On 6 October, Stephen and I met at the London O2 straight after work because the night had finally come to see comedian Lee Evans in concert. We had dinner at Tapa Tapa, a very friendly tapas restaurant with great service and excellent specials situated at the main entrance to the O2.
This was my second time inside the O2 arena. My first visit was for the NME Shockwave Awards on 29 February 2008. We saw many bands that night (I should post about it) but most of all we saw my beloved Klaxons. On this occasion inside the O2, we were asked not to use cameras or recording equipment which is a real pity but I imagine that when a comedian stands for over three hours, the last thing he wants is to be disturbed by flash photography or the sight of 10,000 mobile phones cameras pointing at him. Hence, I apologise for the quality of the photos on this post.
Lee Evans is awesome. He is funny and irreverent and he makes you laugh so much that you cry. He just shoots off joke after joke and moves completely seamlessly between topics. This guy had three hours worth of comedy material and it is so surprise that he just reclaimed the title of "biggest comedy gig in UK" from Chris Rock. In fact, I was lucky I got tickets last November as they sold out in under an hour. I managed to succeed on the second try when they opened up more dates.
My favourite joke of the night was his parody of modern razors and the quest for the 'closer' shave. Just stand closer to the %^&* razor???
I don't understand why Metro gave him only three stars but I do agree with the comments on that post. He was absolutely brilliant and I would definitely see him again.
I like being surprised and I like having my views on the world expanded or challenged. (I am also a Taurean born in the year of the Ox which means I am never wrong stubborn on occasion). My biggest surprise of the evening was to see how vulnerable Evans seemed. he is absolutely down to Earth and seemed surprised that we had all come out to see him. Perhaps it is part of his act but I am certain his nervous laughter between jokes isn't all an act.
Lee Evans' trademark at the end of his gigs is to sing. I agree with one of the reviewers - shame on those that left early! His songs aren't meant to be hilarious and I think these were great. Evans broke a lot of records that night and I think he was absolutely on an adrenaline high. He said that the songs were born out of a desire to say something, because he is in a position where he can say something. They were political and called for social action but for once I did not feel preached at. I felt Evans' exhilaration and I just... really enjoyed it.
As I have mentioned, his gig was really long and you really got your money's worth (tickets were £30). Just at the end though, he said he had two minutes left and that he couldn't leave the stage without fulfilling a promise to a fan to do once last skit. Lee Evans just gave the impression that he wanted to be on stage and that he was the one honoured to be performing for us, his audience. Evan finished with his famous rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody, much to the glee and appreciation of the audience. What a fantastic guy and a fantastic show.
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