Adrian Edmondson
Adrian Edmondson (sometimes credited as
Ade Edmondson, born
24 January,
1957 in
Bradford,
West Yorkshire) is an
English actor,
comedian,
director, and
writer.
Edmondson is probably best known as the anarchic punk Vyvyan in the cult
BBC sitcom The Young Ones (1982â€"1984) and later, for his role as Eddie Hitler in the BBC sitcom
Bottom (1991â€"1995) which he also co-wrote. In both of these roles he starred alongside
comedy partner,
Rik Mayall.
He is the second of four children. Though born in Bradford, as a child he lived with his family in a variety of places including
Cyprus,
Bahrain and
Uganda. His father was a teacher in the armed forces.
He attended
Pocklington School, a public school in Yorkshire, and later went on to the
University of Manchester to study
drama, receiving a
2:1. Edmondson met Mayall while studying at the university. They soon became friends and before long found work on the burgeoning
alternative comedy scene. Under the name
20th Century Coyote they became one of the star attractions at the
The Comedy Store. As their popularity grew, they and other upcoming comedians (including
Alexei Sayle,
Peter Richardson,
Nigel Planer and
French and Saunders) split away from the Comedy Store to set up their own venue:
The Comic Strip club.
The Comic Strip soon gained a reputation as one of the most popular comedy clubs in London and soon came to the attention of
Channel 4. Edmondson and the others were commissioned to act in six self-contained half-hour films, using the group as comedy actors rather than stand-up performers. The series, entitled
The Comic Strip Presents... debuted on
2 November 1982 (the opening night of Channel 4). The first episode to be broadcast was "
Five Go Mad in Dorset", a parody of
Enid Blyton's
Famous Five, which drew anger from some viewers for the way it mercilessly satirised a children's classic. Edmondson starred as one of the five.
At the same time as
The Comic Strip Presents... was being negotiated, the BBC signed up Edmondson, Mayall, Richardson, Planer and Sayle to star in
The Young Ones, a sitcom in the same anarchic style as The Comic Strip. (Richardson later decided not to proceed and was replaced by
Christopher Ryan.) The show revolved around the shared house where the students lived during their study at Scumbag College. It was noted at the time of its first airing for its violent slapstick, with Edmondson's character as the main instigator, and this is a trait which has stayed with him throughout his career. The series captured public imagination and remains one of Britain's most popular sitcoms.
|
Edmondson (far right) as Vyvyan in The Young Ones |
Following the success of
The Comic Strip Presents... and, to a greater extent,
The Young Ones, Edmondson and Mayall returned to their "Coyote" dynamic in the double act "
The Dangerous Brothers" with Edmondson as "Sir (or occasionally Lady) Adrian Dangerous" in
Saturday Live (1985â€"1987).
In 1983, he appeared as the lead singer
Vim Fuego in the spoof
heavy metal band called
Bad News, with his
Young Ones team.
In 1985 Edmondson married fellow
Comic Strip performer
Jennifer Saunders. The couple now have three children: Eleanor, Beatrice and Freya. Edmondson's university nickname of "Eddie Monsoon", a play on his surname, inspired the name of Saunders' character, Edina Monsoon, on
Absolutely Fabulous and his own characters Eddie Catflap (
Filthy Rich & Catflap) and Eddie Hitler (
Bottom). Their joint production company is called Mr and Mrs Monsoon Limited.
In 1986, Edmondson achieved a number one hit in the UK singles charts when he and his co-stars from
The Young Ones teamed up with
Cliff Richard to record a new version of "Living Doll" for the inaugural
Comic Relief campaign. Despite having been killed off in the final episode of the series, Edmondson played Vyvyan one last time in the video. The same year he co-wrote the book
How to be a Complete Bastard together with Mark Leigh and Mike Lepine.
In
1987 he reunited with Planer and Mayall to star in
Filthy, Rich and Catflap. The series was penned by
The Young Ones' co-writer
Ben Elton and saw Edmondson display the same slapstick characteristics as Vyvyan, but was closer in personality to his later characer "Eddie Hitler" in
Bottom. The show received critical acclaim but poor viewing figures and was cancelled after one series.
In
1989 Edmondson made an appearance in an episode of
Blackadder Goes Forth as
The Red Baron, arch-nemesis to Mayall's character,
Lord Flashheart.
In
1991 he teamed up with Mayall once more, this time co-writing and co-starring in their own sitcom,
Bottom. Edmondson starred as "Edward Elizabeth Hitler" opposite Mayall's "Richard Richard". The series featured the slapstick and crude humour for which the pair had become famous, but also more in-depth character analysis. Mayall and Edmonson have said
Bottom was aimed to be more than just a series of toilet gags but a cruder cousin to plays like
Waiting for Godot, about the pointlessness of life. The series proved a hit and is often considered to be the most violent and profane example of the Britcom genre. However, it was criticised for its often vulgar humour. Edmondson was also censured for essentially reprising the same character he had been playing for his entire career.
Bottom was also incarnated into five UK stage tours (1991, 1995, 1997, 2001 and 2003). The violent natures of these shows saw both Edmondson and Mayall ending up in hospital.
In
1993 Edmondson starred alonside
Richard Briers in a controversial black comedy called
If You See God, Tell Him. Edmondson played Gordon Spry, whose Father (Briers) is paralysed and has a greatly reduced attention span. His erratic behaviour causes problems for Gordon. The series comprised four episodes, each 45 minutes long, and only broadcast once. (The BBC has refused to repeat the series.)
|
Edmondson (left) with Mayall in Bottom |
In
1996, he played the role of Ace Face/Bellboy at The Who's performance of
Quadrophenia at London's
Hyde Park.
Following the
1997 Bottom stage tour,
Hooligans Island, Mayall and Edmondson worked on the idea of a
Bottom film in which Richie and Eddie run a hotel. The two had been working on the script together, and were set to co-direct. However, in
1998 Mayall was seriously injured and spent a few days in a coma. Edmondson found this time very difficult. When Mayall came around he helped Edmondson complete the script while still in hospital, but it was decided that he was still not fit enough to direct, so Edmondson took the sole directing duties on what became
Guest House Paradiso. Since the 2003
Bottom tour Edmondson has shown a lack of interest in working with his friend Mayall, claiming he is more difficult to work with since his accident.
In
2004 he starred in a different comedic role, as an incompetent surgeon in
Doctors and Nurses and had a recurring part in
Jonathan Creek.
In
2005 he was one of the celebrities taking part in
Comic Relief does
Fame Academy (in which he was known for his punk-style version of the song "Can't Take My Eyes Off of You") and came in third place.
He directed pop videos for
Fiesta (1988) by
The Pogues,
Prime Mover (1987) by
Zodiac Mindwarp,
Like the weather (1988) by
10,000 Maniacs and
Please help the cause against loneliness (1988) by
Sandie Shaw. He published a novel called
The Gobbler in September 1995.
He has also made three appearances to date in
Holby City, starring in a semi-serious role as a doctor who usually works in Ghana.
His most recent performance was in
Surviving Disaster, a BBC docu-drama of the 1986
Chernobyl disaster that was broadcast at the start of 2006. Edmondson played the role of Dr Valeri Legasov, who gives his account of events.
* Adrian Edmondson played the Durand Durand character from
Barbarella in the video for
We've Got A Fuzzbox And We're Gonna Use It's 1989 Number 11 hit "
International Rescue".
* When asked in an interview what he enjoyed doing in his spare time, he replied with classic Edmondson wit, "Drinking fine wine and
knee-capping people."
* In 1986 he was featured on the cover of
Smash Hits as "Sexy Ade Edmondson" while the article inside featured him breaking into the photographer's studio and murdering
Howard Jones.
* In 1996 he provided the voice for the
Peperami Character in the
video game,
Animal.
*
Jonathan Creek on BBCi*
Adrian Edmondson at BBCi*
The Adrian Edmondson website
