Lee Evans

Now established as one of Britain’s best-loved and biggest comedy stars, ex-boxer Lee Evans has captured audiences’ and critics’ imaginations with his irrepressible physicality and disarming charm.

Lee Evans’ Big UK Tour 2008 was the UK’s biggest ever solo live comedy gig, breaking Lee’s own previous record in 2005.

The winner of the Time Out Award for Comedy and the highly coveted Perrier Award, Lee has been described by the press as ‘a dazzling comic genius’.

Lee’s latest TV appearance was in Dr Who, in the spring of 2009, when he played a Welsh scientist in their Easter special, Planet of the Dead.

Movies
Film appearances started way back in 1995 with his lead role in the critically-acclaimed Funny Bones, directed by Peter Chelsom. The film won the London Evening Standard Peter Sellers Award for best movie. He has since starred in Hollywood blockbusters The Fifth Element with Bruce Willis and Gary Oldman, Mousehunt with Nathan Lane, and the Farrelly Brothers’ classic There’s Something About Mary with Ben Stiller and Cameron Diaz.

West End Fame
In March 2004 Lee made his West End acting debut in Samuel Beckett’s seminal play Endgame alongside the legendary Michael Gambon (The Singing Detective; The Cook, The Thief, His Wife And Her Lover) at London’s Albery Theatre. This was followed in 2005 by his appearance in Mel Brooks’ musical The Producers at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. Lee played Leo Bloom, alongside Nathan Lane’s Max Bialystock in the critically-acclaimed West End production of the hit New York show – they were nominated for an Olivier Award for their roles in the production. In 2007 Lee returned to the West End stage at the Trafalgar Studios with co-star Jason Isaacs in the Harold Pinter play The Dumb Waiter. The show was a huge success with the critics and he received the London Theatregoers’ Choice Award for his performance as the hitman Gus.

A Lifelong Ambition
After leaving art school, Lee spent six years touring clubs all across the British Isles and eventually landed a regular weekly spot at London’s famous Comedy Store, home to the burgeoning alternative comedy scene.

Like a lot of new established comics, Lee’s break came in 1993 when he took the Edinburgh Festival by storm, winning the prestigious Perrier Award. That same year he achieved a life-long ambition by performing and selling out for two nights at The London Palladium.

In 1996 Lee returned to London with a sell-out, eight week run at London’s Lyric Theatre breaking all box office records for a solo comedian at a Stoll Moss Theatre. Lee then took his show Same World, Different Planet on a major UK tour before returning to London for a further two-week run at the Apollo Theatre where he recorded the best-seller, Lee Evans Live – Different Planet Tour. A subsequent Christmas special of The Lee Evans Show was shot for ITV at London Studios.

In 1998 Lee returned to London for a further ten-week, sell-out run at the Apollo Theatre. Success has since continued unabated, culminating in October 2002 when Lee became the first solo comedian to play Wembley Arena for two sell-out nights performing to 20,000 people.

As seen on TV
Lee is a regular visitor to BBC1′s Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, having appeared a record number of times throughout the long-running series. In 2007, Lee starred in the lead role of Alfred Polly in ITV1 drama production of the H.G. Wells novel The History of Mr Polly, which was later released as a DVD. Lee has also appeared on BBC1 in his own sitcom series, Lee Evans: So What Now? for which he was nominated Most Popular Comedy Performer at the National TV Awards 2001.

Masterful, precise, physical comedy’ – The Independent