Al Murray

Al Murray

Murray's grandfather Sir Ralph Murray was a diplomat, working at the Political< Warfare Establishment propaganda unit. And his great-great-great-grandfather was William Makepeace Thackeray.

Al wread modern history at St Edmund Hall, Oxford, where he started performing comedy.

His break came in 1994, when he was invited compere in Harry Hill's Edinburgh show Pub Internationale, and created the pub landlord character.

Nominated for the Perrier more often than anyone else, Murray was ruled out the running in 1999 for being 'too popular', until organisers relented. He was also nominated for best theatre tour in the 2008 Chortle awards.

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Keith Lemon, Russell Kane and Al Murray shows all dropped

Broadcasters have 'no plans' for more

Shopping With Keith Lemon, Evil Genius With Russell Kane and Al Murray's Why Does Everyone Hate have all been dropped by their broadcasters.

The Keith Lemon show launched on ITV2 in 2019 and featured Leigh Francis’s character interviewing celebrities as they shop. Jimmy Carr, Rob Beckett, Katherine Ryan and Judi Love were among those who took part in the 34 episodes.

An ITV spokesperson said: ‘There are no current plans for a new series but the show will continue to have a regular presence across both ITV2 and ITVX with repeat programming.’

The news comes two years after Keith Lemon’s Celebrity Juice  was axed by ITV2.

Meanwhile ,Sky History has dropped its two comedian-fronted shows. A spokesperson for the channel told the British Comedy Guide: ‘We don't currently have a plan to recommission those shows’.

Evil Genius – an adaptation of Kane's long-running Radio 4 podcast reassessing the reputations of historical figures – ran for just five episodes late last year.

And Murray made three series of his Why Does Everyone Hate…: Why Does Everyone Hate The English? in 2018 followed by Why Do The Brits Win Every War? and Why Does Everyone Hate The British Empire?

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Thanks for reading. If you find Chortle’s coverage of the comedy scene useful or interesting, please consider supporting us with a monthly or one-off ko-fi donation.
Any money you contribute will directly fund more reviews, interviews and features – the sort of in-depth coverage that is increasingly difficult to fund from ever-squeezed advertising income, but which we think the UK’s vibrant comedy scene deserves.

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Published: 6 Jun 2024

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Agent

We do not currently hold contact details for Al Murray's agent. If you are a comic or agent wanting your details to appear here, for a one-off fee of £59, email steve@chortle.co.uk.

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