Ricky Gervais
Gervais at the 2007 BAFTAs.
Born	June 25, 1961 (1961-06-25) (age 46) Reading, England
Official website

Richard Dene Gervais (born 25 June 1961) is a triple Golden Globe-, double Emmy- and seven-time BAFTA award-winning English comedian, writer, actor and former New Romantic musician from Reading, Berkshire. Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Reading (ˈrɛdɪŋ as Redding) is a town in England, located at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, midway between England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Events 524 - Battle of Vézeronce, the Franks defeat the Burgundians Year 1961 ( MCMLXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and Television programs given out each year during a formal dinner The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA is a British charity that hosts annual awards shows for film television television craft video games and forms of animation England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience primarily by making them laugh A writer is anyone who creates a written work although the word usually designates those who write creatively or professionally as well as those who have written in many different forms An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works New Romantic was a short- lived Fashion and music movement that occurred primarily in the United Kingdom and Ireland during the very early 1980s Reading (ˈrɛdɪŋ as Redding) is a town in England, located at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, midway between Berkshire (ˈbɑːkʃə or /ˈbɑːkʃɪə/ say Baak-shuh/-sheer sometimes abbreviated to Berks) is a Home County in the South Gervais burst into mainstream fame with his ground-breaking BBC Two television programme The Office (for which he won 6 BAFTAs and 2 Golden Globes) and the series Extras, both of which he co-wrote and co-directed with friend and collaborator, Stephen Merchant. Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the Extras is a British television sitcom about extras working on Film sets and in Theatre. Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974 is a British Comedy Award - BAFTA - Emmy - and Golden Globe -award winning British writer Besides writing and directing the shows, Gervais also played the lead roles of David Brent in The Office and Andy Millman in Extras. David Brent is a fictional White-collar office middle-manager and one of the principal characters from the BBC television comedy The Office As well as these, he has had three sell-out stand-up tours, Animals, Politics and Fame, is a best-selling author of his series of Flanimals books and works also with Merchant and Karl Pilkington in his world record-breaking podcast The Ricky Gervais Show. Stand-up comedy is a style of comedy where the performer speaks directly to the audience with the absence of the theatrical " Fourth wall " Animals is a stand-up show written and performed by the comedian Ricky Gervais. Politics is the second of Ricky Gervais ' stand-up shows It was written and performed by the comedian Gervais Fame is the most recent of stand-up shows written and performed by Ricky Gervais. Flanimals is a children's and adults' book written by comedian Ricky Gervais. Karl Pilkington (born on 23 September 1972 is a Sony Award -winning Radio producer, podcaster and author best known for producing and co-presenting This article is about the audio programme for the tv programme see Meet Ricky Gervais The Ricky Gervais Show is a comedy audio In addition to his work in films such as Night at the Museum and Stardust, he is the only British comic to write and star in an episode of The Simpsons. Night at the Museum is a 2006 American Adventure Comedy film. Stardust is a 2007 Fantasy Film from Paramount Pictures, directed by Matthew Vaughn. Prior to finding mainstream success with The Office, Ricky was the lead singer and principal songwriter for New Romantic duo Seona Dancing. This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the The lead vocalist (or lead singer) is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song A songwriter is someone who writes the Lyrics to songs the Musical composition (chords or Melody to songs or both New Romantic was a short- lived Fashion and music movement that occurred primarily in the United Kingdom and Ireland during the very early 1980s Seona Dancing (ˈʃɔːnə "Shawna" was a 1980s British pop group best known for providing Ricky Gervais with his first taste of fame

Biography

Early life

Gervais, along with siblings Larry, Marsha, and Bobby, were raised in the suburb of Whitley in Reading, Berkshire. Whitley is a large Suburb in the south of Reading in the English County of Berkshire. Reading (ˈrɛdɪŋ as Redding) is a town in England, located at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, midway between Gervais's father Jerry, a Franco-Ontarian, emigrated whilst on foreign duty during the Second World War from London, Ontario, Canada. Franco-Ontarians (franco-ontarien are French Canadian or Francophone residents of the Canadian province of Ontario. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada along the Quebec City-Windsor Corridor with a metropolitan area population of 457720 the city proper Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page Jerry met Gervais's mother, Eva, during a blackout,^[1] and both settled in Whitley . A blackout in time of War, or apprehended war refers to the practice of collectively minimizing external Light, including upward-directed

During XFM London's The Ricky Gervais Show and in further newspaper interviews with The Independent, Gervais noted that he believes his birth was unplanned due to the amount of time that had passed between his and his youngest sibling. Xfm London is a commercial Radio station in the United Kingdom. This article is about the audio programme for the tv programme see Meet Ricky Gervais The Ricky Gervais Show is a comedy audio The Independent is a British compact Newspaper published by Tony O'Reilly 's Independent News & Media. During one interview with the Independent, Gervais tells the author that even his mother admitted his birth was unplanned. ^[2]

Gervais has stated that his upbringing and childhood were stable and trauma-free, with a high level of honesty and openness between his family members. He described it as "much like [how] The Waltons" made fun of each-other. The Waltons is an American Television series created by Earl Hamner Jr ^[3]

Gervais began his secondary education at Ashmead School, before moving on to University College London in 1979. University College London ( UCL) is a multi-faculty university institution based in the United Kingdom and a constituent college of the University of London While there, he studied Biology, and later changed to Philosophy, in which he received a lower second class honours. Foundations of modern biology There are five unifying principles Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading scheme for Undergraduate degrees ( Bachelor's degrees and some Master's degrees It was during his time at UCL that at he met his long-time girlfriend, Jane Fallon. Jane Fallon is a British Television producer and writer whose best-known productions include the Comedy-drama Teachers, '20 Things To Do Before

In his final year in 1983 as a student at UCL,^[4] Gervais alongside his friend Bill Macrae formed a New Romantic duo, Seona Dancing, (named after a friend and fellow student Seona Myerscough), and they were signed by record label London Records. Bill Macrae (born Bill Moat was a member of the early 1980s British New Wave duo Seona Dancing. New Romantic was a short- lived Fashion and music movement that occurred primarily in the United Kingdom and Ireland during the very early 1980s A duet is a Musical composition or piece for two Performers In Classical music the term is most often used for a composition for two singers Seona Dancing (ˈʃɔːnə "Shawna" was a 1980s British pop group best known for providing Ricky Gervais with his first taste of fame In the Music industry, a record label can be a Brand and a Trademark associated with the Marketing of music recordings and Music London Records is a Record label headquartered in the United Kingdom, originally marketing records in the United States, Canada and Latin London Records released two of their singles - "More to Lose" and "Bitter Heart". The singles failed to break the top 40, charting at positions 117 and 70 of the UK singles charts respectively. ^[5]

A year later, the single "More to Lose" was re-released in Manila as "Medium" by "Fade". The City of Manila The single gained a following by Filipino teenagers after being played by a local DJ on station DWRT-FM (99. 5).

He was briefly the manager of the band Suede and a Queen tribute band. Suede (or The London Suede in the United States) were an English rock band of the 1990s and the early 2000s that helped start the Britpop musical

Gervais subsequently worked as an events manager for the University of London Union (ULU),^[6] where he continued working until he was offered, and accepted, a similar job as "head of speech" at XFM London. Event management is the application of the Management practice of Project management to the creation and development of Festivals and events The University of London Union (commonly referred to as ULU) is the university-wide Students' union for the University of London. Xfm London is a commercial Radio station in the United Kingdom. ^[7]

Gervais, needing an assistant, interviewed the first person whose curriculum vitae he saw. The CV belonged to Stephen Merchant. Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974 is a British Comedy Award - BAFTA - Emmy - and Golden Globe -award winning British writer During the interview at a local pub, Gervais asked Merchant to do "all the boring stuff" due to his experience in media studies whilst Gervais "mess[ed] around". Media studies is a collection of academic programs regarding the content history meaning and effects of various media. Merchant agreed. ^[8] In 1996 he was made redundant when the station was taken over by the Capital Radio group.

Gervais was music adviser for the popular BBC drama This Life, which was being produced by his girlfriend Jane Fallon. This Life was a BBC television drama, produced by World Productions and screened on BBC Two, running for two series in 1996 and 1997 and Jane Fallon is a British Television producer and writer whose best-known productions include the Comedy-drama Teachers, '20 Things To Do Before He and Merchant also contributed sketches to BBC Radio 1's The Breezeblock in 1999 and 2000. The Breezeblock was a weekly radio program on BBC Radio 1 that premiered on 17 February 1997 and focused on Electronic music.

Gervais and Merchant returned to XFM in November 2001, for a Saturday radio show. The show ran intermittently until January 2004 with breaks of 1-3 months between new shows. This was the first time both worked with Karl Pilkington. Karl Pilkington (born on 23 September 1972 is a Sony Award -winning Radio producer, podcaster and author best known for producing and co-presenting Pilkington produced the shows and later collaborated with them on their series of podcasts.

After that, Gervais took 18 months off to work on his new television show Extras, write Flanimals, and perform his live show Politics. Extras is a British television sitcom about extras working on Film sets and in Theatre. Flanimals is a children's and adults' book written by comedian Ricky Gervais.

He returned to the airwaves on 28 May 2005 to host the show once again with Pilkington and Merchant. Events 585 BC - A Solar eclipse occurs as predicted by Greek philosopher and scientist Thales, while Alyattes is battling Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. He was also heard on BBC Radio 2 during Christmas 2005, sitting in for Jonathan Ross for two weeks. Jonathan Stephen Ross OBE (born 17 November 1960 in London, England) is a triple BAFTA -winning British

Podcast

Main article: The Ricky Gervais Show

See also: List of The Ricky Gervais Show episodes

In November 2006, Gervais announced three more free podcasts, together called "The Podfather Trilogy" to be aired at Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, which he also said would be the last for a while. This article is about the audio programme for the tv programme see Meet Ricky Gervais The Ricky Gervais Show is a comedy audio The following is an episode list for The Ricky Gervais Show, which is credited as the most downloaded podcast ever with "nearly 8 million" downloads according to the Recently, a free full length podcast was posted through the Ricky Gervais Podcast channel on iTunes. This podcast was originally given out for free during a performance of Gervais' Fame tour in London. On 25th November 2007, Gervais, Merchant, and Pilkington compiled another free full length podcast which lasted just over an hour.

Television and film career

Gervais performing in 2007

Gervais contributed to the BAFTA winning The Sketch Show (ITV) penning several sketches. The Sketch Show was a British Television Sketch comedy program featuring many leading British comedians His mainstream TV debut came in September 1998 as part of Channel 4's "Comedy Lab" series of pilots. Channel 4 is a public-service Television and Radio broadcaster in the United Kingdom centred around a television channel of the same name which began His one-off show, Golden Years, focused on a David Bowie-obsessed character called Clive Meadows. Golden Years was a 1998 television comedy one-off Sitcom episode starring the British The Office and Extras David Bowie (ˈboʊiː born David Robert Jones on 8 January 1947 is an English Musician, actor producer, and arranger. He then came to much wider national attention with an obnoxious, cutting persona featured in a topical slot which replaced Ali G's segments on the satirical Channel 4 comedy programme The 11 O'Clock Show in early 1999 where his character used as many expletives as was possible and produced an inordinate amount of politically incorrect statements. Ali G ( AKA Ali stair Leslie G raham was a satirical Fictional character invented and played by English Comedian The 11 O'Clock Show was a satirical late-night British Television comedy series on Channel 4, which featured topical sketches The word expletive is currently used in three senses syntactic expletives, expletive attributives, and "bad language". Among the other regular featured comedians on the show was Mackenzie Crook, later a future co-star of The Office. Paul Mackenzie Crook (born September 29, 1971) is an English Actor and Comedian, best known for playing Gareth Keenan in This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the Two years later Gervais went on to present his own comedy chat show for Channel 4 called Meet Ricky Gervais which was poorly received and has since been mocked by Gervais himself. A talk show ( American) or chat show ( Global) is a Television or Radio program where one person or group of people come together to Meet Ricky Gervais was a chat show written and hosted by the comedy writer and performer Ricky Gervais.

Throughout this time Gervais also wrote for BBC sketch show Bruiser and The Jim Tavare Show, and had cameo roles in Channel 4's sitcom Spaced; and it is speculated that the cameo is indeed The Office character David Brent. Bruiser was a short-lived comedy sketch show It premiered on February 28 2000 and ran for six episodes ending on March 15 2000 Jim Tavaré (born 1963) is an English stand-up comedian and musician Channel 4 is a public-service Television and Radio broadcaster in the United Kingdom centred around a television channel of the same name which began Spaced is a British Television Situation comedy written by and starring Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, and This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the David Brent is a fictional White-collar office middle-manager and one of the principal characters from the BBC television comedy The Office However both series of Spaced finished airing before The Office reached the screens. Gervais also appeared in a few of Channel 4's 'Top 100. Channel 4 is a public-service Television and Radio broadcaster in the United Kingdom centred around a television channel of the same name which began . . ' list programmes, and voiced the character of Penguin in Robbie the Reindeer's Legend of the Lost Tribe. Robbie the Reindeer is the main character in three animated BBC Christmas Comedy Television specials filmed in aid of Comic Relief His voice was redubbed for the US market.

In August 1999, while on a BBC production course, Stephen Merchant had to make his own short subject. He chose to make a docu-soap parody, set in an office. This sketch later formed the basis of the interview episode. Episode Five is the fifth episode ^[9] With help from Ash Atalla, Merchant passed this tape onto to the BBC's Head of Entertainment Paul Jackson at the Edinburgh Fringe, who then passed it onto Head of Comedy Jon Plowman who eventually commissioned a full pilot script from Merchant and Gervais. Ash Atalla (born 1972 is an Egyptian Television producer responsible for producing several British TV series such as The IT Crowd Kevin Paul Jackson (born 2 October 1947) credited as Paul Jackson; sometimes as K The Edinburgh Fringe (officially the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, commonly just The Fringe) is the world’s largest Arts festival. Jon Plowman has been a producer at the BBC since 1980, when he produced Russell Harty's chat show Harty

Extras first aired from 21 July 2005 with an appearance by Ben Stiller. Extras is a British television sitcom about extras working on Film sets and in Theatre. Events 356 BC - Herostratus sets fire to the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller (born November 30 1965 is an Emmy Award -winning American Comedian, actor Film producer and director It features cameos from Patrick Stewart, Kate Winslet (who is also from Reading), Ross Kemp, Vinnie Jones, Les Dennis and Samuel L. Jackson. Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE (born 13 July 1940 is an English Film, Television and stage Actor. Kate Elizabeth Winslet (born 5 October 1975 is a five-time Academy Award -nominated Golden Globe -nominated Emmy Award -nominated Reading (ˈrɛdɪŋ as Redding) is a town in England, located at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, midway between Ross James Kemp (born 21 July 1964) is a BAFTA award-winning English Actor, author and Journalist, who rose to prominence Vincent Peter "Vinnie" Jones (born 5 January 1965) is an English -born Film actor and ex- footballer, having represented Les Dennis (born Leslie Heseltine on 12 October 1953 in Liverpool, Lancashire) was an English Television presenter and Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21 1948 is an American Academy Award -nominated and BAFTA -winning actor Gervais's main character, Andy Millman, is more self-aware and intentionally humorous than David Brent.

In 2006 Gervais became the first guest star on The Simpsons to also receive a writing credit for the episode on which he guest-starred, "Homer Simpson, This Is Your Wife", which aired on March 26, 2006 (April 23, 2006 in the UK). "Homer Simpson This is Your Wife" is an episode of The Simpsons, that aired on March 26, 2006. Events 1026 - Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II as Holy Roman Emperor. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 215 BC - A temple is built on the Capitoline Hill dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Asked about how his idea for the episode (in which Homer swaps Marge on a game show) came about, Gervais replied: "I’ve always been fascinated with reality game shows but I think it was my girlfriend’s idea. We watch Celebrity Big Brother at the moment, we watch I’m a Celebrity, Get Me out of Here… we watch all those reality TV shows – The Office came out of those docu-soaps". ^[10] Gervais is a long-standing Simpsons fan and presented a segment to mark the show's 20th anniversary on BBC Two's The Culture Show on 16 June 2007. The Culture Show is a weekly BBC Two magazine programme broadcast on Tuesday nights focussing on the latest developments in the worlds of film music art fashion Events 1487 - Battle of Stoke Field, the last dying breath of the Wars of the Roses. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century.

In September 2007, it was announced that Gervais will star in the comedy film This Side of the Truth, co-writing and co-directing with Matt Robinson. Comedy film is a genre of Film in which the main emphasis is on humor. ^[11]

The Office

Main article: The Office (UK TV series)

The first, six-episode series of The Office aired in the UK in July and August 2001 to little fanfare or attention. This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the ^[12] Word-of-mouth, repeats and DVDs helped spread the word, building up huge momentum and anticipation for the second series, also comprising six episodes, in September 2002. ^[13] The second series topped the BBC Two ratings, and the show then switched to BBC One in December 2003 for its final two special episodes. In November 2003, bbc.co.uk reported that two 100-page scripts for the forthcoming Christmas specials of The Office had been "sent to the wrong address". ^[14] They fell into the hands of one Joanne Hiley, who announced her intention to sell them to "the paper which can bid the most". The scripts never appeared in the papers, and there were no follow-up reports explaining the situation's resolution. The Office has since been remade for audiences in France, Germany, Quebec, and the United States. Le Bureau is a French Television show that airs Thursday nights on Canal+. Stromberg is a German television series which is produced by Brainpool and broadcast on the commercial television channel ProSieben La Job is a Quebec comedy television series set in Montreal. It is an adaptation of the British show The Office of the Gervais and Merchant are producers and sometime writers for "The Office" United States. They wrote the episode "The Convict" for the third season of the show. "The Convict" is the eleventh filmed and ninth aired episode of the third season of The Office (U

Extras

Main article: Extras (TV series)

A twelve-episode sitcom about background artists working on movies. Extras is a British television sitcom about extras working on Film sets and in Theatre. Written and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, it aired in the UK in July 2005 on BBC and in the U. S. in September 2005 on HBO. It guest starred Ross Kemp, Les Dennis, Patrick Stewart, Vinnie Jones, Samuel L Jackson, Ben Stiller, Kate Winslet and Francesca Martinez. Ross James Kemp (born 21 July 1964) is a BAFTA award-winning English Actor, author and Journalist, who rose to prominence Les Dennis (born Leslie Heseltine on 12 October 1953 in Liverpool, Lancashire) was an English Television presenter and Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE (born 13 July 1940 is an English Film, Television and stage Actor. Vincent Peter "Vinnie" Jones (born 5 January 1965) is an English -born Film actor and ex- footballer, having represented Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21 1948 is an American Academy Award -nominated and BAFTA -winning actor Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller (born November 30 1965 is an Emmy Award -winning American Comedian, actor Film producer and director Kate Elizabeth Winslet (born 5 October 1975 is a five-time Academy Award -nominated Golden Globe -nominated Emmy Award -nominated Francesca Martinez (born 1979 is an English Stand-up comedian. A second series began on 14 September 2006 in the UK, featuring Daniel Radcliffe, Orlando Bloom, Sir Ian McKellen, Chris Martin, Keith Chegwin, Robert Lindsay, Warwick Davis, Ronnie Corbett, Stephen Fry, Richard Briers, Patricia Potter, Sophia Myles, Moira Stuart, David Bowie, Robert De Niro and Jonathan Ross. Events 81 - Domitian becomes Emperor of the Roman Empire upon the death of his brother Titus. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Daniel Jacob Radcliffe (born 23 July 1989 is an English film television and stage actor Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Bloom (born 13 January 1977) is an English Actor. Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CH, CBE (born 25 May 1939 is an English stage and screen actor the Christopher Anthony John Martin (born 2 March 1977 is the English lead Singer-songwriter, Pianist, and occasional rhythm Guitarist of the Keith "Cheggers" Chegwin (born 17 January 1957 in Bootle) is an English Television presenter, former Child actor Robert Lindsay (born 13 December 1949 is an award-winning English actor who is best known for his television work especially his roles in Citizen Smith Warwick Ashley Davis (born February 3 1970) is an English Actor. Ronald Balfour "Ronnie" Corbett, OBE (born 4 December 1930) is a British Actor and Comedian, born in Scotland Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957 is an English Humorist, Writer, Wit, Actor, Novelist, filmmaker Richard David Briers, CBE (born 14 January 1934 is an English Actor whose career has encompassed the theatre television film and radio Patricia Caroline Potter (born 3 March 1975) is an English actress Sophia Myles (sə'fаɪə born 18 March 1980) is an English film and television actress. Moira Clare Ruby Stuart Career Early Career Stuart began working with the BBC in the 1970s David Bowie (ˈboʊiː born David Robert Jones on 8 January 1947 is an English Musician, actor producer, and arranger. Robert Mario De Niro Jr (born August 17 1943 is a two-time Academy Award -winning American Film Actor, director and producer Jonathan Stephen Ross OBE (born 17 November 1960 in London, England) is a triple BAFTA -winning British

On 10 June 2006, Gervais and Merchant were seen in a specially-filmed promotional sketch for Extras 2 in the middle of BBC1's World Cup football coverage. Events 1190 - Third Crusade: Frederick I Barbarossa drowns in the Sally River while leading an army to Jerusalem Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Extras is a British television sitcom about extras working on Film sets and in Theatre. The FIFA World Cup, occasionally called the Football World Cup, but usually referred to simply as the World Cup, is an international Association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered This time, Gervais did not perform his famous dance. Instead, Merchant did - a take-off of the Crouch Dance, recently popularised by England striker Peter Crouch. Peter James Crouch (born 30 January 1981 is an English international football player The English national football team represents England in international football and is controlled by The Football Association, the governing body for football Strikers, also known as forwards and attackers, are the players on a team in Association football (soccer in the row nearest to the opposing Peter James Crouch (born 30 January 1981 is an English international football player

Gervais has acknowledged being influenced by Curb Your Enthusiasm and The Larry Sanders Show in making Extras, particularly in the format of celebrities making fools of themselves or subverting their public personas,^[15] and the Gervais joke of someone making inappropriate remarks in front of a member of a minority. Curb Your Enthusiasm is an American Sitcom starring Seinfeld writer co-creator and executive producer Larry David as himself and The Larry Sanders Show is a satirical television Sitcom that originally aired from August 1992 to May 1998 on the HBO Cable television network Extras is a British television sitcom about extras working on Film sets and in Theatre. See also Mathematics of humor A joke is a short story or ironic depiction of a situation communicated with the intent of being humorous. He has interviewed both Larry David and Garry Shandling, creators of these shows, on Ricky Gervais Meets. Lawrence Eugene "Larry" David (born July 2 1947 is an American Emmy -winning Actor, Writer, Comedian, producer Garry Shandling (born November 29, 1949) is an American Comedian. . .

A Christmas special of Extras was aired on December 27, 2007 in the UK and December 16 in the US, featuring guest appearances by George Michael, Clive Owen, Gordon Ramsay, Jonathan Ross and David Tennant. Events 537 - The Hagia Sophia is completed 1512 - The Spanish Crown issues the Laws of Burgos, governing the Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 755 - An Lushan revolts against Chancellor Yang Guozhong at Fanyang, initiating the An Shi Rebellion Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou (Γεώργιος Κυριάκος Παναγιώτου (born 25 June 1963 best known as George Michael, is a two-time Grammy Award winning Clive Owen (born October 3, 1964) is an Academy Award -nominated and Golden Globe - and BAFTA -award winning English Gordon James Ramsay, OBE, (born 8 November 1966 is a Chef, Television personality and Restaurateur. Jonathan Stephen Ross OBE (born 17 November 1960 in London, England) is a triple BAFTA -winning British David Tennant (born David John McDonald; 18 April 1971 is a Scottish Actor.

Extras was awarded the Golden Globe award on January 14, 2008. The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and Television programs given out each year during a formal dinner Events 1129 - Formal approval of the Order of the Templar at the Council of Troyes. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common

Stand-up

Gervais made a few attempts at stand-up in the late 1990s, but his first successful show took place at the Cafe Royal, as part of 2001's Edinburgh Fringe. Stand-up comedy is a style of comedy where the performer speaks directly to the audience with the absence of the theatrical " Fourth wall " The Edinburgh Fringe (officially the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, commonly just The Fringe) is the world’s largest Arts festival. Titled Rubbernecker, the show also featured Jimmy Carr, Robin Ince and Stephen Merchant. James Anthony Patrick Carr Jr (born September 15, 1972 in Isleworth, London) Robin Ince (born 1969 is an English Stand-up comedian, Actor and Writer. Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974 is a British Comedy Award - BAFTA - Emmy - and Golden Globe -award winning British writer

Gervais later toured the UK in 2003 with his stand-up show Animals. Animals is a stand-up show written and performed by the comedian Ricky Gervais. The Politics tour followed a year later. Politics is the second of Ricky Gervais ' stand-up shows It was written and performed by the comedian Gervais Both of these shows were recorded for release on DVD and television broadcast. DVD (also known as " Digital Versatile Disc " or " Digital Video Disc " - see Etymology)is The third part of the themed live trilogy, Fame, took place in 2007. Fame is the most recent of stand-up shows written and performed by Ricky Gervais. It started in Glasgow in January and ended in Sheffield in April. Sheffield ( is a city and Metropolitan borough in South Yorkshire, England Blackpool reported selling out of tickets within 45 minutes of them going on sale. ^[16] More dates were added.

Newsnight Review's panel saw Animals during its Bloomsbury run and covered it in January 2003. For the CNN programme see NewsNight with Aaron Brown Newsnight is a British daily News analysis The UCL Bloomsbury Theatre is a theatre on Gordon Street, Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden, owned by University College London They were not favourable, with Private Eye editor Ian Hislop being the most explicit in his criticism. Private Eye is a fortnightly British satirical Magazine, edited by Ian Hislop. Ian David Hislop (born 13 July 1960) is an British Comedian, Scriptwriter and Editor of satirical magazine ^[17] After this, Gervais closed each show by calling Hislop "a little ugly pug-faced cunt. " Further coverage on Newsnight Review has been overwhelmingly favourable, with the panelists playing 'themselves' in promos for the second series of Extras. Panel regulars Germaine Greer, Mark Kermode and Mark Lawson also appeared as 'themselves' reviewing When The Whistle Blows in a series episode. Germaine Greer (born 29 January 1939 is an Australian born Writer, Academic, Journalist and Scholar of early modern English literature Mark Kermode (born Mark Fairey, 2 July 1963) is an English film critic who regularly writes for Sight and Sound Mark Gerard Lawson (born April 11, 1962) is an English journalist broadcaster and author Critic Lawson is a great admirer of Gervais and Merchant, having interviewed them extensively for television, print Front Row and the Edinburgh International Television Festival. Mark Gerard Lawson (born April 11, 1962) is an English journalist broadcaster and author Front Row is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. The BBC describes the programme as a "live magazine programme on the world of arts literature film The Edinburgh International Television Festival, founded in 1976 is held annually over the British August bank holiday weekend at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre

Fame was the subject of some controversy in January 2007 when Gervais told a story, ostensibly about how people will do anything to become famous, to a Scottish audience. Fame is the most recent of stand-up shows written and performed by Ricky Gervais. ^[18] The story referred to a question asked of Gervais five years earlier by a reporter: what can you do to become famous? To which he replied, "Go out and kill a prostitute. " He followed up with the punchline, "I won't do that bit in Ipswich," referring to the recent murders of five prostitutes in Ipswich, in December 2006. The Ipswich 2006 serial murders took place during the November and December of 2006 when the bodies of five Murdered women were discovered at different locations near Ipswich The joke even drew criticism from the father of one of the victims, Tania Nicol: “These days they want to make a joke out of anything. I feel he’s just being uncaring, quite honestly. ” Gervais did not apologise, but did attempt to defend himself: "I do want people to know that that happened five years ago and is not related to anything now. That is the problem with comedy, a joke that is funny today can be a terrible faux pas tomorrow”.

He has performed stand-up in the U. S. three times. He performed two warm up shows at the TriBeCa Performing Arts Center and headlined David Bowie's High Line Festival in May 2007. David Bowie (ˈboʊiː born David Robert Jones on 8 January 1947 is an English Musician, actor producer, and arranger. ^[19]

In Grand Theft Auto IV, Gervais can be seen at a comedy club performing a 4 minute routine. There are several different performances that can be seen, comprising mostly of material from his 'Fame' tour.

Books

The Office scripts were released in book form, with Series 1 issued in 2002, and the remaining episodes following in 2003. Gervais released a children's book in 2004, Flanimals - illustrated by his friend Rob Steen - which used nonsense animals. Flanimals is a children's and adults' book written by comedian Ricky Gervais. After the success of this book he released its sequel More Flanimals in 2005, with Flanimals of the Deep coming the next year. More Flanimals is the Sequel to Ricky Gervais ' book Flanimals. Flanimals of the Deep (ISBN 0571234038 is the third book in the Flanimals series from British Comedian Ricky Gervais and Illustrator A new Flanimals book Day of the Bletching, came out in October 2007. There is a wide range of Flanimals merchandise available, including dolls and gift cards. In Marketing, a product is anything that can be offered to a Market that might satisfy a want or need A six-part Flanimals TV series has been commissioned by ITV,^[20] although Gervais had previously claimed signing a Hollywood movie deal^[21] so that a franchise could be developed. A media franchise is an Intellectual property involving the characters, setting, and Trademarks of an original work of media (usually "That way it stands a chance of being the next Dr. Seuss or Mr Men". Theodor Seuss Geisel (ˈsɔɪs ˈɡaɪzəl March 2 1904 – September 24 1991 was an American Writer and Cartoonist, better known by his pen name Mr Men is a series of 45 (only 43 published in English Children's books by Roger Hargreaves started in 1971 ^[22] In late 2006 the Extras scriptbook was released, as well as The World of Karl Pilkington presented by Gervais and Merchant. The World of Karl Pilkington is the first book written and illustrated by Karl Pilkington, and contains transcripts from The Ricky Gervais Show These were essentially transcripts of XFM/podcast routines performed by the three . Xfm is a brand of Commercial radio stations focused on Alternative music, primarily indie, and owned by GCap Media in the United Kingdom A podcast is a series of audio or Video digital-media files which is distributed over the Internet by syndicated Download

Boxing

In 2002, Gervais took part in a charity boxing match against entrepreneur Grant Bovey - known largely by the public due to his relationship with TV personality Anthea Turner. The definition of charitable organization, and of charity varies according to the country and in some instances the region of the country in which the charitable organization operates Boxing (sometimes also known as English boxing or pugilism) is a Combat sport in which two participants generally of similar weight, An entrepreneur is a person who has possession over a company enterprise, or Venture, and assumes significant accountability for the inherent risks and the outcome Anthea Millicent Turner (born 25 May 1960 in Stoke-on-Trent) is an English television 'personality' On his Saturday afternoon Radio show on XFM London Gervais and partners Stephen Merchant and Karl Pilkington had discussions on both Ricky's attitude towards boxing and training in general, as well as his likelihood of victory against Bovey. Xfm London is a commercial Radio station in the United Kingdom. Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974 is a British Comedy Award - BAFTA - Emmy - and Golden Globe -award winning British writer Karl Pilkington (born on 23 September 1972 is a Sony Award -winning Radio producer, podcaster and author best known for producing and co-presenting Initially, Merchant had questions as to why Gervais was participating in the event, due to his dislike of slight pain and his inexperience with fitness in general.

In the weeks before the event was scheduled to take place both Merchant and Pilkington voiced their doubts as to his fitness due to illness which he had sustained weeks before the event, humorously, by stating that both they and Gervais' family had written up a petition to the BBC stating "Please do not allow this man to box. "

Gervais was trained for the three-round contest by famous boxing trainer brothers Frank and Eugene Maloney, at their Fight Factory gymnasium. Frank Maloney is a Boxing manager and promoter and United Kingdom Independence Party politician It was the second televised charity boxing match, the first being Bob Mortimer against Les Dennis, for Comic Relief. Robert "Bob" Renwick Mortimer (born 23 May, 1959 in Middlesbrough, England) is a British Comedian and Actor Les Dennis (born Leslie Heseltine on 12 October 1953 in Liverpool, Lancashire) was an English Television presenter and Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character or scene or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work often to relieve tension The fight was televised by the BBC, and Gervais came out on top by a split decision verdict. A Split Decision is a winning criterion in several Full-contact Combat sports such as Boxing, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Mixed Turner later claimed the only reason Gervais was awarded victory was because of his relationship with the BBC. Gervais later said that the experience was the 'most difficult thing' he had ever done. He donated his £5,000 prize money to the training of a Macmillan nurse. Macmillan Cancer Support is one of the largest British charities and provides specialist health care information and financial support to people affected by

Accolades

Gervais has received many awards for his work on The Office, most notably two Golden Globes (one for acting, one for the show itself), as well as numerous British Academy Television Awards and British Comedy Awards, amongst others. The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and Television programs given out each year during a formal dinner 65th Golden 62nd Golden The George Foster Peabody Awards, better known as simply the Peabody Awards, are annual international awards for excellence in Radio and Television broadcasting The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA is a British charity that hosts annual awards shows for film television television craft video games and forms of animation The Royal Television Society (commonly known in the television industry as the RTS) is a British -based society for the discussion analysis and preservation of The British Comedy Awards is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year The Broadcasting Press Guild is a British association of Journalists who specialise in writing and Broadcasting about Television, Radio The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and Television programs given out each year during a formal dinner The British Academy Television Awards, also known as the BAFTAs &mdash or to differentiate them from the BAFTA Film Awards, the BAFTA Television Awards The British Comedy Awards is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year The show missed out on what was considered to be a definite Emmy Award nomination because there were not enough episodes broadcast in the U. S. before the deadline for consideration. ^[23]

Gervais received an honorary award at the annual Rose d'Or ceremony in Switzerland on April 29, 2006. The Rose d'Or ( Golden Rose in English is a highly prestigious Television award given annually since 1961 at the Festival Rose d'Or in spring each year Switzerland (English pronunciation; Schweiz Swiss German: Schwyz or Schwiiz Suisse Svizzera Svizra officially the Swiss Confederation Events 1429 - Joan of Arc arrives to relieve the Siege of Orleans. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. The award is given to "an individual who has made an exceptional contribution to the global entertainment business". ^[24]

Gervais has been nominated for best stand-up award at this year's Loaded LAFTAS with NIVEA for Men. The winners will be announced on October 4. Events 610 - Heraclius arrives by ship from Africa at Constantinople, overthrows Byzantine Emperor Phocas

On September 16, 2007, Gervais won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for his role of Andy Millman on Extras. Events 1400 - Owain Glyndŵr is declared Prince of Wales by his followers Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. ^[25]

Other work

Gervais guest-starred in an episode of The Simpsons entitled "Homer Simpson, This Is Your Wife", which aired on March 26, 2006 in the United States, on April 23, 2006 in the United Kingdom, and on July 18, 2006 in Australia. "Homer Simpson This is Your Wife" is an episode of The Simpsons, that aired on March 26, 2006. Events 1026 - Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II as Holy Roman Emperor. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Events 215 BC - A temple is built on the Capitoline Hill dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Events 390 BC - Roman - Gaulish Wars Battle of the Allia - a Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. The episode was the highest rated in Sky One's history, arguably due to its extensive promotion. This revolved around the angle that Gervais was the episode's sole writer, but he clarified the extent of his input in a joint interview (with Christopher Guest) for Dazed and Confused magazine (January 2006): "No, all I did was put down a load of observations on an email and they made it look like a Simpsons script. Dazed & Confused is a British style magazine set up in 1992 and published monthly I'm going to get the credit, but I think everyone in the industry knows it was a joint effort. " Criticisms of the episode include its promotion of high definition television (Sky has just launched an HD service) as well as the quality of the script. This was not his first appearance in an animation, as he had provided the voice of "Bugsy" in the 2005 animated feature film, Valiant. For other uses see Valiant. Valiant is a 2005 computer-animated Film, which tells the tale of a

He also guest-starred in Alias (the season three episode "Façade") as Daniel Ryan, an English former Royal Navy bomb disposal specialist turned rogue Irish Republican Army bomb-maker. Alias is an American " Spy-fi " television series created by J Main characters Jennifer Garner as Sydney Bristow Ron Rifkin as Arvin Sloane The Irish Republican Army ( IRA) (Óglaigh na hÉireann was a military organisation descended from the Irish Volunteers, established 25 November 1913 and who He has also appeared several times on The Late Show With David Letterman. The Late Show with David Letterman is an Emmy Award -winning American late-night Talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS

At one point, Gervais was considered for a role in the Tom Cruise movie Mission: Impossible III, but it never came to fruition - Gervais cited reasons for this, on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross: "It was a bigger part than I first thought. Thomas Cruise Mapother IV ( born July 3 1962 better known by his screen name Tom Cruise, is an American Actor and Film producer Mission Impossible III (abbreviated MiIII) is the third 2006 Action film based on the spy-themed television series Mission Friday Night with Jonathan Ross is a Chat show presented by Jonathan Ross. " He added: "I did an episode of Alias, and I can't watch it. Me being serious. I can't watch it. "

Gervais's film career has continued with small roles as a studio executive, as the voice of a pigeon in Valiant, his appearance in Night at the Museum, playing museum director Dr. The studio executive is an employee of a Film studio or a Corporation doing business in the Entertainment industry. For other uses see Valiant. Valiant is a 2005 computer-animated Film, which tells the tale of a Night at the Museum is a 2006 American Adventure Comedy film. A museum is a "permanent institution in the service of society and of its development open to the public which acquires conserves researches communicates and exhibits the McPhee, and as "Ferdy the Fence" in Stardust. Stardust is a 2007 Fantasy Film from Paramount Pictures, directed by Matthew Vaughn. His role in Night at the Museum has proven to be one of Gervais's most popular roles, with the movie grossing $570 million worldwide. In Economics gross means before deductions The antonym is net, meaning after deductions ^[26][27]

On 2 July 2005, Gervais appeared at the Live 8 event held in Hyde Park, where he performed his famous dance. Events 310 - Pope Miltiades is elected 626 - In fear of assassination Li Shimin ambushes and kills his rival Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Live 8 was a string of Benefit concerts that took place on 2 July, 2005, in the G8 states and in South Africa. Hyde Park is one of the largest Parks in central London, England and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner He produced a series of short films for the cause, linked acts from the studio with Jonathan Ross and also introduced the group R.E.M.. Jonathan Stephen Ross OBE (born 17 November 1960 in London, England) is a triple BAFTA -winning British REM is an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by Michael Stipe ( lead vocals) Peter Buck ( Guitar On 5 January 2006, he interviewed Larry David, in a one off special, Ricky Gervais Meets. Events 1477 - Battle of Nancy: Charles the Bold is killed and Burgundy becomes part of France. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Lawrence Eugene "Larry" David (born July 2 1947 is an American Emmy -winning Actor, Writer, Comedian, producer . . Larry David. On 25 December and 26 December of the same year, Channel 4 aired similar specials where he interviewed the actor/comedian Christopher Guest and infamously Garry Shandling. Events 274 - Roman Emperor Aurelian Events 1481 - Battle of Westbrook - Holland defeats troops of Utrecht. Channel 4 is a public-service Television and Radio broadcaster in the United Kingdom centred around a television channel of the same name which began Christopher Guest (born February 5 1948 is an Emmy Award-winning writer Grammy Award-winning composer/musician director and comic actor Garry Shandling (born November 29, 1949) is an American Comedian. There are no plans for further episodes of "Meets. . . ", although editions with John Cleese and Matt Groening were recorded in 2006, for broadcast in 2007. John Marwood Cleese (ˈkliːz born 27 October, 1939) is a British Actor, Comedian, Writer, Film producer Matthew Abram Groening (ˈɡreɪnɪŋ GRAY-ning) (born February 15 1954 is an American Cartoonist, television producer and writer from Portland A source claimed "The Shandling experience put him off for good. "^[28][29]

On February 6, 2006, it was announced that Gervais and Merchant were to write an episode for the third season of the U. Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats the combined army of Pompeian followers and Numidians under Metellus Scipio Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. S. version of The Office. ^[30] The episode, entitled "The Convict", aired on November 30, 2006 in the United States. "The Convict" is the eleventh filmed and ninth aired episode of the third season of The Office (U Events 1700 - Battle of Narva — A Swedish army of 8500 men under Charles XII defeats Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar.

On 20 February 2006, after performing twelve free podcasts with Stephen Merchant and Karl Pilkington, it was announced that all future episodes would be available from Audible. Events 1472 - Orkney and Shetland are left by Norway to Scotland, due to a Dowry payment Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. com at a "nominal fee". The reasons given for the commercialisation of the podcast were the significant cost of producing and online hosting for a weekly half hour show. The other reason was that Pilkington was out of a job after leaving his post as a production manager at UK station Xfm, although the Sony Award-winning producer has since worked for the BBC (including a run of Russell Brand shows on 6Music) as well as making and appearing in a couple of shorts for Channel 4. The Sony Radio Academy Awards (the Sonys) started in 1983, are some of the most prestigious awards in the British radio industry Russell Edward Brand (born June 4 1975 is a British Comedian, Actor, Columnist and a Presenter of Radio and Channel 4 is a public-service Television and Radio broadcaster in the United Kingdom centred around a television channel of the same name which began He is currently working on A Day in the Life of an Idiot for BBC 2.

On 1 July 2007, Gervais performed at the Concert for Diana in Wembley Stadium, a music event celebrating the life of the late Princess of Wales. "July 1st" redirects here For the Ayumi Hamasaki song see H (song. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Concert for Diana was a concert held at the new Wembley Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom in honour of Diana Princess of Wembley Stadium is a Stadium in Wembley, located in the London Borough of Brent in London, England. Towards the end of the event - after a pre-recorded introduction from Ben Stiller - Gervais appeared along with fellow Office star Mackenzie Crook. Benjamin Edward "Ben" Stiller (born November 30 1965 is an Emmy Award -winning American Comedian, actor Film producer and director This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the Paul Mackenzie Crook (born September 29, 1971) is an English Actor and Comedian, best known for playing Gareth Keenan in They performed Freelove Freeway, a song previously heard in the fourth episode of series one of The Office. Episode Four is the fourth episode of the first series of The Office. Due to a technical problem, Gervais then had to fill time until he was able to re-introduce Elton John to close the show, so he did the David Brent dance again, as well as singing the "Little Fat Man" song as performed by David Bowie in episode two of the second series of Extras. Sir Elton Hercules John CBE (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March 1947 is an English pop / rock Singer, Composer David Brent is a fictional White-collar office middle-manager and one of the principal characters from the BBC television comedy The Office David Bowie (ˈboʊiː born David Robert Jones on 8 January 1947 is an English Musician, actor producer, and arranger. Extras is a British television sitcom about extras working on Film sets and in Theatre.

On 7 July 2007 Gervais appeared at the UK leg of Live Earth at Wembley Stadium, London. Events 1456 - A retrial verdict acquits Joan of Arc of heresy 25 years after her death Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Running order In order of appearance: SOS Allstars (with drummers Roger Taylor of Queen, Taylor Hawkins of Live Earth is an annual event developed to to combat climate change. Wembley Stadium is a Stadium in Wembley, located in the London Borough of Brent in London, England. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Gervais introduced Rob Reiner appearing in the guise of spoof film director Marty Di Bergi, who in turn introduced Spinal Tap. Robert "Rob" Reiner (born March 6, 1947) is an American Actor, director, producer, Writer, and Spın̈al Tap is a semi-fictional heavy metal band the subject of the 1984 Rockumentary / Mockumentary film This Is {{Unicode|Spın̈al At the start of the concert, Radio 1 DJ Chris Moyles, who was acting as compère for part of the event, announced that Gervais would be appearing and performing an 'extended 25-minute set', which ultimately failed to happen. Christopher Moyles (born 22 February 1974 is an English broadcaster from Leeds. It is unclear whether this was meant as a joke, perhaps referring to the time Gervais had to fill at the Concert for Diana the previous Sunday, or if it was simply cut because of time constraints, but in an off-stage segment later Moyles actually expressed disappointment that it didn't occur. Gervais himself however did reference his appearance at the Diana concert the previous week, saying, 'Now listen, we're running late, so I'm gonna be off this stage in 30 seconds, whether Elton John is fucking ready or not,' making him one of a number of people to swear on live TV at the event.

In late 2007, Gervais expressed interest in performing in the worldwide hit TV series Heroes. Heroes is an American Science fiction television drama series created by Tim Kring, which premiered on NBC on September The character is said to be an 'extended' temporary character, to appear in a number of episodes, as verified by Gervais himself on the Heroes-related documentary "Heroes Unmasked".

Gervais is currently in Lowell, MA through May filming his next actor/director project This Side of the Truth, starring himself, Jennifer Garner, Rob Lowe, and Jason Bateman, with appearances by Tina Fey and Jeffrey Tambor. Lowell is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. As of the 2000 census the city had a total population of 105167 This Side of the Truth is an upcoming Comedy film, directed by Ricky Gervais and Matt Robinson from their own script Jennifer Garner Affleck This would involve changing both her last and middle names Robert Hepler Lowe (born March 17, 1964) is an American Actor. Jason Kent Bateman (born January 14, 1969) is a Golden Globe -winning and Emmy Award -nominated American Actor. Elizabeth Stamatina "Tina" Fey (born May 18 1970 is a Golden Globe - five time Emmy - and SAG Award -winning American Writer Jeffrey Michael Tambor (born July 8, 1944) is an American Actor, perhaps most known for his roles as George Bluth Sr

Gervais also has a role in the video game Grand Theft Auto IV, as himself, appearing in his role as a comedian in a comedy club, and as an interviewee on radio station We Know The Truth. For this, a special 3-minute act was written, recorded and fully motion-captured. ^[31]

Gervais made a cameo appearance on Saturday Night Live in a Digital Short where he claims that the Office was adapted from a Japanese program of the same name (with Steve Carell reprising his role as Michael Scott). Saturday Night Live ( SNL) is a weekly late-night 90-minute American Sketch comedy / Variety show based in New York City Steven John "Steve" Carell (born August 16, 1962) is a Golden Globe - and Screen Actors Guild Award -winning American The sketch recreates scenes from the American and British pilot episode with Japanese elements (albeit in a exaggerated way). At the end, Gervais finds it humorous "because it's racist. "

Criticism

The Independent newspaper has described Gervais as "obsessed by his own celebrity," but adds, "Who wouldn't want to be Peter Lawford in a comedy Rat Pack?" in reference to Ricky Gervais Meets. The Independent is a British compact Newspaper published by Tony O'Reilly 's Independent News & Media. A celebrity is a widely-recognized or famous person who commands a high degree of public and media attention Peter Sydney Lawford (September 7 1923 &ndash December 24 1984 was an English-born American Actor, member of the " Rat Pack," and brother-in-law The Rat Pack was a group of popular entertainers most active between the mid-1950s and mid-1960s . . ; the article, however, also describes him as "a very funny man" who "created one of the great sitcoms". ^[32] The Guardian's Chris Tryhorn explained the "few gripes" he had with Extras, "particularly in the second series". The Guardian (until 1959 The Manchester Guardian) is a British Newspaper owned by the Guardian Media Group. "You can forgive Gervais a certain arrogance after the success of The Office, but. This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the . . " He remarks on the confused tone of the series, taking in the clash between the broad comedy of characters Barry (Shaun Williamson) and Darren (Stephen Merchant), and the apparent parody of this style with When The Whistle Blows, and "given their total indulgence of Gervais, the BBC is portrayed as interfering, its comedy department run by a rather crudely stereotyped gay couple". Shaun Williamson (born 4 November 1964 in Maidstone, Kent) is an English Actor, Singer and Television personality Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974 is a British Comedy Award - BAFTA - Emmy - and Golden Globe -award winning British writer Comedy (from the Greek κωμωδίαkomodia has a popular meaning (any discourse generally intended to amuse especially in Television, Film, and A stereotype (from Greek: stereo + týpos = "solid impression" is a generalized perception of first impressions behaviors presumed by a group ^[33]

In September 2005 he caused mild controversy by recording a radio advert for a prostate cancer charity which was only allowed to be broadcast from 9pm to 6am because of its content. Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. The prostate (from Greek προστάτης - prostates, literally "one who stands before" "protector" "guardian" is a Cancer (medical term Malignant Neoplasm) is a class of Diseases in which a group of cells display uncontrolled ^[34] However, on October 3, 2005, the Radio Advertising Clearance Centre announced that the advert could be broadcast before 9pm, but stipulated that a "squish" noise should be removed. Events 42 BC - First Battle of Philippi: Triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian fight an indecisive battle with Caesar's Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ^[35]

In August 2007 he was the subject of a Telegraph feature titled, Has Ricky Gervais stopped being funny? The conclusion was that he had not. For "The Daily Telegraph" in Australia see The Daily Telegraph (Australia. ^[36]

Concert for Diana

In July 2007, following Gervais' appearance at the memorial concert for Diana, Princess of Wales, the Guardian ran a column by Daily Mirror television critic Jim Shelley entitled "Call Me Crazy. The Daily Mirror, often referred to simply as The Mirror, is a British Tabloid daily Newspaper founded in 1903 . . But Has Ricky Gervais Lost It?"^[37] This related to his performance at the concert for Diana in which he had to fill time after a technical fault in the sound system for Elton John's performance. Sir Elton Hercules John CBE (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight on 25 March 1947 is an English pop / rock Singer, Composer He was not allowed to use material from his current stand-up show 'Fame' for legal reasons, so instead performed his famous Brent Dance that the audience willed him to do and sang the song "Little Fat Man" from Extras series two (originally performed by David Bowie in the series) before being told he could hand back to the BBC. Fame is the most recent of stand-up shows written and performed by Ricky Gervais. David Bowie (ˈboʊiː born David Robert Jones on 8 January 1947 is an English Musician, actor producer, and arranger. Gervais was allegedly booed off stage. ^[38] He tells British radio station Heart FM, "After the Diana concert there was one guy - who works for a tabloid - and he wrote that the crowd booed… they didn't boo, they loved it. " "People love it when something goes wrong and I was standing there and they demanded I do 'the robot dance' and it was funny. "

The following week, the Guardian noted that Gervais had responded with "an exhilaratingly foul-mouthed tirade" on his website, concluding with the words, "Yes I am resting on my laurels you cunt!", in this video Gervais mocked Jim Shelley typing the words "Resting on his laurels" as Ricky jokingly lashed out by stating he was resting on his laurels and that he was not going to make another show for television and saying "What's the point? What is there to beat?". Jim Shelley is a British Television Critic who writes a column for the Daily Mirror each Monday entitled Shelleyvision ^[39]

Personal life

Gervais resides in London with his partner of 25 years, British television producer and best-selling author Jane Fallon. Jane Fallon is a British Television producer and writer whose best-known productions include the Comedy-drama Teachers, '20 Things To Do Before They have a cat named Ollie.

Watching wildlife programmes as a child affected Gervais's understanding of cruelty towards animals. He is supportive of a declaration for animal rights, as well as the WSPA (an animal welfare organisation), and is against fox-hunting and bull fighting. "Animal liberation" redirects here for other uses see Animal liberation (disambiguation. The World Society for the Protection of Animals (commonly WSPA) is an international Non-profit Animal welfare organisation and also a federation of such Animal welfare refers to the viewpoint that it is morally acceptable for humans to use nonhuman animals for food in animal research, as clothing and in entertainment Fox hunting is an activity involving the tracking chase and sometimes killing of a fox traditionally a Red fox, by trained Foxhounds or other Scent hounds Bullfighting or Tauromachy (from Greek ταυρομαχία - tauromachia, "bull-fight" is a traditional spectacle of Spain ^[40]

Ricky Gervais says he was an atheist by the age of ten. Atheism ^[41] In 2007 he told Kirsty Young on Desert Island Discs, "I'm an atheist". Kirsty Jackson Young (born 23 November 1968 in East Kilbride) is a Scottish television journalist presenter actress and radio presenter Desert Island Discs is a long-running BBC Radio 4 programme It was first broadcast on 29 January 1942 and is said by the Guinness ^[42]

He cannot drive, as stated in his radio show as well as in the DVD commentaries to The Office and Politics. He has a second-floor office in Tottenham Court Road, London, where he records his podcasts with Stephen Merchant and Karl Pilkington. Tottenham Court Road is a road in Central London, England, running from St Giles' Circus (the junction of Oxford Street and Charing Cross ^[43] Gervais has a pet cat, named Ollie (given to him by Jonathan Ross), and a salamander named Tel. Jonathan Stephen Ross OBE (born 17 November 1960 in London, England) is a triple BAFTA -winning British Salamander (orig from Persian: sām, "fire" and andarūn, "within" is the common name for a group of approximately 500 Species ^[44]

A gang stole £200,000 from his bank account by pasting a picture of him from his Office DVD onto a dead man's passport and using an insider from the bank to transfer the funds. A passport is a document issued by a national government which certifies for the purpose of international travel the identity and nationality of its holder When they tried to use the money to buy gold, they were arrested. They were sentenced to between two and two and a half years in prison. ^[45]

Gervais is also a friend of Jon Stewart^[46] and is a frequent guest on his TV show. Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28 1962 is an American Comedian, Satirist, Actor, Writer, and Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic

Filmography

References

Interviews

• The Independent, et al. (2005). Ricky Gervais: My life as a superstar [Electronic Version] Independent News Media: United Kingdom
• The Guardian Newspaper, et al. (2005). "Second Coming" Guardian Unlimited © Guardian News and Media Limited 2007: United Kingdom
• Thomas, S. , et al. (1983). More to lose - everything to gain [Electronic Version] Retrieved on 8 July 2007 from [1] New Music Express : London

External links

• RickyGervais.com Official Site
• AllGervais.com - Ricky Gervais Resource
• Ricky Gervais at the Internet Movie Database
• Ricky Gervais at the Oxonian Society video
• Ricky Gervais interview
• BBC interview