Eddie Izzard: Stripped

So, yeah? as a warm up to the UK leg of his Stripped European Tour 2009 Eddie Izzard seemed to take drastic action by visiting practically every city on foot. Not only on foot, but at a canter, as the 47-year-old comedian usually known for his penchant for high-heels donned a pair of trainers and ran a staggering 43 marathons in 51 days for Sport Relief. Eating up 1,105 miles of tarmac in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland should have given Izzard ample time to reflect over new material for his upcoming show, which comes to London in December for three dates at Wembley Arena sandwiched by a couple of nights at The O2 Arena. Rambling, whimsical, intelligent, surreal - these are a few words that describe Izzard's unique style of unscripted stream-of-consciousness stand-up, which jumps between topics and meanders through history via a series of nonsensical detours and curious tangents. At his very best, few comics come even close to keeping pace with Izzard, whose return to the big stage comes after six years off the road. In case you're wondering, the title is so because Izzard is in normal blokey mode, stripped of his trademark female attire and make-up. "A comic genius. Eddie has become entertainment incarnate," says The Telegraph.