COMEDIAN, actor, musician, writer and television presenter Adrian Edmondson enthralled a sell-out audience in Crediton earlier this evening.
Best known for his collaborations with Rik Mayall on the TV sitcoms “The Young Ones” and “Bottom”, he was truly a part of the alternative comedy boom in the early 1980s.
He was in Crediton to present “An Evening with Adrian Edmondson” to talk about his life and his new book “Berserker! An Autobiography” (Pan Macmillan).
He attended at the invitation of The Bookery, the Crediton community bookshop and the event was held at Crediton Congregational Church.
Mr Edmondson (66), is currently touring the country promoting his book with a series of similar events.
In Crediton he told the story behind his journey to comedy during the riotous evening of storytelling to celebrate the release of his memoir, Berserker!
How did a child brought up in a strict Methodist household – and who spent his formative years incarcerated in repressive boarding schools – end up joining the comedy revolution? Could it be in his Scandinavian (… possibly berserker) heritage?
Live on stage, Adrian took his audiences from his days breaking the rules at his brutal boarding school to the comedy circuit of the eighties when he finally found his place in world.
He shared previously unheard stories from his comedy partnership with Rik Mayall who together created the iconic sitcoms and brought anarchy and eccentricity to stage and screen.
Now a British comedy legend, Adrian Edmondson looked back on his life and answered questions.
The evening was full of star-studded anecdotes and included a healthy dose of nostalgia from an extraordinary, comedy-filled life effortlessly weaved together by his unique wit and gift for storytelling.
The book has been called the “bravest, most affecting celebrity book of the year” and in it he reveals details of his grim upbringing and how his life has changed over the years, Edmondson reinventing himself as a musician, director and serious actor.
Edmondson appeared in “The Comic Strip Presents” series of films throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s.
For two episodes of this he created the spoof heavy metal band “Bad News” and for another he played Eddie Monsoon, an offensive South African television star.
He played the lead role in the Comic Strip’s 1985 feature film “The Supergrass” and in the 2000s he appeared in numerous TV programmes in dram roles.
Edmondson performed and wrote for the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band and in 2008 formed a folk punk band, the “Bad Shepherds”, singing and playing mandola and mandolin.
In 2011 he presented a serious of shows for ITV, “The Dales” about people working in the Yorkshire Dales, and “Ade in Britain” in which he visited numerous locations in Britain.
In 2013 Edmondson was crowned the winner of Celebrity Masterchef and from 2019 to 2020 he appeared in BBC soap opera Eastenders.
In 2022 he played Ebenezer Scrooge in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s adaptation of “A Christmas Carol”.
Copies of Ade Edmondson’s book are available from The Bookery at 21 High Street, Crediton.