When writer, record producer, The Blockheads’ frontman and Louder Than War presenter Mike Bennett went into the studio with Rik Mayall to record a series of Grimms style fairy tales with his own inimitable spin, which Mike had written for him, he didn’t expect it to be his last recordings. Now, 10 years after the great man’s death, One Media IP at Pinewood Studios have released a series of outtakes from the series called Rik Mayall’s Famous!… (Last Words).
The outtakes were discovered on a dusty pen-drive, and from over 5 hours discovered have been whittled down to aroudn an hour and a half of comedy genius, all expletives, goofs and blunders. According to Bennett on GB new this morning, “We should celebrate the genius of this gateway comedian”.
One of the original fairy tales – Aladdin, narrated by Rik:
Mike explains more:
“Putting this altogether has been as emotional as it has been enjoyable, and it’s definitely about celebrating a comedy gold, iconic performer. We all contributed; myself Michael Infante, the CEO at One Media IP, but also Vicky and Emma at the organisation. We have to acknowledge a debt of gratitude to casting director, Kate Plantin, but more importantly, or as equally as important, the gift of Rik.
Over six episodes he portrayed no less than 100 characters and each had three-dimensional individuality. It’s important to know that he was not just an actor with tragic comedic qualities, he was a comedian who was also an actor, which made him multifaceted. This is not a Peter Cook and Dudley more Derek and Clive type presentation, it shows humility, professionalism, and a lot of thought behind the characterisation of each and every character in the Grimms-orientated fairytale. His portrayal of Goldilocks is the bollocks, and the handle he had on entertaining all these groups was second to none because his muse was the truth.”
The story of ‘Rik Mayall’s Famous! …(Last Words)’ will be performed by Mike Bennett At the Edinburgh Fringe before making its way aroudn the country!
More from PR:
An archive of the last ever recordings from one of the UK’s most popular comedians, Rik Mayall, has been unearthed and is to be made available online, for the first time.
‘Rik Mayall’s Animated Fairy Tales’ were commissioned by One Media iP, a UK firm which wanted to create six children’s fairy tales for a new series of animated films designed to appeal to adults and children alike.
Stories including The Three Little Pigs and Beauty and the Beast were recorded in Mayall’s inimitable ‘Rik / Young Ones’ style, complete with roars, growls and burps. Now, the full session, including outtakes, bloopers and the occasional expletive will be made available online for the first time, on June 9th 2024, to mark the tenth anniversary of the comedy legend’s untimely death.
Here’s a taster of the session (all rude words bleeped!) https://s.disco.ac/puopfymiotua
Writer, musician and producer Mike Bennett, who wrote the stories and oversaw the recordings with Mayall, rediscovered the archive while preparing for his show, ‘It’s Grimms Up North: Rik Mayall’s Famous Last Words’ which runs Aug 6th – 11th at the Edinburgh Festival 2024.
Mike Bennett said:
“Rik and I had a lot of laughs recording these stories but when he was so suddenly taken from us, the laughter stopped and the project understandably lost its momentum. We always envisioned the animated stories for national television as Rik had a unique ability to make people laugh, across age groups. I hope these unheard recordings will be enjoyed by Rik’s many fans and perhaps the animations will one day see a mainstream release on TV.”
Further Information
- ‘Rik Mayall’s Famous! …(Last Words)’ will be available across audiobook stores, including Spotify on 9th June 2024
- ‘Rik Mayall’s Animated Fairy Tales’ – the edited Children’s versions can be found on YouTube Channel ‘Kids Clubhouse’ Aladdin Read by Rik Mayall | Animated Fairy Tales (youtube.com)
- ‘It’s Grimms Up North: Rik Mayall’s Famous Last Words’ runs Aug 6th – 11th at the Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh Festival 2024
- Mike Bennett is the lead singer with The Blockheads. Tour dates: Mike Bennett Writer and Producer (mikebennettwriterproducer.com)
- One Media iP Group Plc, (LON: OMIP) is an AIM-listed digital music and entertainment content acquirer and distributor managing a catalogue of over 250,000 works by artists including Kid Creole, Take That, Don Williams, Vera Lynn, Mungo Jerry, Mago De Oz, Heatwave, Culture Club The Clash… and, of course Rik Mayall RIP.
(Top) Words by Nigel Carr. More writing by Nigel on Louder Than War can be found in his Author’s archive. You can find Nigel on Twitter and Facebook
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