(Roadshow)

I don’t think I’m necessarily straining the friendship to imagine you may not have heard of Russell Brand. I know him from his roles in the Judd Apatow films, Forgetting Sarah Marshall and Get Him To The Greek, and others might be familiar with him for the controversy he boiled up with his radio show prank calls, especially the one in which he referred to screwing Manuel’s granddaughter. But Brand has been whoring around his particular style of comedy for quite a few years now in the UK, and after you’ve seen these DVDs, you’ll understand that the Brand brand carries a certain level of notoriety.

In fact, if you know nothing about the man and you don’t mind a little grubby humour, I recommend you watch the extras before you watch Brand’s live performances so you can come to appreciate the man behind the Brand. The lanky lunatic concedes that his life has two public facets: embarrassing himself; and then telling stories about embarrassing himself. And in the extras, including radio shows, old MTV footage, and interviews, it’s obvious that Brand’s junkie days were something of an acquired taste. That’s not to say his sober comedy isn’t so, for Brand pretty much has the market cornered in terms of smut and filth, but there’s more to him than tits and arse humour.

Once you dig a little deeper than the intricate sex and wanking tips and wild rumour-dispelling, there’s a sophisticated intellect holding the flaps of its trenchcoat wide for all to see. If you’re not averse to slumming it in the gutters outside the Louvre or the Smithsonian, you should consider opening up Russell’s Boxy Woxy.

****

TIM MILFULL

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