Fresh off a string of recent career successes, Ricky Gervais is looking to keep his winning streak going with a new show on UK channel Sky1. In a doc-comedy (did we just coin a new genre here?) called An Idiot Abroad, Gervais and buddy Stephen Merchant have schemed to drop their mate Karl Pilkington into a different, foreign culture and film the results. As it happens, Pilkington is an aggressive misanthrope with severe people-hating issues, so the results are expected to be hilarious.
Check out a sneak peak here!
You can get more info on the show by visiting its official site. No premiere date has been announced.
Ricky Gervais is already talking about the idea of making his new show into a movie – and the show hasn’t been shot yet! The UK’s Chortle reports that when asked about his future projects in a recent interview, comedian/actor/producer said: ‘Maybe we can do a film of Life’s Too Short.’
Life’s Too Short, which Gervais is co-writing with his Office collaborator, Stephen Merchant, is based on the experiences of dwarf actor Warwick Davis.
“Let’s see how the series goes. Let’s not get carried away,” advised Merchant, to which Gervais responded, “Let’s have it ready in case it’s a success. Always plan for success.”
The show is set to air on BBC Two, and will feature Gervais and Merchant playing themselves, a la Larry David in Curb.
Not satisfied with being one of the most popular comedians on two continents, Ricky Gervais is turning his sights on China. Turns out the man is working on a version of The Office for the Chinese people.
Gervais wrote on his blog: “I have some amazing news too. We are about to start work on developing a Chinese ‘The Office’. How cool is that? I’m worried they will pull out when they see the first episode of An Idiot Abroad [another show he's working on] though. Oh well.”
This will add the the already existing UK, US, French and Israeli versions of the show.
Ricky Gervais announced on his blog that he will be handing out an Emmy. No word yet on which category, but here’s what he had to say on the issue:
“Got asked to hand out an EMMY. Nice. I’m there anyway as I’m nominated for the animation [the Ricky Gervais Show] and The Office, so that would be perfect. Even if I don’t win I’ll still get to go back stage and have a sneaky beer. No beer in the theatre! Unbelievable! It’s not in Utah for fuck’s sake. Still mustn’t grumble.”
We’re glad Ricky’s getting the authentic American experience of not being allowed to drink but sneaking booze anyway. Prohibition, senior prom, Lindsay Lohan–we could go on, but you get it.
So, tune into the Emmys for Gervais’ appearance Aug. 29 on NBC — Jimmy Fallon is hosting the show — and to find out which of your favorite comedy shows win awards!
It’s Ricky Gervais, Sesame Street’s Elmo and Warwick Davis (Star Wars, The Harry Potter movies, Willow, and (my personal favorite) Leprechaun 4: In Space).
Davis and Gervais are busy right now filming their new BBC series Life’s Too Short— about the life of a dwarf (Davis). So then, where does Elmo come in? Don’t waste time speculating. Just enjoy this wonderfully hilarious video of the three goofing off.
Dork side note: When Warwick Davis says “Nah, I’ve done the furry outfit,” it’s most likely a reference to when he played Wicket, the main Ewok from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi.
World famous comedian Ricky Gervais recently spoke out encouraging citizens to vote for a ban on bullfighting.
The Catalonian public in Spain has put a large effort into demonstrating against the cruelty of the sport, and Gervais is taking time off from cracking wise to help their cause. He partnered with the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) to rally support for the upcoming Parliament vote on banning bullfighting.
The vote was prompted by a petition from 180,000 Catalan citizens; if it passes, bulls will be given equal protection as other animals under the law. Gervais appears on a video asking viewers to sign a letter supporting the Catalan citizens’ call to action. Check it out below. And if you feel strongly about Gervais’ position, make sure you go here and fill out the online petition.
Scottish newspaper Daily Record jumped on Ricky Gervais’ case on May 23 for using the term “mong” in a bit onstage he did during his a recent UK tour stop. He was referring to Britain’s Got Talent champion singer Susan Boyle.
For those of you who, like myself, had no idea what “mong” meant and are now therefore confused as what the hubbub is about, it seems the term is a decidedly offensive way of referring to someone with Down Syndrome—short for “mongoloid.” Or, at least, it was a word used in that context.
I write “was” because, apparently, this is no longer the case.
Gervais responded to the article quickly, explaining on his official blog that he sent a letter to the Down Syndrome Association, who, had contacted his camp for some sort of explanation.
“I clearly explain that words change and that at no point am I referring to anyone with Down’s syndrome. Not only am I not referring to people with Down’s Syndrome I also explain that I am not associating the word with its old derogatory meaning. I also do it as part of a routine about comedians taking responsibility for everything they say. I hope this is acceptable.” the comedian wrote.
Even the Record’s article recognizes that words and their meanings can change over time, calling the term “outdated.” And the highest rated definition of the term on Urban Dictionary describes the meaning as “Lacking in physical and cerebral ability. General retardation. Generally: a total spastic.”
According to this publicly run dictionary, the term has nothing to do with Down Syndrome anymore; instead, it’s simply another way of calling somebody an idiot.
But based on the report, it doesn’t seem like this was what Gervais was going for.
When you look at what he said – “Well, she’s a mong, isn’t she? She looks like a mong, doesn’t she? – it’s a bit challenging to believe his usage fits into the new definition of the term, since the updated meaning mentions nothing of appearance. The old definition, however, referred to a group of people born with certain mental and physical characteristics.
It seems like Gervais is back-pedaling a bit to save face. And honestly, it seems the Down Syndrome Association wasn’t all that committed to their argument, seeing as, according to the comedian, they responded to his explanation like this: “Fully explained and acceptable reply. Please extend our thanks to Ricky for the prompt reply.”
Regardless of what Gervais was trying to say onstage, his “meaning-of-derogatory-words-change” is a theme common to stand-up comedy— so much so that both Louis CK and Marc Maron have opened entire albums with the concept.
On his 2006 album Tickets Still Available, Maron says he wants the word “retarded” back; he wants to be able to say it again without the guilt. (Start listening at the 1:55 mark).
Two years later, on his album and DVD, Chewed Up, Louis CK talks about his usage and the history (as he sees it) of the word “faggot.”
After listening to the Maron, C.K. and reading about Gervais, what do you think? Is it ok for comedians to use words like these when they aren’t using them to attack certain groups of people? Are they attacking those groups, whether its their intention or not? Let us know!
We’re still almost two months away from the premiere of Louis C.K.’s new show on FX, Louie, but we’ve been lucky to get a nice collection of teaser videos to help assuage our appetite a bit. The network just released this handsome pair of moving pictures, featuring comedian Chelsea Peretti and real-life Louie buddy Ricky Gervais.
The show, based on Louie’s life as a single father raising two daughters in New York City, premieres June 29 at 11 pm EST on FX. You can watch more teaser videos here.
Brit wit Ricky Gervais, who’s on TV almost as much as Everybody Loves Raymond reruns these days, will host the Golden Globes for the second consecutive year, when NBC presents the award-season kickoff on Jan 16. “I can’t believe they invited me back after the awful things I said,” Gervais said in a statement. “Let’s see how far I can go this time.”
Gervais’ casual irreverence helped improve the Globes’ ratings and viewership from the previous year. “As viewers discovered with our last awards telecast, Ricky’s surprising and unpredictable humor is a great fit for the Globes which will continue as a live event across the nation,” said Paul Telegdy, executive vice president of alternative programming at NBC-Universal Media Studios. “He’s a true force of nature with a wicked sense of humor who always keeps everyone on their toes waiting for the unexpected.”
HBO recently approved a second season of Gervais’ namesake animated series.
The good times never stop rolling for Ricky Gervais. After the smashing success of English television laugh factories like The Office and Extras, it was announced today that Gervais will be sticking his hand in the BBC pudding once again.
The new show, being developed for both BBC 2 in the UK as well as HBO in in the States, centers around British actor Warwick Davis, a man who has dwarfism and has appeared in the Harry Potter and Star Wars franchises. Hilariously titled Life’s Too Short, the show will also feature Gervais and co-creator Stephen Merchant in supporting roles and will air on BBC Two.
“We’re having so much fun working with Warwick,” said Gervais. “Pound for pound he is one of the funniest men I know,” he added.
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Ricky Gervais is already talking about the idea of making his new show into a movie – and the show hasn’t been shot yet! The UK’s 
Not satisfied with being one of the most popular comedians on two continents, Ricky Gervais is turning his sights on China. Turns out the man is working on a version of The Office for the Chinese people.
