, for the intro minutes, he falls almost completely flat. “Comedy,” Bill Bailey asserts, “that’s why you’re here, so let’s crack on!” Pacing the stage with his eyes cast down then straight out to the audience like a seasoned lecturer, with his 20 years’ experience, he’s clearly confident of winning over this West End crowd. And so he ultimately does.

Under the guise of personal life experiences, the jokes start hitting the jackpot with Bailey’s trademark witty commentary. He harps on about a variety of everyday truths, from the BBC’s silly listing of 50 things to do “before you DIE!”, to examples of US airport immigration paranoia (“Sir, have you ever crossed the road using an old woman as a human shield?”), to a critique of today’s British pop music (“there’s more evil in our charts than in an Al Quaeda suggestion box”).

The disappointment of the show’s beginning is long forgotten...

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Latest User Review

62.253.64.18) - 13 December 2004:

I haven't seen Bill Bailey live for years and wondered what how his fame and commercial success might have touched him. But the show was just wonderful, hilariously funny, multi-talented and an all round hoot....

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