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Brick Wall Comedy
Brick Wall Comedy

Uncensored and Live

Mark Lamarr

1997 · 66 min

The abrasive panel show host steps out from behind the desk.

Watch it free on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Mark Lamarr spent the 1990s as the sneering, rockabilly-styled misanthrope of British panel shows, but live on stage, he occasionally looked like he was having fun. Uncensored and Live captures him stepping out from behind the Never Mind the Buzzcocks desk and the Shooting Stars crossfire to do what got him on television in the first place. Armed with a chain-smoking habit and his signature quiff, he sheds his rigid TV persona for a loose set of quickfire crowd work and cynical storytelling.

Filmed at the Wilde Theatre in 1997, the video release caught him at the peak of his mainstream fame. He was finishing a three-year run letting Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer use him as a punchline and was fully settling into his role as an abrasive quizmaster on BBC Two. The live stage gave him room to breathe and stretch into long-form premises, taking aim at hecklers and outlining his vision of a gin-drunk Queen Elizabeth posing for a new £50 note.

The set list

3 bits

  1. Spotting an audience member in a back brace

    When told the patron broke his back and was instructed not to laugh, Lamarr quipped that he came to the right show, calling it the worst review he had ever received.

  2. Poses the Queen should strike on banknotes

    A shockingly blue routine imagining crude poses Queen Elizabeth II should assume on British currency.

  3. A beetle crawling on the stage

    Lamarr notices an insect crawling across the stage and personifies it, imagining the beetle is judging him and bored by his jokes regarding women's periods.

How it plays

Tone
Warm, spontaneous, cheeky, and notably blue.
On stage
Warm, quick-witted, and genial in direct contrast to his sour TV image, exhibiting fearless bravado and sharp-tongued banter without fear of offending.
Pace
Quick on his feet, high momentum, featuring rapid banter and heavily unscripted crowd interaction.
About
audience interaction, the British monarchy, menstruation

What the critics said

Praised by reviewers for showcasing Lamarr's underlying live warmth, dazzling banter, and rapid-fire wit, presenting a much more likeable and rounded dimension of his comedy than his cynical television character.

In the room: An intimate, freewheeling room where Lamarr bounced effortlessly off an assortment of odd characters in the front rows.

Summed up from reviews, articles and listings. Sources: letterboxd.com, imdb.com, tview.co.uk, independent.co.uk, themoviedb.org, en.wikipedia.org.

Backstory

Mark Lamarr had developed a television reputation as 'TV's Mr Misery' known for snide put-downs and dour sulks on panel shows, contrasting with his reputation in comedy clubs as a warm, quickfire live performer.

Details

Released
Taped
Wilde Theatre, Bracknell
Runtime
66 min
Director
Tom Poole
Topics

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