Lenny Henry - the least funny person alive?
Discussion
This thread beautifully mirrored in the brilliant Extras S2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y39d1fQqIXo&fea...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y39d1fQqIXo&fea...
He's still 100% funnier than John Bishop though. Seeing that useless scouce t
t on TV gets my remote pummeled until the channel changes. I even binned an episode of HIGNFY cause he was sat next to Ian Hislop.
Lenny Henry may be crap now but he rose to fame during a time when comedy was a bit lame anyway. There were some class acts but there was also stuff like Russ Abbot.
Oh and some black comedians can base their act around skin colour and still be funny,like early Eddie Murphy's stand up.
t on TV gets my remote pummeled until the channel changes. I even binned an episode of HIGNFY cause he was sat next to Ian Hislop.Lenny Henry may be crap now but he rose to fame during a time when comedy was a bit lame anyway. There were some class acts but there was also stuff like Russ Abbot.
Oh and some black comedians can base their act around skin colour and still be funny,like early Eddie Murphy's stand up.
Edited by Zaxxon on Sunday 2nd January 09:29
Zaxxon said:
Oh and some black comedians can base their act around skin colour and still be funny,like [b]early[b] Eddie Murphy's stand up.
Agreed.However. It's an old format that's just not funny anymore and I think people are just not comfortable listening to it.
A prime example of this is Gina Yashere
Not only is she unfunny but she's also quite irritating.
hesnotthemessiah said:
GTIR said:
Let's face it, there's never been any funny black comedians that don't do the "I'm a black person and..." or "You white folk are..." or "My mother/father..." in a bad Jamaican accent cards.
A fair point but I don't think 'real' black comedians such as Richard Prior or Chris Rock had their routines based around those topics as Mr Henry et al do. IMHO obviously. I'm in agreeance here. I'm mixed race and get grief for not finding every black comedy act funny. Most bore the pants off me with the exception of Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy and some of the current acts like Chris Rock and Kat Williams. The only british black commedian I ever liked was Curtis Ishamael (sp?).
I'm in agreeance here. I'm mixed race and get grief for not finding every black comedy act funny. Most bore the pants off me with the exception of Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy and some of the current acts like Chris Rock and Kat Williams. The only british black commedian I ever liked was Curtis Ishamael (sp?).
Completely agree. His act was very out of date on Live at the Apollo yesterday.
I must say though that " Lenny Live and Unleashed" was one of the funniest things I watched at the end of the 80s...which is when his act was current - at least for the UK audience that had never heard of Eddie Murphy's stand-up routines. I understand, from wikipedia, that the writing owed much to a Kim Fuller (better known as Simon's brother).
Some of his character creations at that time were Marmite, but pitching, amongst other things, his mum as this domineering woman, and tales of a poor upbringing was something that became very common with many comedians from then on.
I must agree with the post that says he should stick to acting though (not over-acting as he was in The Magicians, neither).
I must say though that " Lenny Live and Unleashed" was one of the funniest things I watched at the end of the 80s...which is when his act was current - at least for the UK audience that had never heard of Eddie Murphy's stand-up routines. I understand, from wikipedia, that the writing owed much to a Kim Fuller (better known as Simon's brother).
Some of his character creations at that time were Marmite, but pitching, amongst other things, his mum as this domineering woman, and tales of a poor upbringing was something that became very common with many comedians from then on.
I must agree with the post that says he should stick to acting though (not over-acting as he was in The Magicians, neither).
GTIR said:
It's a classic case of leeching off other comedians - think Skinner and unfunny Baddiel - now he's on his own people are starting to wake up to the fact he's not funny. 3 of kind in the 80's he relied on other people.
I reckon it's because he's black the industry are wary of dropping him completely for fear of any backlash.
Let's face it, there's never been any funny black comedians that don't do the "I'm a black person and..." or "You white folk are..." or "My mother/father..." in a bad Jamaican accent cards.
Apart from Richard Blackwood, he's a genius.
Yup I reckon it's because he's black the industry are wary of dropping him completely for fear of any backlash.
Let's face it, there's never been any funny black comedians that don't do the "I'm a black person and..." or "You white folk are..." or "My mother/father..." in a bad Jamaican accent cards.
Apart from Richard Blackwood, he's a genius.
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