Paddy wants you to join him on tour...

8:19am Thursday 17th April 2008

Paddy McGuinness is hitting the road - and he wants you to join him.

The star of Phoenix Nights and Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere is seeking a support act for his Plus You Live! tour and wants Bradford people to send him footage of their entertainment skills.

"It can be anything - dancing, telling jokes, juggling, magic, fire-eating," says Paddy. "I'll be choosing three acts for each night, they'll travel around with me to venues in their area. Then I'll select a winner out of all the entries nationwide. The winner gets £2,000 and will appear in the live recording of my new DVD which will be released at Christmas. "I just want to give acts chance to show what they can do. I do gigs at working men's clubs and corporate events and see loads of cracking acts that never get chance to find success. There's no real channel for variety acts anymore."

It brings to mind the closing scenes of Phoenix Nights when Brian Potter and his staff sit through acts auditioning to be turns,' from an ancient couple creaking through a salsa to a woman doing unmentionable things with ping-pong balls. Does Paddy hope for something similar from his guest support hopefuls?

"Anything goes," he says. "They need to send a DVD showing their act. I've had about 200 entries so far and a lot have been singers. I'm not saying I don't want anymore singers, but bear in mind that's going to be more competitive."

So is Paddy going all Simon Cowell on us? "Not at all," he smiles. "There's no audience voting. I'll go on audience reaction but there'll be no Clap-o-meter.

"A lot of people from the industry come to my gigs so it's a chance for people to impress them too."

Paddy's tour starts this summer and hits Bradford in October. "The closing date is mid-May. We need to get moving because people may need to take time off work so they can come on the road with me," he says.

Appearing at a Paddy McGuinness gig could be quite a springboard for the successful support acts. His first UK tour, The Dark Side, was the fastest-selling stand-up tour of 2006. It sold out in Bradford within days. His debut live DVD was No 1 in the comedy DVD charts.

"It's easy to get on the road every year but I wanted a break. I've done telly and some writing, now it feels good to be getting back out there," he says. "I talk about stuff we can all relate to, there's nothing heavy. People have enough trouble in their lives, they just want to have a laugh."

Bolton-born Paddy started out in stand-up but it wasn't exactly a calling. "I didn't really enjoy it in the early days," he says. "It was a way of earning thirty quid here and there. I got really nervous, I'd stand there in front of noisy crowds who didn't know me from Adam thinking Why am I putting myself through this?' "It's a lot easier now I'm more well-known, I don't need to prove myself."

Paddy was a labourer, lifeguard and fitness instructor before comedy success kicked in. He continued with the day jobs after the first series of Phoenix Nights. It was only when life-long friend Peter Kay persuaded him to give showbiz a go full-time that Paddy went for it.

"I'd worked right from school," he says. "That life experience helps with comedy material. I'm always writing, I make notes everywhere. I wrote an E4 comedy short, The Unknown Stuntman, and I'd like to do more."

Paddy's debut TV appearance was in Channel 4's The Comedy Lab, a series of six one-off comedies. After playing work-shy Terry in Peter Kay's The Services he landed the role he made his own; Paddy the lothario club doorman in That Peter Kay Thing. He appeared in an episode called The Club, leading to hit sitcom Phoenix Nights.

"Peter wrote Paddy with me in mind and I added bits," says Paddy. "I can't believe how much he's come on since The Club. He was a lot thinner then!" Paddy and Peter co-wrote the spin-off Max and Paddy's Road To Nowhere then came Max and Paddy's Power of Two, featuring them performing a work-out, which became the fastest-selling fitness video ever.

"People like them because they're life's losers, like Del Boy and Rodney or Steptoe and Son," says Paddy. "I'd be up for it if Peter wrote anymore. My bank manager would be happy too!"

He added: "Nobody has ever said there's not going to be any more Phoenix Nights. We've all been mates for a long time and we still go out together. Everyone has gone on to do pretty well."

Paddy is a regular on TV shows like Eight Out of Ten Cats and Law of the Playground and was a guest presenter on the Paul O'Grady Show. He recently appeared in Leigh Francis comedy Keith Lemon's Very Brilliant World Tour.

He groans at the mention of a TV appearance he'd rather forget. Last year he and Peter Kay appeared on Celebrity Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? and Paddy couldn't remember who won the 2006 World Cup final.

"You sit in that chair opposite Tarrant and your mind plays tricks," he says. "All along I'd said to to Peter, Anything to do with sport, I'm your man.' But that final was so boring, Zidane's head-butt was the only thing anyone remembers. I kept thinking It was Italy - or was it?' It's the kind of thing that could keep you awake at night."

• Paddy McGuinness Plus You is at the Victoria Theatre, Halifax, on October 1 (ring 01422 351158); Wakefield Theatre on October 2 (01924 211311); St George's Hall, Bradford, on October 11 (01274 432000); Harrogate Centre on December 6 (0845 1308840) and Leeds Grand on December 7 (0870 1214901).
  
  

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