...and 31 more gigs

Eddie Izzard is to run a marathon every day in January – with a gig every night.

But he won’t be going anywhere: the runs will be on a treadmill and each gig will be streamed from the Riverside Studios in Hammersmith, West London.

A limited number of physical tickets will also be available for each show for bubbles of two or four. Book here.

The hour-long shows, entitled Still Standing, will comprise a collection of some of his best-known material from almost four decades in stand-up, ‘remixed for 2021.

However, the ardent europhile will theme each run will be around a different European city, and after the marathon in honour of Berlin on January 23 he will be performing his show Wunderbar in German, and on the 28th he’ll be doing it in French to hail Paris.

Izzard has entitled his effort Make Humanity Great Again: A Run For Hope, and will be raising money for charity. Donations can be made here.

Earlier this year, pre-lockdown, the comedian raised  £140,000 running 29 marathons all over Europe. In 2016 he  ran 27 marathons in 27 days across South Africa as a tribute to Nelson Mandela, raising £2.6million for Sport Relief. And in 2009 he ran 43 marathons in 51 days through the UK, raising £1.8million.

Izzard will also be reading Great Expectations by Charles Dickens at Riverside Studios from December 21 to 23, provided London is not plunged into Tier 3 restrictions. These preview performances have sold out.

Here’s a trailer for A Run For Hope:

Published: 11 Dec 2020