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JIMEOIN
Jimeoin
(his real name, pronounced Jim-Owen) is acclaimed as one of the
hottest live and television stand-up comics in Australia and Britain.
A prolific writer with exceptional audience rapport, he is
known and loved for his brilliantly funny wit and charming
observations on the absurdities of every day life, all served up
with a touch of the Irish. Frequent Australian concert tours
(2 or 3 per year, playing 1000 - 3000 seat theatres) sell out in
advance and his sell-out tours and West End seasons see him steadily
building a major following in the UK.
In 1994-95, Jimeoin wrote and starred in 3 series
of his self-titled Australian hit TV comedy: a pacey, live
mix of his stand-up, group sketches and music. The first two
transmitted for an hour at 7.30 pm on Sundays on the Seven Network,
with massive ratings across the country, consistently beating Beverley
Hills 90210, on a rival network. The third, consisting of
10 half hour episodes,showing at a later time, had even greater
ratings.
He also celebrity guest-hosted the nation's late night chat TONIGHT
LIVE, starred as Griffin in a period sitcom BLIGH and was the subject
of a TV documentary about touring live comedy STANDING ON THE ROAD.
GOIN' OFF, his debut stand-up comedy and self-penned music album
(Mushroom Records, Australia 1993) immediately hit the music charts
and was nominated for an ARIA Award for Best Comedy Record.
He worked on commerical radio as part of the high-rating
FOX-FM Breakfast Show, wrote/performed the comedy play, "There
was an Englishman, an Irishman and an Australian" and his riotous
COOKING SHOW sold out many seasons during assorted Melbourne International
Comedy Festivals.
In the autumn of 1992, Jimeoin made his debut
in his native Ireland supporting Sean Hughes at Dublin's 2,000+
seat National Stadium.
In 1993, his extensive debut 4 month British tour
was met with universal critical acclaim. The two week leg
in Ireland culminated in a sell-out concert in Belfast and a later
return in October for several live television appearances and to
play at the (1000 seat) Olympia stadium for the prestigious Dublin
Theatre Festival.
He also completely sold out his debut 3 week season
at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, to rave reviews and won the SCOTTISH
DAILY EXPRESS NEW NAME OF 93 AWARD.
Foremost UK independent television company, Hat
Trick Productions, sponsored the latter part of the tour and for
the final 7 weeks, he performed in theatres, comedy clubs, and arts
centres across the country, including headlining at two of the nation's
biggest comedy festivals in Newcastle and Birmingham.
Jimeoin concluded this highly successful visit
with an equally acclaimed solo show in the West End's Queen's Theatre
and made an hilarious debut on ITVs DES O'CONNOR SHOW, watched by
13 million viewers.
In May 1994, Jimeoin returned to the UK with sell-out
shows in Manchester, Newcastle and at Glasgow's Mayfest Festival.
His 2 week Edinburgh Fringe season at the 500
seat George Square Theatre was hailed as an unprecedented success
with one of the biggeset attendances of the Festival - it sold out
in advance and the press were full of praise, honouring him with
the prestigious INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL CRITICS AWARD FOR COMEDY.
During this season, Jimeoin recorded his second
album and performed the first of his shows signed for the hearing
impaired - hailed by hearing and deaf audiences, taking live comedy
to new heights. This came about through a chance meeting with
a deaf man who had come to see Jimeoin and who had brought his own
deaf interpreter and have since become a regular part of Jimeoin's
work.
In Autumn 1994, his British tour included theatre
dates throughout UK and Ireland, including London's 1,200 seat Shepherd's
Bush Empire, and a return appearance on the DES O'CONNOR SHOW.
He recorded the music for the new album in between
Australian TV appearances in September, played a private show to
Irish P.M. Albert Reynolds and Australian P.M. Paul Keating. In
March 1995, the Variety Club of Australia (akin to the UKs Grand
Order of Water Rats) feted him for his CONTRIBUTION TO COMEDY.
His second double-album, CRACK, released in Australia
in May 1995, again immediately hit the music charts.
In Spring 1995, his short seasons of UK theatre
shows including London and Brighton sold out in advance.
In July Jimeoin made his debut in July at the
world's premiere comedy showcase, Monteal's Just For Laughs Festival,
where he was extremely well received by audiences, critics and the
American talent spotters.
This appearance also resulted in him being cast
in the lead role for independent feature film by Oneira Pictures
International, director Bashar Shbib ('Julia Has Two Lovers'), THE
PERFUMER, filmed in Montreal.
Jimeoin has also been extremely well received
in the UK and US for his brief live and television performances
appearing at clubs in New York and LA (including Improv, Comedy
Store) and on TV's THE COMIC STRIP.
In the autumn of 1995, he returned to the UK for
a sell-out 3 week London theatre season and an extremely successful
national tour, including playing to 2,000 people in one night at
Belfast's Grand Opera House.
In July 1996, Jimeoin had another sell out 2 week
London run, and then smashed Edinburgh Fringe box office records
all over again when 10,000 people saw him performing 2 simultaneous
seasons: a solo show, again in the George Square theatre,
plus his nonsensical JIMEOIN & BOB'S COOKING SHOW extravaganza
with fellow comics Bob Franklin and Glenn Robbins. These also
sold out and received excellent reviews.
His massive 55 date national UK and Irish tour
in the autumn was extremely successful, including 3 sold-out shows
in the 1,000 seat Grand Opera House in Belfast, Ambassadors in Dublin
and a London Show in the 1,500 seat Wimbledon Theatre. He
played his first show in Paris - which sold out!! - and finished
off this with another appearance on Des O'Connor (transmitted on
New Year's Day).
In 1997, Jimeoin released his third stand-up comedy
LP, FORKLIFT TRUCK, in Australia, again a best seller.
He sold out a 4 month Australian tour as well
as 5 nights at the Edinburgh Fringe in the 1,000 seat Queens Hall.
The 3 week London season of JIMEOIN & BOB'S COOKING SHOW
in September sold out and a television pilot was created of this.
In October he travelled to the US for an appearance
on NBC's LATE NIGHT WITH CONAN O'BRIEN and performed a number of
New York club dates.
He then returned to Australia to make feature
film THE CRAIC (which he wrote and co-stars in) which was shot in
early 1998 and is due for release later this year.
British Television appearances include DES O'CONNOR
TONIGHT (ITV, 1996. '94, '93); JUST FOR LAUGHS (CH4, 1996); STAND-UP
SHOW (BBC1, 1995); SUMMER IN THE CITY (BBC1, 1994); THE LATE SHOW
(BBC2, 1994); BRIAN DRAIN (BBC2, 1993); THE BEST OF EDINBURGH (ITV,
1993); EDINBURGH NIGHTS (BBC2, 1993); CHANNEL 4 NEWS (featured on
Edinburgh Festival special, also TX, CNN & WTN worldwide); PEBBLE
MILL (BBC1, 1994, '93); THE LATE LATE SHOW (RTE/CH 4, 1996, '94,
'93); KELLY (BBC N. Ireland, 1996, '94, '93); UTV (news feature,
1993); THE HAPPENING (hosted by Jools Holland, B.S.B. 1991).
WHAT THE PRESS HAVE SAID ABOUT JIMEOIN:
€ EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL CRITICS
AWARD FOR COMEDY, 1994
€ SCOTTISH DAILY EXPRESS NEW NAMES AWARD, Edinburgh
1993
€ Special Australian Variety Club CONTRIBUTION
TO COMEDY AWARD, 1995
€ BRIGHTON INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL AWARD FOR COMEDY,
1995
€ "In the border ridden world of stand up
comedy Jimeoin is the closest you're likely to see to a global entertainer.
His brand of offbeat observation, engaging daftness and free-flowing
invention flit from continent to continent, effortlessly evading
immigration restraints, fluent in the lingua franca of laughter"
(The Scotsman).
€ "Gifted ... (one of) this year's hottest
acts" (Hollywood Reporter, 1995 @ Just for Laughs Festival)
€ "Awesome. A specialist in comic anthropology"
(The List)
€ "Comedy of the highest order ... inspired
ramblings" (The Independent)
€ "Jimeoin is a comic dynamo ... has worked
comedy's best, most magical spell: He has created laughter
in order that it might be used to purge, heal and shrink the distances
between folk. Laugh yoursefl better with Jimeoin at the first
opportunity" (The Herald)
€ "A series of hilarious, often surrealistic
climaxes. This is the comedy of one who truly perceives human
behaviour, breaks it up and puts it all together again in all its
ridiculousness, to leave you with your eyes streaming .. .comic
genius" (Eveing News)
€ "Hilarity and profundity - you couldn't
ask for more. Don't you miss it!" (Evening News)
€ His 90 minutes of gentle and infectious ridicule
of everyday life has to be one of the funniest, most refreshing
acts on this year's Fringe comedy circuit" (The Scotsman)
€ He's clean, charming, witty and above all funny
... His (audience) reception was nothing short of ecstatic. He's
an observational and sometimes brilliantly improvisational comic".
(The Sunday Times)
€ "The best thing on the Fringe, absolutely
fabulous. Jimeoin's signed show for the deaf was totally brilliant
and a very brave thing of him to do." (BBC Radio Scotland)
€ "Supremely gifted" (Hot Press, Ireland)
€ "He's quaint, cute and very funny. And
his type of humour is very original. A quirky, whimsical and
sometimes mischevious view of the world ... it is in the ability
to impart the ridiculousness of a situation that Jimeoin's genius
lies ... an exhilarating breath of fresh Irish air." (The
Age, Australia)
€ "He is a chronicler of the ordinary, a
non-punchline comedian who specialises in acute (and often just
cute) observations ... he is the Everyman." (Sydney Morning
Herald)
AND ABOUT JIMEOIN & BOB'S COOKING SHOW:
€ "Surreal, inspired lunacy" (The List)
€ "A riotous whirlwind of inventive props
and ridiculous improvisation ... with Jimeoin and Bob hamming it
up as the Penn and Teller of cuisine" (The Independent)
€ "A frenetic barrage of ingenious sight
gags" (Independent on Sunday)
€ "Easy-going, up for a laugh, and completely,
ridiculously funny." (The Scotsman)
€ "Jim and Bob's Cooking Show is the funniest
thing on the Fringe" (The Sunday Times) |
