Best known as a pun gent for the likes of Miranda, Not Going Out and Top Gear, Guildford comedian Paul Kerensa meets Matthew Williams to discuss stand-up comedy, caffeine inspiration and his brand new book
IF you’ve ever spotted a quietly spoken, bespectacled gentleman sat in the corner of Guildford train station’s Costa Coffee jotting down thoughts with a childish twinkle in his eye, then chances are you were in the presence of Paul Kerensa.
Best known as the razor wit who adds the sharp edges to the likes of Miranda, Not Going Out and Top Gear, recently he’s been tackling a subject that is likely to offend many. Well, at least pre-December.
You see, while the rest of us, have been moving on with our lives in a desperate attempt to avoid mince pies, mulled wine and carols, he’s launched himself into the deepest darkest recesses of Santa’s sack in search of, well, the biography of Christmas. To rub it in for all us Scrooges, he’s then published Hark! in autumn. Bah Humbug!
“What can I say, I really love Christmas,” he laughs. “Admittedly the book is a lot bigger than I thought it was going to be when I started but it was like pulling on the thread of, well, a Christmas jumper. You’re looking to write just one page about Dickens but then suddenly you’ve got to mention that most of his first Christmases were snowy, which inspired why we have our white Christmas cliché… that leads onto a mini-Ice Age… then you find out that the cosy family Christmas idyll was probably started by Washington Irving rather than Dickens – and he’s the guy who invented Gotham… well how on earth did Batman get involved with Christmas suddenly…?! Before you know it, you’re not sure what to leave out. I’m not a historian; I’m a storian. I just love stories.”
Denne historien er fra November 2017-utgaven av Surrey Life.
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Denne historien er fra November 2017-utgaven av Surrey Life.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
The House That Rocks
Transforming an impressive, seven-bedroom Victorian property in Dorking wasn’t without its challenges, but the result is a stunning family home that has had the interiors world raving
REMEDY FOR SUCCESS
Surrey’s Tracy Borman discusses the return of her heroine healer in the final book of her best-selling fictional trilogy
Love Celia
Actress Celia Imrie has travelled the world for work and leisure but wherever she goes there is a part of her which is forever Surrey
EXHIBITION OF THE MONTH
Art & Action: Making Change in Victorian Britain at Watts Gallery – Artists’ Village in Compton focuses on the Victorian roots of art activism
Electric dreams
The Range Rover plug-in hybrid brings silent electric motoring to this iconic luxury car
THE OPEN ROAD
Chris Pickering rounds up some of the best drives in Surrey
TOWN AND COUNTRY: Oxted & Limpsfield
With the North Downs looming nearby and glorious countryside surrounding it, Oxted is a town with real “escape from London” appeal and character, while nearby Limpsfield has a superb village vibe with its own community-run pub
Artist to the stars
Known as ‘The Face of Modern British Impressionism’, Mickleham-based Sherree Valentine Daines is celebrating four decades at the forefront of her field
A RIGHT ROYAL WELCOME
The Signet Collection’s inaugural hotel project is a reimagining of a former royal guest house, situated directly opposite Hampton Court Palace
TOWN AND COUNTRY: Godalming & Hascombe
On the banks of the River Wey, Godalming is a watercolour pretty town surrounded by pristine countryside and in-demand rural villages, such as Hascombe