Sir Lenny Henry is ready to make us laugh: 50 years from New Faces win, superstar is back to stand-up

Former Spencers Wood resident Lenny Henry is preparing to go back to his roots with an all-new stand-up comedy show.

Back when he was a teenager, he was making people life in the Birmingham suburb of Dudley, making regular appearances at the Working Men’s Club.

When he was 16, he was persuaded to take part in the ITV talent search New Faces ’75: such was his talent that he won.

That victory was the launch of an incredible career.

First, he appeared in the ITV Midlands Saturday morning children’s show Tiswas, where his zany impersonations of television personalities such as David Bellamy and Trevor McDonald was an important part of the anarachic show. He also aided the Phantom Pie Flinger, threw buckets of water over guests, and took part in all manner of skits and silliness.

From there, he teamed up with Tracy Ullman and David Copperfield to front the sketch show Three of a Kind, before launching his own Lenny Henry Show on BBC1.

MORE CHEESELOGS: John Mckay’s Reactor coming to Reading’s Face Bar this June

Originally a sketch show, he pivoted into the world of sitcom as he played pirate radio DJ Delbert Wilkins in a hilarious game of cat and mouse against the authorities.

And Lenny Henry was also one of the pioneers who launched Comic Relief, the fundraising telethon that encouraged people to do something funny for money.

Since his 1980s stardom, he has also turned to some serious roles, including a critically acclaimed production of Othello, and starred in the comedy drama Chef!

More recently, Lenny Henry appeared in the Amazon Prime adaptation of The Lord of the Rings, and guested in Doctor Who. He has also been the face of hotel chain Premier Inn, and hid his face for the second series of The Masked Singer.

Lenny Henry is also a talented writer, creating Danny and the Human Zoo in 2015. This was a fictionalised retelling of his childhood and saw him play Samson Fearon, a character based on his own father.

He also co-wrote Three Little Birds, which was based on his mother’s experiences of coming to the UK.

He was knighted in 2015 for his services to drama and charity, while he has also served as chancellor of Birmingham University, while earlier this year he was made a Freeman of the City of London.

When can I see Lenny Henry’s new stand-up show?

Lenny Henry isn’t quite ready for people to see his new show just yet, so he is bringing a Work In Progress show to Maidenhead’s Norden Farm later this month.

He’s trying out brand new material the way the young guns do it: live, loose and dangerously funny.

Before his new tour, there’s just you, Lenny and the glorious chaos of comedy in the making as he build his hilarious new show from scratch.

There are three performances:

Tuesday, May 27, Wednesday, May 28, and Thursday, May 29. The first two take place at 8pm and both have sold out.

The final date starts at noon, and some tickets are still available at £19.50.

This show is suitable for people aged 16 upwards.

Tickets are available from the Box Office on 01628 788997 or online at https://norden.farm/events/lenny-henry-work-in-progress