Lloyd Griffith: One Tonne of Fun UK Tour 2023 Tour - Interview

Lloyd Griffith: One Tonne of Fun UK Tour 2023 Tour - Interview

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Posted 2023-02-16 by Tony Collinsfollow

Sun 22 Jan 2023 - Sat 25 Mar 2023

Lloyd Griffith is a man of many talents - television presenter, actor, and classically-trained choral singer to name just a few. But he is mainly a comedian, as audiences around the country can currently testify as he continues his new stand-up tour, One Tonne of Fun, which comes to Birmingham Town Hall on February 25. Lloyd, who can also be seen in the major ITV drama Nolly, based on actress Noele Gordon, spoke to WeekendNotes ahead of his 44-date comedy tour.

What sort of things do you talk about in One Tonne of Fun?
"Something that happened as a result of lockdown is my obsession with candles, which is not what you'd expect from a northern working-class lad. I'm probably not the candle industry's target market, but this is the first year I'm doing a show where there's no real theme. I just want it to be funny. I'm harking back to where I used to watch Lee Evans and Lee Mack. They were just funny. I want people to leave their worries and woes at the door. There's always singing in my show but a lot of people don't know that I sing so they come along and they're just absolutely baffled at this little fella belting out an opera oratorio. There's a joke about hotel biscuits, a little quiz about rap and religion. And impressions, though not like Rory Bremner. I used to do the sound of sellotape being ripped, that sort of thing. The primary reason for the title, One Tonne of Fun, is that I'm a big lad and I want to make people laugh. There's actually two reasons. My mum and aunties were really big girls. They were nicknamed The Weather Girls [the pop duo who sang It's Raining Men]. And The Weather Girls' original name was actually Two Tonnes Of Fun."%%

Lloyd Griffith on new comedy stand-up tour. Photo Matt Crockett


You said you were working-class. Is being a chorister more middle-class than being a stand-up comedian?
"Absolutely not. This goes back to places like the Chapel Royal, Windsor Castle and Westminster Abbey, they all have outreach programmes from hundreds of years ago where they would source working-class singers to give them an opportunity. That's essentially what I was given when I was seven. I was the only choirboy that got the bus to church every day so I was aware I was a working-class lad in a middle-class choir. At university, when I sang in Exeter Cathedral choir some kids came from comprehensive schools, some from Eton, but we had this common connection that we just love singing. I think that's great, because then it can translate into comedy because you can compare these different backgrounds in your act. I had a girlfriend whose father was a lord. I used to say her family had a coat of arms, but me and my sister used to have to share a coat. Which had no arms. Experiencing different lifestyles makes you a richer comic."

Catch the One Tonne of Fun at Birmingham Town Hall on February 25


Tell me about your role in Nolly, starring Helena Bonham Carter?
"It's about Noele Gordon, the star of the soap Crossroads. I play Paul Henry, who in turn played Benny in Crossroads. It's written by Russell T Davies, who wrote It's A Sin. It also stars Mark Gatiss as comedian Larry Grayson. It was interesting because you're playing two characters that people know about. I've watched a lot of Crossroads in the last year. When you mention Crossroads to people Benny is the character they always remember. I worked with Russell T Davies and director Peter Hoar when I had a small part in It's A Sin. It was only two days but I was aware that this was going to be something special. It was just a joy to be involved. Peter won a BAFTA with It's A Sin and I'm the only returning person. So if Nolly does well, then essentially I have to work with him for every project. I'll be the lucky mascot."

Lloyd can also be seen in the new ITV drama Nolly about soap actress Noele Gordon


I heard that you might have been the first person to sing the new national anthem in public?
On the Tuesday after the Queen died Grimsby Town said that they'd love me to sing. I wanted to play professional football as a kid but that never happened. I did perform on the pitch though in a capacity that I was good at. I didn't want it to be announced beforehand. I just wanted to do it and the outpouring of love afterwards was amazing. You could hear a pin drop for that minute. Then Brentford asked me to do it at their game with Arsenal and that one was televised. I got the words wrong in rehearsals, but luckily, when it counted, and when the cameras were on, I managed to sing it correctly."

For tickets and information about Lloyd Griffith's tour visit https://lloydgriffith.com

He can be seen at Birmingham Town Hall on Saturday 25 February at 7.30pm. Tickets priced £23 are available from https://bmusic.co.uk/events/lloyd-griffith-one-tonne-of-fun

#comedy
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%wnbirmingham

!date 22/01/2023 -- 25/03/2023
74794 - 2023-02-16 14:47:08

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