Features
They Are Not Yet Dead
The self-described “Not Dead Yet” tour of the U.K. kicks off February 29 at the Blackpool Opera House and is currently scheduled to run through early May.
Stops on the schedule so far include the Palace Theatre in Manchester (March 3), Newcastle City Hall (March 12), the Aberdeen Exhibition Centre (March 21), the Bristol Hippodrome (April 27-28) and the New Theatre Oxford (May 5).
Tickets are available through Ticketmaster UK.
Jennifer Saunders is perhaps best known to audiences in the States as the fad-obsessed, hedonistic, thoroughly irresponsible Edina Monsoon on the hit series “Absolutely Fabulous.”
Dawn French is well-known to fans of British comedy through her starring role as Geraldine Granger in the series, “The Vicar of Dibley.”
The pair first gained attention while performing as part of a comedy troupe at the London club The Comic Strip. Other “underground” British comedians working at the club included Rik Mayall, Robbie Coltrane and Adrian Edmonson, who would become Saunders’ husband.
“A Bucket O’ French and Saunders,” a new six-part BBC series that began airing in early September, looks back at the 20 year career of the duo. The show features a collection of some of the best sketches from the comedy team’s six BBC series, plus new material filmed earlier this summer.
New bits include French and Saunders unique take on Amy Winehouse, Britney Spears, “Big Brother,” “America’s Next Top Model,” “The Apprentice,” “Hell’s Kitchen,” and “Dr. Who.”
In recent interviews with the British press, the duo said they came to the decision this year it was time to move on from sketch comedy to material more appropriate to their age.
Saunders is currently writing and starring in a new series, “The Life and Times of Vivienne Vyle,” about a neurotic talk show host, while French is preparing to pen her memoirs; star in her own new series, “High Table;” and move to Cornwall with her husband, comedian Lenny Henry.