Hello 

hope the year of the dragon is treating you amazingly 

If you are in Sverige , I am about to start my FIKA tour in February , the dates are here 

www.alpitcherfikatour.se  Do come along , dates just added are Malmo and Linkoping plus more soon 

I will have exciting news regarding my Photo Blog very very soon, but cant tell you just yet 

Heres the interview with The  LOCAL 

If you are in the Leicester area of UK  on Feb 3 , please come see my  brand new show at the comedy festival , ticket details here 

See you soon

and PUSS PUSS

AL  

Im doing Dave's Leicester Comedy festival on Feb 3 at 7pm

This will be a brand new hour of comedy and because of commitments in Sweden , it will be one of very few shows for me in England in 2012 - ( although i am 99% certain of doing Edinburgh Festival in August, yes I know its not in England , oh you knew that as well , ok  )

the shows called APOLAUSTIC  , the devotion to enjoyment , so I bloody hope we both enjoy it , tickets are 9/7 pounds and click on   APOLAUSTIC for a cheeky purchase

See you there and happy 12 to you

If you are in Sverige on December 19 , please watch RAW comedy at 21.55 on Kanal 5  , I will be on , it's material I have used this year doing shows but I hope you laugh again. My FIKA tour which will be NEW material and a NEW show is now on sale  so please check out 

WWW.alpitcherfikatour.se for all dates 

I will put up a link to Kanal 5 website after the show has been shown

God Jul 

Al x

Tja Tja ,

For those who live in Sverige or those who are visiting Sverige during Feb-April 2012 . We have set up a website www.alpitcherfikatour.se  this gives you the dates for the first part of the tour next year 

You can also find most of the tour here , some are onsale , Julklapp anyone ?

( not all are here , we have others ready to confirm very soon ) 

 FIKA TOUR 2012 

I will put all tickets, dates and details up when everything is confirmed onsale , just wanted to keep you informed

tack for now and please come along , it will be great fun

Stockholm has been onsale for a few weeks  , buy tickets here   

Sorry for any further delay , but big Kram and see you soon I really hope

alPlats: Växjö

Tjenna people of Sverige , I really want to keep you informed as much as I can regarding the Fika Tour next year , so far ( more cities to be added ) these are the places I am going in Feb - April so far  , dates and ticket details will be available , please keep in touch , i will have more for you soon and big puss to you all ( that means thanks in Svenska ) Al 

Umeå Umeå Teaterförening

Nordmaling Oasen

Vilhelmina Folkets Hus, Essegården

Skövde Stadsteatern

Karlskrona Sparresalen, Salen

Västerås Sigurdsgatan 25 (fd. Village) x 2 

Kiruna Nåjdens sal

Gävle Gävle Teater

Sandviken Restaurang Bolaget

Östersund Storsjöteatern

Kramfors Folkets Hus o Park, Teatern

Ånge Forum

Umeå Sagateatern

Stockholm Södra Teatern, Stora scen x 2 

Kristianstad Teatern

Vänersborg Folkets Hus, Teatern

Trollhättan Kulturbaren

Uddevalla Folkets Hus

Växjö Växjö Teater

Flen  Amazon 

Malmo  Tangopalatsen 

Sverige People : I have a TV Show on Comedy Central which begins this Saturday night  November 12th , I interview other comedians , Eric Stonestreet ( Modern Family ) , Russell Peters and my mates Russell Howard and John Oliver (see photo) ,plus between my small bits , there is 1 hour from a themed Stand up Gala all in Montreal at the Just For Laughs festival its on at 10 pm, There is going to be 4-6 episodes 

Just for Laughs med Al Pitcher den 12 november kl. 22.00
I somras begav sig den svensk-nya zeeländske komikern Al Pitcher till Montreal, Canada, för att tillsammans med en kameraman rapportera från världens största humorfestival Just For Laughs. I de 1 timma långa programmen får tittarna följa med Al när han besöker några av de absolut största inom stand up och humor. Al gör både nedslag bland alla de shower den tre veckor långa festivalen bjöd på, samt träffar de största namnen backstage

I am on for about 3 minutes of each show , I hope you love it 

Tack and I will have news next week of the FIKA TOUR , we are going from Kiruna to Kristianstad , from Umea to Malmo . So excited to tell you the details of this 30 plus date FIKA TOUR 2012 

AL x

Hope all is well in your world 

As you can see Ive got more and more shows getting added , I have just toured the UK , I did 6 shows and the audiences and the gigs were great to do . 

Ive got the FIKA TOUR of Sverige in 2012 and I will be announcing loads of dates in about 2 weeks  and if you live in a smaller city , town or village , THE show might be coming right to you . We really are going to be going to remote Sverige places and I cannot wait , it will be awesome 

Dont forget so far these are the only  2 dates  onsale for next year in STOCKHOLM : TICKETS

See you soon I hope , Puss Puss 

Really excited about this night , 2 shows in Stockholm and I am the host of both

One  at 18.00 and the other at  20.00 please get your tickets here 

"one of the funniest and most unique hours you're likely to see this year" 

http://www.timeout.com/london/comedy/event/239719/the-al-pitcher-picture-show-tour-of-the-world

I am doing my Picture Show in London , Sheffield and Chester 

I would love if you came along , buy tickets for 

London on October 20th HERE

Sheffield on October 21 and 22 Please call 0845 251 9017 ( Old Skool in Yorkshire)  

Chester on October 23 HERE

Ive kept all the ticket prices under £10 so more people will come , if you havent seen my Picture show , I wander the streets where I am doing it  on the day of the show and take photos and along with some of my favourites from past shows, I do the show that very night with/about and of course with the help of the audiences involvement 

I love doing the show and i hope you will come see it 

take care 

Al 

TACK to everyone who has helped me win this award , I love doing shows and even better I love living here . See you at a show soon .

Tack also to the Svenska Standup Galan Jury  for giving me the award , 

FIKA tour will be running all through Sverige in 2012 , but if its Stockholm , the dates are March 28 and 29 and you can get tickets here 

 Also please admire my inabilty to nail something on the wall 

Due to unforeseen circumstances I wont be appearing at Leeds and Reading Festivals this weekend , Aug 26th and 27th , Im really sorry but I will make it up to UK folk with shows in London , Sheffield and Chester in October. Hopefully my next news will be better news

take care

al x 

Have you got a printer and you just want to use it ?   Why not spend your summer creating a paper me ? Just copy and drag onto your desktop and Print and build 

I am delighted and hopeful that you will comment and like this and share it too ,

AND...yes I do have a fat face but please send me a photo of paper me wherever you put me and with whoever next to me , hopefully it be ye , send it to my facebook or twitter page and prizes will be yours .

( prize does not include paper me ) 

For more awesome paper people go to http://weepaperpeople.blogspot.com/

I am trying to tan but due to my ginger outlook , I am mainly indoors .

I have loads of shows coming up before the end of the year , I will be up dating all new  shows and ticket details in the 2nd week of August 

My Fika Tour shows at Sodra teatern in Stockholm on March 28 and 29  are onsale and tickets are selling , so please come along and lets do the Fika thing , Ticket buying details are in Shows 

Also have giveaways and some fun stuff to send you , very soon 

I am flying to Montreal to record a TV show for Comedy Central at The Just for Laughs festival July 26-Aug 1  , I will be showing you a look at the worlds most  important comedy festival  , with interviews and I hope to get a 5 minute spot on some stage somewhere in Montreal , I will have details of when its broadcast in Sverige , probably will be this autumn -winter time 

Thats all for now , but please follow me on twitter - @thealpitcher  or on Facebook , I have daily photo blog too which I hope brightens up your day 

see you at a show i hope very soon 

Saturday July 23 , Im doing my Picture Show , ticket details on your right ----->

I am doing a photo blog , I am showing old , new and true photos from my show, travels and life 

Please take a look at it

http://alpitcherdaily.blogspot.com

.

Im doing 30 mins at Reading Festival on August 26th and Leeds August 27th 

Ticket details in SHOWS 

Al Pitcher Interview

Al Pitcher is a New-Zealand born, London-originating-from Sweden resident, and more importantly, a professional humourist. Having won more comedy awards than most people could even conceive of, he’s increasingly becoming an international success, beloved everywhere he goes. Despite this, however, he’s still remarkably grounded (and just plain nice), as you can see from this interview, in which we talk about roots, first times, and reaching goals.

The Humourdor: How did you get started in comedy?

Al Pitcher: I came over to London from New Zealand, I had no ambition to get into comedy at all, I went to an open mike night in North London and it blew me away, it had about 47 acts on, I didn’t know this scene existed. I thought Bill Cosby and Billy Connolly were the only comedians in the world. it was a massive moment.

H: What was your first gig like?

AP: After seeing that first comedy night, I thought I would love to give it a crack, again with no expectations. I booked a 5 minute spot at the Purple Turtle Bar in Islington, London. I was so nervous, the actual date of the gig was 6 months after the booking, so there was a massive internal build up. I turned up for the 8pm start, at 5 pm, I sat in a little park, for 3 hours, almost suicidal with fear. I considered leaving about 12 times. I went in all naive and smiley, I was just pointed to a corner to wait, the audience was a bit pissed, I got up, no laughs at all, nothing, just a few awkward murmurs. The stage was a door on some beer crates, I went to reach for the microphone stand and I slipped, nearly sliding off the horizontal door, big laugh, well 8 people laughed. I felt like a superstar, I forgot all about the preceding 4 minutes of silence. In my head I had smashed the gig with slapstick. I was on the underground afterwards looking people in the eyes and pleading “ask me what I did tonight, ask me”.

H: How would you describe your particular brand of comedy to someone who had never heard of you?

AP: I try to make every show a special moment, I always work with interaction from the audience. I cringe when comics slam hecklers; I think its funnier to work with them. I hope if someone comes to see me,its unique to that room, that night and that audience …oh and funny.

H: How has your act developed since you first started?

AP: I didn’t improvise at all when I started, it was a monologue style of comedy. I think I found my voice when I forgot about trying to be a comedian and just getting up there and trying to be myself more (not totally, that would be dull). I tried character comedy as well: I did a Steve Irwin style character for 6 months, it was horrific. It was a lecture about crocodiles coming through the London underground and killing people. Comics loved it- audiences did not . My girlfriend at the time who is now my wife brought her 5 best friends from her homeland Sweden to a show once, they saw me to utter silence, wrestling a blow up crocodile accompanied to Ricky Martins Livin’ la Vida Loca. Mate that was a low point.

H: How do you come up with new material?

AP: I used to try and write every day, because that’s what you are told and expected to do, but I don’t really do that any more. I find that if you try to do fun things, keep your mind alert and get out of the house you can then go onstage and talk about your day. I now do a show called the Al Pitcher: Picture Show(see what I’ve done there) where I go into the city of the place I’m playing during the day, take photos and then do the show about those pictures that night, using a projector. This has been a massive breakthrough for me: as well as a number of awards (which was a boost), its really helped my improvising style and has proven a great way of garnering more material.

H: Is there anything a comedian shouldn’t joke about?

AP: I think its easy to be negative on most subjects, the majority of the so called “edgy comics” have about 5 topics: cancer, rape, paedophiles, abortion and racism. They seem to pick from these, like a smorgasbord of shock. The audience are sometimes shocked, but after 20 minutes of the same joke (but with different variations), I just zone out. One hack line is to ask “what do you want? Politics or Filth?” The audience are always persuaded to want filth. One day I just hope the audience shout out politics. Personally, I really love seeing a positive comic; a storyteller or a creative comedian who doesn’t rely on the 5 so called taboo subjects.

H: Is Comedy Art?

AP: In the right hands it can be, I find some comics try to do anti-comedy to make their stuff more artistic. Comedy has to be careful though as it really is a big old business now. I’m not jumping on the bandwagon I hope , but I live in Sweden and I’m looking from afar , So much stand up on TV , then those comedians after a  5 minute spot on a show go out on tour . So many tour shows and the comedy club experience will get squeezed out , this is the bread and butter of comedy and gets audiences loving the genre. Its now a real career comedy, comics don’t look at Edinburgh or working all the clubs they look at a TV presenting or a TV spot as the way through . I say fuck all that , do it for the love of it and see what happens , its a great life  as a comic, too much ambition destroys it in my eyes.

H:Are there any comedians/writers/TV shows you’re particularly fond of, or feel are under-appreciated?

AP: Phil Kay is my favourite comic in the world, he tries to create every time he is onstage. I’ve seen him die and die, but I’ve also seen him set up the greatest scenarios and improvise the greatest comedy nuggets. Daniel Kitson is someone I know well and I can only admire him. He really is one of the best and his career choices have to be applauded. The guy had his show in Edinburgh at 10 am, he’s either struggling with sleep or he knows just how good he is to do that and still get an audience.

I spoke about Shock comedy. I think in the right hands it can be great, Stewart Lee can do that to me, a punchline from nowhere.

H:Who makes you laugh?

AP: I’ve just become a Dad. Its blown me away and I have laughed like I’ve never laughed before. He’s going to speak Swedish in a few years- that could make the relationship a tad tense, when I’m shouting “speak English for gods sake”.

H:If you weren’t in comedy, what would you be doing?

AP: I used to write radio ads, I didn’t really like it that much. I discovered pretty early on that it was quantity rather that quality that they wanted. I used to write the ads and the client would bully me and say “No, I don’t want the professional voice person voicing it , I will do it myself”. It was horrific, the campaign would be a disaster and nobody really pointed the finger at the butcher who screamed and improvised his own ad about pork chops, they would say to me, “WHY didn’t the voice-over guy do it?!”

H:Are there any upcoming projects you could tell us about?

AP: I’m living in Sweden and doing loads of things here. I have a big tour planned for here next year, it will be exciting. I hope to come over to the UK and continue to do picture shows but I’m just so busy in Sweden now. I’ve also visited Australia and NZ loads so I must go back there. There’s also a book of my picture show coming out next year, I will send The Humordor a copy when its done (Ed-we thought about editing out this last line but we’d like to make it clear we are always open to free gifts).

H: Do you have a career goal that you are yet to reach?

AP: No, mate, I really cant believe I do this. Any comedian who says that comedy is hard work is having a laugh. I’ve worked on building sites, I’ve even worked in a bottle factory; standing there, making sure the bottles were full enough. I came back on the Monday, they said nobody ever returned to the job on a Monday. Comedy is a brilliant life, I’m still waiting for the tap on the shoulder to tell me “it’s all a scam, you’re not funny at all, Pitcher”.