Gervais announces his first tour

Ricky Gervais has announced his first national stand-up tour.

The Office star is to play just 12 dates in six cities in April.

He has previously said he didn't want to tour because he was too lazy to stray too far from home ­ and his style didn't suit big theatres.

Gervais's Christmas DVD, Animals, was shot in Bloomsbury Theatre, the closest venue to his London home.

He said: "Most comedians slog around the country for fifteen years playing to students, drunks and even women, in grotty venues, with the vague hope that someone will give them their own TV show. I'm doing it the other way round.

"Obviously, I decided to do these gigs (some in the North) before I won the Golden Globes and I'm told, annoyingly, that I am legally obliged to at least turn up. Luckily the plane journey back from Los Angeles (The City of Angels) is ten hours, so there was plenty of time to write a brand new show and watch the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

"In my show I will be doing my usual brand of brilliant, irreverent yet observational comedy, covering such universal subjects as meeting Jack Nicholson, driving around in limo's and not putting my hand in my pocket once."

The tour visits Newcastle, Birmingham, York, Oxford Glasgow and Manchester. For full dates, click here.

Published: 24 Feb 2004