2006

Hey guys,

Sorry! I’ve been away. Kirsty, I hope someone talked you down… once you’ve cut a canvas bag, you can never turn back. It’s a slippery fucking slope that one, mark my words.

The password-protected post that was here was just a wee Chrissy video-message I made for my and Sarah’s fams in Australia. In the end I buggered it up and it was on public view on youtube anyway, Which was a bit embarrassing because it was quite personal. But that’s ok… not like I was nude or anything. Hohoho.

Hope everyone had a fun one. We went up to see some friends in Claughton in Lancashire. There was turkey and stuffing: the latter being the verb to describe how we consumed the former.

Loving having my very own human. She’s pretty cool – yesterday we drove home in horrendous traffic and it took 8 hours and the wee’n slept about 7 of them. Sweet. With newborns, when it comes to time-spent-conscious, less is most definitely more.

I got: some cds, some books, some socks, some jocks, some jams, some soap, and a special bag thingy to hang on the handle-bars of my bike so that I can ride around London carrying my cds, books, socks, jocks, jams and soap like some kind of affluent, health-conscious homeless person.

So. UK tour starts in a month. Exciting. I have a few corporate type gigs between now and then and an Australia Day thingy.

Oh, and don’t forget to listen to BBC Radio 2 at 6pm on New Year’s Day… for that is when my radio special, “Tim Minchin and Friends” is to be aired. Friends include Reggie Watts, Lucie Silvas and Jeremy Lion. Check out details on the BBC Radio 2 worldwide internet website. (There’s even recordings of a couple of tunes that didn’t make the edit available to listen to right goddam now.)

I’ll remind you of that little puppy again.

Ok. Merry Christmas, Chappy Chanukah, whatever. Peace and goodwill towards men.

And ladies. Of course.

The lovely, lovely ladies.

t.
x

Hey guys.

I really just wanted to let you know that another Duchess Theatre show has gone on sale. Sunday 3rd December 7:30pm.

But I know I need to write interesting blogs, otherwise you’ll all stop reading them.

So to make your visit here today more worthwhile, I’ve uploaded a song that pretty much no-one in the world has ever heard. I recorded it in my bedroom with my Melbourne band, “Rosencrantz”. It’s really silly but pretty sexually inspiring, I think. It’s entitled “Shag With The Stereo On” and it’s about shagging. With the stereo on. You can find it on my downloads page.

Anyhoo. Tickets are now available for Sunday 3rd December at:

The Duchess Theatre
Catherine Street
London WC2B 5LA

Bookings on 0870 890 1103 or online at See Tickets.

Hi guys.

I’ve had a lot of interest in the song I wrote for Spicks and Specks (TV show in Australia). You can see it in all its homoerotic glory by clicking HERE.

You Northern hemisphere types who haven’t heard of the show or its host, Adam Hills, will be confused. (All you need to know is that Hillsong is the name of one of those huge, wealthy, obscene, exploitative church groups near Sydney, and that Adam is a charming, funny, good-looking Australian comedian… with one of his feet missing.)

Adam Hillsong (Not endorsed by the Hillsong Church pty ltd)

At night I dream of your quirky, intelligent face
I wistfully wish for your monopedal embrace.

But I am just a fan
You are the father of humanity
But if you’ll be my man
I would give a rib to be your Eve

Adam…
Hills are made for climbing and I’ll climb them all for you
And dem
Valleys you traverse I’m not averse to going down into

Wherever in your Eden you might travel I will follow.
And if a serpent holds an apple and entices me to swallow
I will not be tempted by the fruit the serpent proffers
Though I’ve never been that great at resisting offers made by

Adam…
Hills are made for climbing and oh boy I’ll do my best
But if the apple is too sweet and shiny to resist
I swear that I’ll try not to choke as with my guilt I grapple
But if inside my throat I feel a lump, it’ll be my Adam’s Apple.

Hi. As some have already pointed out (thanking you kindly) the album of “So Rock” is available at Middle Eight Music. It’s an Australian-based company, so if you live elsewhere and don’t want to import it (or Dark Side – which is also available from Middle Eight), I’ve got a UK company starting to distribute them soon. I think.

My Australian tour dates are a bit firmer now. It’s looking like:

Wollongong – 17th March.

Adelaide – 19th – 31st March

Brisbane – 9th – 15th April

Melbourne – 17th – 29th April

Sydney – 1st – 13th May

Perth – 21st May

More info as it comes to hand.

orright.

Hi y’all.

Just wanted to let you know about some gigs and stuff.

I’m appearing with the excellent Rhod Gilbert at the Comedy Store in Manchester on the 25 Oct. Which is really soon. Check it out.

Then I’m playing at the Duchess Theatre on the West End (wahoo) on the 12th November. Should be fun. Tickets here.

Then I have a baby. Which should keep me busy for a week or two.

My UK tour runs from late Jan to early March next year. All the exciting details can be found on my gigs page.

I’m sorry I’ve STILL not got any downloads up. For some reason it’s not letting me upload anything, and I need to figure it out. (I’ve just been on the road for ages, so everything’s been on hold a bit til now.)

Also, So Rock IS going to be available online… very soon. Am just waiting on people in Aus. I’ll let yez know. Maybe a week away.

Finally, check out my Myspace page if you’re into that sort of thing. And if you want to join my small but dedicated band of stalkers, you could go here. Nuts. Nice nuts.

Hope everyone is managing to maintain a consistent position between coping and ecstatic.

t.x

Hello indeed.
Just want to say a heartfelt and slightly teary thanks to everyone who saw my show in Edinburgh. It was – yet again – a pretty insane month, made bearable by the people who came to see the show and had fun. God bless the socks of you. I think I went pretty well, despite feeling a bit of “second-album” pressure. Reviewers were mostly kind, audiences laughed and clapped. Can’t really ask for a great deal more than that.
Now I live in London. Yesterday I went up to Alexandra Palace and had beer with friends and looked out over the city and felt rather happy with the whole thing.
Today I have to go to a business lunch. Nothing ever actually gets done, but generally someone with lots of money pays for it. It’s really just the comedy industry equivalent of dogs sniffing each other’s bums. Fine by me. This is why I moved to London. This is what I sacrificed the Australian summer for. Dogs. Bums. Sniffing.
Oh, I have a “myspace” page. All the cool kids are doing it. And quite a lot of the uncool ones. Click HERE to check it out. It’s really just the internet equivalent of dogs sniffing each other’s bums. To thrash the simile.
The crocodile hunter is dead. Peter Brock is dead.
Since Sept 10th 2001, there have been about 45oo deaths caused by terrorism, and about 95,000 caused by the war-on-terror. I have lunch to eat. Keep it in perspective.
Listen to disco. Be well.
The audio CD of “So Rock – Live” will be available online soon, I promise.
tx

Hello.

I think the irregularity of my posts is kind of sexy. I now see myself as one of those enigmatic and aloof, hard to reach, olive-skinned kind of guys.

I am in Edinburgh again. Since I last wrote, I’ve done Dark Side in Brisbane and Sydney (that was fun and sunny), Amadeus in Perth (which was different and hard and good), and Dark Side in Montreal (where everyone talked funny and expected tips).

So, tonight I open “So Rock” at the Gilded Balloon, which is the show I did at Melbourne Comedy Fest, only it wasn’t called “So Rock” then, because I didn’t make up a title in time. I’m looking forward very much to doing the pissing in a hippo joke again. I’ve missed it.

People I’m looking forward to seeing at this festival:
– Tony Law (I think he’s excellent… and have heard his new show is really different and ace).
– Mark Watson (I’m reading his book at the moment. He’s smart and nice and funny and good).
– Rhod Gilbert (Caustic Welshman, very excellent).
– Charlie Pickering (Another stand-up who’s pushing the genre boundary. Nominated for best show in Melbourne).
– Geraldine Quinn (Aussie musical satirist. Think Janis Joplin with gender issues and a history degree).
– Claire Hooper (Another good aussie Sheila doing a late night spot. I haven’t seen this show, but she’s brill and it aint just stand-up).
– Danny Bhoy (Doesn’t need the plug but he’s nice and good and is doing all new stuff).
– Boothby Graffoe (Love him).

I could go on for ever. All the Aussies are ace. Wil Anderson doing his first Edinburgh in 7 years. Adam Hills as always. Loads of great first timers. Go to everything at the Gilded Balloon!

Oh – and I’m hosting Laughapoolooza on Saturday nights (from next week) at the Assembly Rooms.

If you see any good shows, post a comment and let us all know. (Or if you’re one of my friends and are angry at me for not plugging your show, send me a scathing email).

xx

I’m doing two performances of my new show, “So Rock” in Perth on June 10th and 11th at 8pm.
Only 400 seats on sale all together. Cool and exclusive huh?
For details and tickets and all that, go to the Bocs Ticketing website, or phone 08 6488 2440.
The show is being recorded for a new CD. Fun.
t.

It is rare that you turn up to a show expecting so little and end up loving it so much. Tim Minchin has that much talent to burn, he glows red-hot. The Melbourne-based performer is funnier than most comedians, plays better than most pianists, and sings with a voice any pop idol would be proud to own.
His act can loosely be described as black humour cabaret, but it’s more like one long hilarious ranting story told in song, interspersed with staccato bursts of hysterically funny dialogue.
His spoken word persona is a nervous type with deep-seated anger management problems. And his musical maestro side is full of power and scintillating one-liners.
It’s not for the faint-hearted, the religious or the easily offended.
He kicks off with an ode to his artificial girlfriend called Inflatable You. Next is a song about a well-educated piano-playing guy who wants to be a rock star but has no deep painful issues to use as his calling card. “Jeez, hate to be him”, Minchin says.
He’s so sick, slick and clever that it almost beggars belief. His wizardry with wordplay makes the mind boggle even as the ears burn. His fingers move across the keyboard like lightning, a high-velocity virtuosity matched only by the speed with which ideas tumble out of his mouth.
Sharp satire on stockbroking types with more money than sensitivity, and a twisted poem about his psychologist are next.
Then, just when we are in the palm of his hand, Minchin takes a turn towards the oddly earnest. A heartfelt ode to canvas shopping bags and a song explaining he, too, has a dark side, are still hilarious and yet honestly moving at the same time.
The final number, which encompasses the planet, the nation, his body and his brain in a beautifully poignant piece of songwriting, leaves us breathless.
Catch him quickly before he leaves town. This is one of the funniest and most amazing shows you’ll ever see.

Musical comedy has enjoyed a renaissance recently. First it was Paul McDermott fronting Gud, then came the middle class angst of Eddie Perfect, and in the latest batch are ivory-ticklers Sammy J and Tim Minchin. This group has a lot in common with their musical ancestors, performers including Victor Borg and Tom Lehrer. They are all highly accomplished musicians, but stand out for their remarkable verbal dexterity and the ability to fit the surprisingly complex requirements of comedy into the rigours of musical convention.
In a short space of time Tim Minchin has established himself as one of the best. He intuitively understands what makes funny funny, so every second line of his brilliant compositions is a laugh-out-loud punchline. The set up for each song is quite simple, but the ideas are mined sensationally for comic effect. Take Minchin’s song warning of the dangers of fat kids, a set up which then leaves him open to widely and hilariously speculate on the consequences. There are few things funnier in the world than Tim Minchin on a roll.
Minchin is as comfortable in front of the microphone as he is at his beloved piano. The format of this year’s show is just a little looser than his past two outings in Melbourne, which gives him more freedom for spontaneity. When he heard the cry of a newborn from the back of the room, Minchin went with the flow and was wonderfully successful: just what was the newborn expected to get out of the show, anyhow?
Minchin’s stage persona is oddly charming. Though the black trenchcoat, heavy eye makeup and gravity-defying hair might suggest an angry goth, once he opens his mouth Minchin is friendly and engaging. There’s a touch of nastiness to some of his material – taking on thalidomide kids, cot-death victims and the morbidly obese (who, incidentally, would make a sensational wrestling team together) – but it’s all said with a smile.
Later this year, Minchin is moving to London, so chances to see this musical genius in action might be limited. Catch him while you can.

Black – comedy, that is – is back with a vengeance as Melbourne’s own 2005 Perrier Award winner (Best Newcomer) from Edinburgh shows that another year’s experience on the stand-up circuit has worked wonders for his confidence.

From the rocking beginning and wondrous cabaret-style virtuosity to the boundary-pushing punchlines with all the subtlety of a sledge-hammer, this mega-talented piano man with an incisive and vast intellect to match hits all the right notes.

From perineums and canvas bags to matters of faith, this is one comedian with a conscience who delivers thought-provoking wit rather than smut. Raw yet accomplished, this is one show not to be missed.

4 stars.

“Last Year’s Festival Directors’ Award Winner Doesn’t Disappoint.”

TIM MINCHIN’S crazy cabaret won him a festival director’s award at last year’s Comedy Festival and best newcomer at the Edinburgh Fringe. High praise creates high expectations, and Minchin doesn’t disappoint.

He arrives on stage barefoot, in a suit buttoned all the way to the top, with hair teased wildly backward, as if he’s tried to stare down an industrial fan at close range. He looks like a cross between a concert pianist and Igor, the mad retainer from the Frankenstein movies.

This resemblance is reinforced by Minchin’s rapid and seemingly inexhaustible array of nervy expressions, including one half-squint, half-ogle that should by rights be anatomically impossible (if only on the grounds of taste). In short, he’s a man who can make you laugh before even singing a note.

What makes Minchin special is his versatility. As he yoyos between piano and mic, you’re struck by the fact that he’s simultaneously an excellent stand-up comedian, a purveyor of physical comedy, an accomplished musician and a lyricist of diabolical ingenuity.

The tunes range from pop pastiche and patter-songs through to the most unpleasant love ballad ever, animated by the same savagely satirical spirit. Witty, smart, and unabashedly offensive, the lyrics sound as if they were written by Noel Coward with his head in a microwave.

As for performance technique, Minchin doesn’t so much play the piano as attack it kung-fu style.

Minchin’s stand-up isn’t quite as good as his songs – the piano is clearly his comfort zone – but this experienced entertainer rebounds effortlessly from potential falls.

When his gags are good, they’re hilarious; when they’re bad, you get to watch Minchin haul his lead balloon across the stage and kick it into the wings, which is almost as funny.

4 stars.

I reckon I’ve never been as anxious as I was a week ago today… and now I feel all relaxed like a truck driver who’s been slipped a rohypnol at a roadhouse by an amorous chico-roll maker name of Betsy.

Shows at the HiFi are selling out mostly. Which is grand. New material is going nicely… it’s quite dark in bits, which came as a bit of a surprise.

I’ve had a few reviews, all of which have been more than kind. Not that I care about reviews of course. Much. Check them out if you like by clicking HERE

Cheerypip.
tx

Hi. Like my new, snazzy website? It’s pretty new and snazzy. Probably the most significant change, other than the aesthetic features, is the development of an “MP3s and Downloads” page. Unfortunately I haven’t figured out how to upload shit yet, but when I do… well fuck me if you won’t be able to download the very same shit.

It appears that – with 5 days to go until Comedy Festival – I have managed to gather enough amusing material to fill an hour. Which is a nice relief. Whether anyone other than I will be amused by it is yet to be seen. Feeling pretty pumped though. And I’ve got a name for the show too. Obviously all the posters and stuff just say Tim Minchin, but between you guys and me, it’s called “So Rock”. OK. Sorted.

In other reasonably exciting news, I’m closing the Comedy Festival Gala next week. I’m sure those of you who have seen a bit of my stuff will be able to guess what song I’m closing with. Hint: there’s going to be a choir. And a trumpet player. And some pyrotechnics. So fucking rock. It’ll be on tele some time the week after next.

Some of the subject matter to be addressed in my new show includes:
– People who feed their kids crap food and make them fat.
– The possibility of the existence of genuine psychics.
– The viability of training a flock of birds to poo written messages.
– The infallible brilliance of the theory of Intelligent Design.
– Environmentally friendly shopping bags. Sorry, can’t help it.

So. I should go practice stuff. Come along to my new show if you’re in Melbourne. If you’re not in Melbourne, do something else fun. As often as possible.

Coming Soon…