Surly revivalist Doug Stanhope, the fellow most of us know from that Screenwipe segment, is set to reinforce his message that ‘actually, no, everything isn’t alright with this fucking world’ with his tenth (yes, tenth) DVD release. ‘Before Turning the Gun on Himself‘ will be made available through Roadrunner Comedy (in lieu of a ‘Slipknot and The Holy Grail’ release, one assumes) on 12th March, and is being backed by a behemothic tour across the British Isles.
It’s pretty hard to shoehorn Stanhope into the comedy bracket, given the bitter-sweet honesty of his topics, coupled with the verve and conviction with which they’re delivered, but squeeze we might, as it’s justifiable to recognise his work as some of the most adept on the circuit.
Stanhope completed a 25-date residency at London’s Leicester Square Theatre in August 2011, providing sell-out capacities with bombast encompassing ‘caustic social commentary, outlandish first-person narratives, and graphic sex and perversion, often within the same sentence.’ The performances also wowed critics, but away from the gloss, the authenticity of his social commentary is something all should witness.
Gleefully, we’ll all be given the chance, as aside from the DVD Doug intends to battle the motorways between Bolton and Inverness – which, in itself, ought to give him cause for grievance – on the following days in the following order;
March 2012
Tuesday 6th – Albert Halls – Bolton
Wednesday 7th – Waterside – Aylesbury
Thursday 8th – Journal Theatre – Newcastle
Friday 9th – Cresset – Peterborough
Saturday 10th – Assembly Hall Theatre – Tunbridge Wells
Sunday 11th – Civic Halls – Wolverhampton
Wednesday 14th – Empire – Sunderland
Thursday 15th – Southport Theatre – Southport
Friday 16th – St Georges Concert Hall – Bradford
Saturday 17th – Winding Wheel – Chesterfield
Sunday 18th – Lyric Theatre – Lowry
Wednesday 21st – Victoria Hall – Stoke On Trent
Thursday 22nd – Pavilion Theatre – Bournemouth
Friday 23rd – St Albans Arena – St Albans
Saturday 24th – Marlowe – Canterbury
Sunday 25th – Milton Keynes Theater – Milton Keynes
Tuesday 27th – Playhouse – Edinburgh
Thursday 29th – Music Hall – Aberdeen
Friday 30th – Kings Theatre – Glasgow
Saturday 31st – Eden Court – Inverness
April 2012
Thursday 5th – Princess Theatre – Torquay
Saturday 7th – Guildhall – Portsmouth
Sunday 8th – Hippodrome – Bristol
Tuesday 10th – St David Hall – Cardiff
Wednesday 11th – Orchard Theatre – Dartford
Thursday 12th – Cliffs Pavilion – Southend
Friday 13th – The Anvil – Basingstoke
Saturday 14th – Marlowe – Canterbury
Monday 16th – Philharmonic – Liverpool
Tuesday 17th – Engine Shed – Lincoln
Wednesday 18th – Reading Concert Hall – Reading
Thursday 19th – Dorking Halls – Dorking
Saturday 21st – Hammersmith Apollo – London
