================================= HUGH LAURIE: HIS LIFE AND TIMES by Peg Haley, CHPM23B@prodigy.com ================================= Hugh Laurie was born June 11, 1959 in Oxford, England, the youngest of four children of Dr. W.G.R.M. and Patricia Laurie. His father was one of the outstanding Cambridge University oarsmen of the 1930s, winning numerous trophies at Henley and a gold medal at the 1948 London Olympics. Hugh had a very posh education, attending the Dragon School, Oxford, and Eton College. At Eton he achieved success as an oarsman himself, rowing with J.S. Palmer in a coxed pair which won the 1977 national junior championship. They were selected to represent Great Britain in the world junior championships, where they finished fourth. In 1978 Hugh went up to Selwyn College, Cambridge, to read archaeology and anthropology. He also went there to row, which is one of the most popular college sports in Britain. The biggest event on the university sporting calendar is the Boat Race, rowed between two eight-man crews from Oxford and Cambridge on a four-and-a quarter-mile course on the Thames in early spring. It's been held almost every year since the mid-1800's, has a world-wide television audience, and is considered one of the most gruelling tests of strength and stamina in the world of sport. There's no real equivalent in North America, but in terms of national prestige it might be likened to an American college football team winning the Rose Bowl. Hugh was rowing in the "A" trials crew and was considered a certainty for Boat Race selection his first year, but he had to withdraw due to a bad bout of glandular fever. He did make the crew in 1980 and rowed in one of the closest races this century, which ended with Cambridge losing to Oxford by less than ten feet. A few months later, Laurie and Palmer entered for the Siver Goblets at Henley Royal Regatta and were the only British crew that year to reach the final in that elite event, coming in second to a much-favored American crew. Athletics were not his only love, however. He developed an affection for the arts, including music and theatre, which led him to join Cambridge's amateur theatrical society, the Footlights Club. Over the years the Footlights club has counted among its members Peter Cook, Eleanor Bron, John Cleese, and numerous other Britcomedy legends. In his third year Laurie was chosen Footlights President and Emma Thompson (who he'd briefly dated) served as Vice- President. At the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in August 1980, he saw a play called Latin! and was so impressed that he asked Thompson to introduce him to the author, one Stephen Fry, and voila -- a comedy duo was born. They ended up writing together for that year's Footlights revue, entitled "The Cellar Tapes," which starred Laurie, Fry, Thompson, and Tony Slattery. It was performed at Edinburgh in August 1981 and won the first Perrier "Pick of the Fringe" Award for comedy at the festival. A short run at the Theatre at New End, Hampstead, and a tour of Australia followed. As a result of all this, Laurie, Fry and Thompson appeared in 1982 (with Ben Elton and Robbie Coltrane) in a sketch comedy series called "Alfresco" with a second series following in 1983. Ben Elton described this show as having a "slightly larger cast than audience," but that would definitely not be true of Laurie's next projects, which included "Blackadder," "A Bit Of Fry & Laurie," and "Jeeves and Wooster." It had a bit of a shaky start, but "Blackadder" went on to become enormously popular. Part of the reason for its success was the wonderful cast including Laurie, Rowan Atkinson, Stephen Fry, and Tim McInnerny. In Blackadder II, Laurie played Simon Partridge and Prince Ludwig, but in the next series he is most memorable as the dimwitted object of Blackadder's derision and sarcasm, Prince Regent George. In "Blackadder Goes Forth" he plays another somewhat loveable but clueless scatterbrain, Lt. George St. Barleigh. He and Fry were also given a chance to do their own series and came up with "A Bit Of Fry & Laurie," which during its run introduced viewers to Gordon and Stewart, Spies, many amusing Vox Pop and even a few musical cocktails. This was basically a two man show with very few outside guest stars, but Fry and Laurie made it sparkle because of their superb writing and ability to create characters. In 1990 Laurie starred in "Gasping," Ben Elton's first West End play. His character was Philip, a young businessman who in his search for the next Pot Noodle style marketing craze hits upon the idea of selling "designer air" under the name "Suck and Blow." Of course it becomes an enormous hit but a catastrophe to the world's environment, leading to moral conflicts which Philip has to resolve. The plot sounds heavy, as usual Elton came through with something that made you think and laugh. (In case you think this was Laurie without Fry, think again. Stephen did voiceovers which were heard at various times throughout the play.) For many people, however, Laurie will always be indelibly etched in their minds as Bertie Wooster in "Jeeves and Wooster," adapted from the works of P.G. Wodehouse. Laurie is utterly charming as Bertie, who lives in fear of his Aunt Agatha and whose butt is constantly being saved by his butler Jeeves, played to perfection by Stephen Fry. Three series of "Jeeves and Wooster" were made between 1990 and 1993. Hugh is also a musician who plays keyboards in a band fronted by Lenny Henry; Adrian Edmonson is also a member. He is married, has children, and is from all reports a shy, private man. He may not toot his own horn, but his talents as a writer, actor (check out his very subdued, effective performance in the film "Peter's Friends"), comic, and musician will no doubt keep him a busy man and in the limelight for many years to come. Even if the limelight isn't necessarily a place he wants to be. Hugh Laurie's credits: Stage: The Cellar Tapes Theatre at New End, 1981; Beyond the Footlights, Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith, 1982; Hysteria! and Comic Relief benefits; Gasping, Theatre Royal, Haymarket, 1990 Film: Plenty, 1987; Strapless, 1988; Peter's Friends, 1992; A Pin for the Butterfly, 1994; Sense and Sensibility, 1995; 101 Dalmations (upcoming release) Television: Alfresco, 1982-83; The Young Ones, 1984; Filthy Rich and Catflap; Happy Families; The New Statesman; Girls On Top; Friday Night Live; Saturday Live; Blackadder II, Blackadder the Third, Blackadder Goes Forth, Blackadder's Christmas Carol, 1985-89; Letters from a Bomber Pilot, 1986; A Bit of Fry & Laurie, 1988-95; Jeeves and Wooster, 1990-93; All or Nothing At All. 1993; Wildlife Showcase: The Fly- An Everyday Monster, 1994; Fry & Laurie Host a Christmas Night with the Stars, 1994; Unspeakable Verse, 1995; Tracey Takes On... Royalty, 1996 Music videos: Walking on Broken Glass - Annie Lennox; Kate Bush video, title unknown Other video: John Cleese's Video Arts - 6 programs Books on Tape: Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, 1995; The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, 1996 Books: A Bit of Fry & Laurie, 1990; A Bit More of Fry & Laurie, 1991; 3 Bits of Fry & Laurie - 1992; The Gun Seller, 1996 CDs: The World of Jeeves and Wooster ========================================= HUGH-PHORIC IN LONDON by Chris Lehmkuhl, luvvy@pobox.com ========================================= I recently had the pleasure of hearing Hugh Laurie read from his new novel, "The Gun Seller." The reading was held at the Almeida Theatre, a major but tiny London Off West End drama venue. It only seats about 400 people and on this occasion was set up for the evening's production of "Tartuffe" with Ian McDiarmid and Susannah Harker. It was about a third filled for the chat. I was seated with other late comers up in the balcony, which gave me a good view of the top of his head. He had prepared about 10 pages of notes and was deep into a discussion of his disastrous attempt at screenplay writing. Very funny stuff, but very real, I felt. He went through a painful period of writer's block, and he spoke about the various methods that helped him break through it, including the keeping of a journal. This gave us a bit of insight into the real person: an involved father in a non-cooking household with lots of Marks and Spencer frozen entrees being served. He read a second bit of the book, which is out of the Robert Ludlum/Len Deighton school of literature; good airport reading that you can bin without compunction. The genre is, by definition, chauvinistic, sexist, violent, etc. One of the questions asked during the 20min. Q&A session was, in effect, if this character was a manifestation of his fantasy life persona. His response was more or less yes, and that his wife was well aware of this normally suppressed critter. When asked if Stephen had read the book Laurie responded that he'd read it too late to give critical feedback, so Fry simply said it was great Other questions included whether or not it would be audiotaped (no) and if he really know a lot about guns, which he answered with a not really, but he did the research because he hates books in the genre that don't include the details. He explained that the book wouldn't be released in the States because publishers deemed it a bit too anti-American, but Laurie felt that this was inevitable as the U.S. is always perceived as the big bad World Cop, and this comes through in "The Gun Seller." He then proceeded to jab a bit at Yanks (too big, too loud, too many of us, too TOO) and we all had a good laugh. It was a great Q&A period, and he tried very hard to relax, but you could tell that he's much happier when he's scripted. He would start to babble, then berate himself hilariously for babbling. I came away with the impression that Laurie is charming, very sweet one-to-one, very shy to a group, and he's written a book in a genre that he's mad about. ---------->For more on "The Gun Seller," see "BD Reviews" =================================== WHERE TO GET BITS OF FRY AND LAURIE =================================== Here are a few places to check if you're looking for Fry and Laurie videos and books: ***A complete set of "Jeeves and Wooster" is available from Critic's Choice Video. Their U.S. number is 1-800-367-7765. They also have ***A Bit Of Fry & Laurie (a compilation of skits from the BBC series) is available from Video Collectables. Their number is 1-800-268-3891 in the US or 1-800-387-5758 in Canada. You can also contact them at: 350 Newkirk Road North Richmond Hill Ontario L4C 3G7 Canada. ***Fast Lane Communications carries a wide selection of Britcomedy goodies. Check them out at: http://www.fastlane.com/brits/ ***All three "A Bit Of Fry & Laurie" books were published by Mandarin. The address is: 81 Fulham Road, London SW3 6RB.