Christopher Green (born c1968) is a writer and performer whose work covers comedy, cabaret, theatre and live art. Green was born in Matlock, Derbyshire, grew up in Darley Dale and lives and works in London, England.[1]
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Green got into comedy via television production and acting, after graduating from Goldsmiths College (University of London), with a degree in Drama and English.[1] He is perhaps best known for his work as a character comedian, in a range of personas, and has toured worldwide in venues such as The Albert Hall and Sydney Opera House.[2] Green hosts, writes and performs original music and material in a range of venues from nightclubs, corporate events for companies such as Diego, American Express, Tiffany, Bloomsbury, and MTV to private parties. Performing as one of his characters Tina C. Green has presented his own TV show, and is currently working on a fourth Tina C BBC Radio 4 series and one as pensioner rapper Ida Barr.
Tina C. A faux country music singer whose performance includes a range of topics from sexual politics ("No Dick’s As Hard As My Life") to geo-politics ("Tina C’s Twin Tower Tribute"). And also her bid to run in the 2008 presidential race in her show called "Manifesto".[3] In a 2007 commission from the Adelaide Cabaret Festival for "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word" Tina solves the Aboriginal tensions down under. This is due to be toured around Australia soon. A new series of the Tina C. BBC Radio 4 series will be broadcast in late 2011, entitled Tina C, from Middle America to the Middle East.
Another character played by Green is Ida Barr, a selfproclaimed "world's first Music Hall singer turned RnB rap superstar" [4] who has performed her two solo shows, "Artificial Hip Hop" and "Get Old or Die Tryin’" all over the world, on various UK tours, and on a variety of media. Artificial Hip Hop, the BBC Radio 4 series was broadcast in late 2010
As his cultural critic character Jedd O’Sullivan Green hosted a tour of Seduced, Surreal House and Japanese Fashion at the Barbican Art Gallery.
Christopher's new comedy character is Derek Diamond. Host of The Razzle Working Man’s Club, top comedian and stage hypnotist. Derek performs a highly skilled 40 minutes hypnotic routine that turns the audience into stars.
Experiential Work
Office Party. A theatrical version of a corporate bash where the audience are party. Co-created with Ursula Martinez. A hit at the Barbican and Edinburgh Festivals and set for both UK and Australian productions in 2010. www.officepartyshow.com VIP. A fake backstage party commissioned by Festival Republic. Played the four biggest UK festivals Summer 2009. Working Man’s Club. An installation event for IQUN and Latitude Festivals 2010.
Theatre
Artistic associate of Duckie. Co-creator of the phenomenally successful C’est Duckie! and five other major theatrical experiences www.duckie.co.uk Pop Junkie. 10 characters obsessed with pop. The only theatre show, apart from Mamma Mia with permission to use Abba’s music theatrically. Let’s Bomb Russia! The life story of Kenny Everett. Christopher has been given exclusive permission by the Everett family to write a stage show
Installation events
Christopher has been commissioned to create events for the V&A, Tates Modern and Britain, the Barbican Art Gallery, the NPG, the Southbank Centre. He has been invited to be the British Library Artist In Residence 2011.
Variety
Christopher is a lynchpin of two of the most influential variety organisations in the world, La Clique (www.laclique.com.au) and Medium Rare (www.mediumrare.tv)
BBC Radio
In addition to 4 series of Tina C with a new one for 2011, Tina C Goes To The Middle East, and a new series of Ida Barr Artificial Hip Hop just broadcast, Christopher writes regular commissioned plays. The latest, The Second Best Bed was broadcast in late 2009 and starred Caroline Quentin. The latest production is Like An Angel Passing Through My Room, about Frida from Abba and features an exclusive conversation between Frida and Christopher. It will be broadcast in Feb 2011.
TV & Film
In addition to Tina C’s series Yanky Panky, notable work includes script and song writing for Sesame Street, appearances in Horne & Corden, as well starring roles in films The Queen’s Sister (as Danny la Rue) and Henry 9 (as Prince Harry). Christopher has just appeared in the short film Liberty Cherie made by Superamas Theatre Collective in Vienna.
Three Random Facts:
Christopher is a prolific songwriter, pianist, and guitarist. He is a trained clinical hypnotherapist and stage hypnotist. He was music researcher on The Word and music producer on many other 90s pop shows.
Current Projects include:
Regina & Rex: a new double act, with glamour legend Rula Lenska playing Chris’ mother A Silent Night? A Yuletide ghost story play, collaboration with Sarah Waters Carrying Lead, sitcom for UK TV, developed with Jellylegs My Way of Joking, one-man multi-character show, premiering the Playhouse, Sydney Opera House, June 2011 Love-In, director of the new show by clowning comedy sensations Spymonkey
Green posted the following on his website about a new musical project
Carrying Lead "A Grief Observed" in Music
My partner was diagnosed with cancer in November 2007. He died 20 months later. I often felt that nothing in my life up to that point or in our 14 and a half years of love had prepared me for his being taken from me. A few months after his death I started to write songs, they came steadily and surely and strangely effortlessly. They seem to have stopped now, but who knows, grief is a strange land and I’m sure I’m bound to encounter territory soon where I need some musical orientation again. I was not surprised to see that the songs were about profound loss, but delighted that they are also about joy. They are about depression, jokes, and the complete uselessness of self-pity as a strategy. They are about hope and moving forwards without fear. After all, if the worst thing that can happen to you, happens to you, aren’t you oddly invincible?Taking its emotional cue from the masterly work by C S Lewis' "A Grief Observed", this collection of songs challenges in its emotional rawness but engages with its warmth and humanity.
Olivier Award for Best Entertainment 2004 for "C’est Barbican!" [5]
“The most intelligent man to come out of the UK since Stephen Fry” The Australian
“An entertainment maverick” The Guardian
“Christopher Green’s work is funny & intelligent” Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson from Abba
“I have followed Christopher Green's work as performer, writer of radio drama and deviser of public events for some years now, and never fail to be inspired by its quality. He deploys sharp intelligence and humour with a tight attention to detail, and an unusually broad cultural frame of reference which gives an edge to even the more apparently frivolous of his entertainments. His originality has always been fearless, even startling, but is increasingly warmed by a mature humanity.“ Libby Purves, Writer and Broadcaster and The Times Chief Theatre Critic
“Christopher Green’s Tina C is one of the great comic creations of the age. A genuinely fine country singer, but with a twist of satire and insight which is rare and highly to be prized.” Stephen Fry
“Working on a script by Christopher Green is as good as it gets. His writing is funny, insightful and has a delicacy that puts it in a class of it's [sic?] own. His work is rather like the man himself, very funny and really rather beautiful “ Caroline Quentin
“I really enjoy watching Christopher Green. He is a huge talent- clever, funny and devastatingly relevant.” Admiral Lord West of Spithead, UK Security Minister and former First Sea Lord.
“Christopher Green is a genius” Tania Harrison, Arts Curator, Festival Republic (Latitude, Leeds, Reading, Electric Picnic)
“Tina C is one of my favourite performers. She is witty, often outrageous and always in tune! I can't wait to see what Chris Green comes up with next.” Ian McKellen
“Christopher Green is a rather remarkable performer and writer.“ Caroline Raphael, Commissioning Editor, Comedy & Entertainment, BBC Radio
“A real artist in comedy - a proper Renaissance man” Anna Somers Cocks, editor in chief, The Art Newspaper and Chairman of Venice in Peril