{{Infobox actor
| image = RickyGervaisBAFTA07.jpg caption = Gervais at the 2007 BAFTAs.
| birthdate = birthplace = Reading, England occupation = stand-up, television,
| film, radio, author nationality = British yearsactive = 1983-present
| domesticpartner = Jane Fallon website = http://www.rickygervais.com/
| emmyawards = '[[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series|Outstanding
| Comedy Series]]'
2006 [[The Office (US TV series)|The Office]]

| '[[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor - Comedy Series|Outstanding
| Lead Actor - Comedy Series]]'
2007 [[Extras (TV series)|Extras]]
| goldenglobeawards = '[[Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor In
| A Television Series - Musical Or Comedy|Best Actor - Musical or Comedy
| Series]]'
2004 [[The Office (UK TV series)|The Office]]
'[[Golden
| Globe Award for Best Television Series - Musical/Comedy|Best Series - Musical
| or Comedy]]'
2004 [[Extras (TV series)|Extras]]
'[[Golden Globe Award
| for Best Television Series - Musical/Comedy|Best Series - Musical or
| Comedy]]'
2008 [[The Office (US TV series)|The Office]] baftaawards = 'Best
| Comedy Performance'
2002 [[The Office (UK TV series)|The Office]]
2003
| The Office
2004 The Office
2007 [[Extras (TV series)|Extras]]

| 'Situation Comedy Award'
2002 [[The Office (UK TV series)|The
| Office]]
2003 The Office
2004 The Office
}} 'Ricky Dene Gervais' (; born 25 June 1961) is an English actor, comedian,
author, director, producer and former pop musician. Gervais achieved mainstream
fame with his ground-breaking television series [[The Office (UK TV series)|The
Office]] and the subsequent series [[Extras (TV series)|Extras]], both of which
he co-wrote and co-directed with friend and collaborator, Stephen Merchant.
Besides writing and directing the shows, Gervais also played the lead roles of
David Brent in The Office and Andy Millman in Extras. Gervais has also appeared
in several Hollywood films, including [[For Your Consideration (film)|For Your
Consideration]], [[Stardust (2007 film)|Stardust]], [[Night at the Museum]] and
[[Ghost Town (film)|Ghost Town]], in which he assumes the leading role.

Gervais has performed on three sell-out stand-up comedy tours, wrote the best-
selling [[Flanimals]] book series, and starred with Merchant and Karl Pilkington
in his podcast [[The Ricky Gervais Show]]. He has accumulated a multitude of
awards and honours throughout his career, including seven BAFTA Awards, four
British Comedy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, two Emmy Awards and the 2006
Rose d'Or, as well as a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination.

Early life Gervais, along with siblings Larry, Marsha, and Bob, was born and
raised in the suburb of Whitley in Reading, Berkshire. Gervais's father Jerry, a
Franco-Ontarian, emigrated while on foreign duty during the Second World War
from London, Ontario, Canada. Jerry met Gervais's mother, Eva, during a
blackout,The Independent (2005) -- "His father, Jerry, was a French-
Canadian ... soldier stationed here during the war. He met Eva, the comedian's
mother, during a blackout and they settled in Reading." and they settled
in Whitley.

During Xfm London's [[The Ricky Gervais Show]] and in further newspaper
interviews with The Independent, Gervais noted that he believes his birth was
unplanned due to the age difference between his youngest sibling and himself.
During one interview with the Independent, Gervais tells the author that even
his mother admitted his birth was unplanned.The Independent (2005) --
"Ricky Gervais was born 44 years ago, a mistake. "My mum told me that," he says.
"She went 'You was an accident'. I went 'Cheers!' Ha ha! A lot of honesty in my
family"

Gervais has stated that his upbringing and childhood were stable and trauma-
free, with a high level of honesty and openness between his family members. He
described it as "much like The Waltons" made fun of each other.Independent
(2005). -- "The youngest, by some way, of four brothers, his childhood was trauma-
free. Like The Waltons, he says, "If the Waltons took the piss out of each
other. You had to be able to answer back." The first time he did, he got a laugh
and, his family reasoned, "He'll be alright.""

Gervais began his secondary education at Ashmead School, before moving on to
University College London in 1979. While there, he studied Biology, and later
changed to Philosophy, in which he received an .[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/ricky-gervais-a-lucky-man-
lurks-behind-david-brent--but-just-who-is-he-611664.html Ricky Gervais: A lucky
man lurks behind David Brent - but just who is he?] It was during his time
at UCL that he met Jane Fallon.

Personal life Gervais lives in Hampstead, London with his partner of 25 years,
British television producer and best-selling author Jane Fallon. He has a pet
cat, named Ollie (given to him by Jonathan Ross), and had a now deceased
salamander named Tel.[http://www.rickygervais.com/gqapr06.php Ricky
Gervais... Obviously]

Watching wildlife programmes as a child affected Gervais's understanding of
cruelty towards animals. He is supportive of a declaration for animal rights, as
well as the WSPA (an animal welfare organisation), and is against fox-hunting
and bull fighting.[http://www.metro.co.uk/fame/interviews/article.html?in_-
article_id=35340&in_page_id=11 60 SECONDS: Ricky Gervais | Metro.co.uk] He has also written to PM Gordon Brown urging him to
implement a fur-free policy at the Ministry of Defence, as Gervais is against
the use of real Canadian black bear fur in the Bearskins used by the Foot Guard-
s.[http://getactive.peta.org/campaign/ricky_gervais_bearskins?qp_source=pu-
kfbmsg PETA]

Ricky Gervais says he was an atheist by the age of ten.[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-463974/Gervais-I-say-
sorry-vicar-joking-mothers-funeral.html Gervais: I had to say sorry to vicar for
joking at my mother's funeral] by James Tapper, Daily Mail (UK). 25 June
2007 In 2007 he told Kirsty Young on Desert Island Discs, "I'm an atheist-
".[http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/desertislanddiscs_20070624.shtml BBC
Radio 4 - Factual - Desert Island Discs - Ricky Gervais] In June 2008 he
became an Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society.

He cannot drive, as stated in his radio show as well as in the DVD commentaries
to The Office and Politics. He has a second-floor office on Tottenham Court
Road, London, where he records his podcasts with Stephen Merchant and Karl
Pilkington.[http://www.rickygervais.com/pilkington_gu_guide.php Ricky
Gervais... Obviously]

A gang stole £200,000 from his bank account by pasting a picture of him from
his Office DVD onto a dead man's passport and using an insider from the bank to
transfer the funds. When they tried to use the money to buy gold, they were
arrested. They were sentenced to between two and two and a half years in
prison.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4376583.stm BBC NEWS |
England | London | Gervais account fraudsters jailed] and is a frequent guest on his show,
[[The Daily Show]].

Career Music In his final year in 1983 as a student at UCL, Gervais and his
friend Bill Macrae formed a pop duo, Seona Dancing (named after a friend and
fellow student Seona Myerscough),Thomas, S., et al. (1983). and they
were signed by record label London Records. London Records released two of their
singles: "More to Lose" and "Bitter Heart". The singles failed to break the top
40, charting at positions 117 and 70 of the UK singles charts
respectively.The Independent (2005). -- "Aged 21, he was in a band himself,
new romantics Seona Dancing. Their singles reached 117 and 70. The video for
one, "Bitter Heart", was set in a blacksmith's."

A year later, the single "More to Lose" was re-released in Manila as "Medium" by
"Fade". The single gained a following by Filipino teenagers after being played
by a local DJ on station DWRT-FM (99.5).

He was briefly the manager of the band Suede and a Queen tribute band.

Radio Gervais subsequently worked as an events manager for the University of
London Union (ULU),The Observer (2005) -- "'Not at all,' he says. 'When I
was working at ULU I never thought, "This is shit" or "The money is bad." I
thought: "This is quite a good job." I suppose if all this had not come along I
might now have been a 43-year-old entertainments manager. But that never worried
me at the time." where he continued working until he was offered, and
accepted, a similar job as "head of speech" at Xfm London.The Observer
(2005) -- "Instead of a stand-up career, Gervais moved from ULU to a job as head
of speech at the alternative radio station Xfm."

Gervais, needing an assistant, interviewed the first person whose [[curriculum
vitae]] he saw. The CV belonged to Stephen Merchant. During the interview at a
local pub, Gervais asked Merchant to do "all the boring stuff" due to his
experience in media studies while Gervais
"mess[ed] around". Merchant agreed.The
Observer (2006). -- "Merchants was his deputy. Instead of worrying too much
about being heads of speech, they mostly worked on little routines. Merchant was
sometimes obliged to wheel his boss around the office in his executive chair. 'I
remember going out for a drink with Steve early on,' Gervais says. 'I said to
him, "You've done media studies, you can do all the boring stuff, all the
filing, I'll mess around." He said: "OK." And that was that." In 1996 he
was made redundant when the station was taken over by the Capital Radio group.

Gervais was music adviser for the popular 1996-1997 BBC drama [[This Life]],
which was being produced by his girlfriend Jane Fallon. He and Merchant also
contributed sketches to BBC Radio 1's The Breezeblock in 1999 and 2000.

Following the first season of [[The Office (UK TV series)|The Office]], Gervais
and Merchant returned to Xfm in November 2001 for a Saturday radio show. The
show ran intermittently until January 2004 with breaks of 1-3 months between new
shows. This was their first time working with Karl Pilkington. Pilkington
produced the shows and later collaborated with them on their series of podcasts.

Gervais then took 29 months off to work on his new television show Extras, write
[[flanimals]], and perform his live show Politics.

He returned to the airwaves on 28 May 2005 to host the show once again with
Pilkington and Merchant. He was also heard on BBC Radio 2 during Christmas 2005,
sitting in for Jonathan Ross for two weeks.

=Podcast=


On 5 December 2005, [[Guardian Unlimited]] began offering the first of twelve
free weekly podcasts featuring Gervais, Merchant and Pilkington. Throughout
January and February 2006, the podcast was consistently ranked the number one
podcast in the world; it appeared in the 2007 Guinness World Record for the
world's most downloaded podcast, having gained an average of 261,670 downloads
per episode during its first
month.[http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,,1703591,00.html Gervais
podcast in the record books | Guardian, The (London)] On 20 February 2006,
after the conclusion of the twelve-podcast series, it was announced that all
future episodes would be available from Audible.com at a "nominal fee" (later
these had to be called audiobooks in accordance with iTunes policy). Two more
series of six podcasts each were released between February and September 2006.

In late 2006, three more free podcasts were released. Together called "The
Podfather Trilogy", these debuted at Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas,
respectively known by Ricky and Steve as "The Fourth season". In October 2007,
another free full-length podcast was released through iTunes; this podcast was
originally given out for free during a performance of Gervais's Fame tour in
London. On 25 November 2007, Gervais, Merchant, and Pilkington released another
free full-length podcast which lasted just over an hour.

In August 2008, Gervais, Merchant and Pilkington recorded its fifth season of
audiobooks totalling 4 chapters which were released on the 16th September.

Television

Gervais has contributed to the BAFTA winning The Sketch Show (ITV) penning
several sketches. His mainstream TV debut came in September 1998 as part of
Channel 4's "Comedy Lab" series of pilots. His one-off show, [[Golden Years (TV
programme)|Golden Years]], focussed on a David Bowie-obsessed character called
Clive Meadows. He then came to much wider national attention with an obnoxious,
cutting persona featured in a topical slot which replaced Ali G's segments on
the satirical Channel 4 comedy programme [[The 11 O'Clock Show]] in early 1999
where his character used as many expletives as was possible and produced an
inordinate amount of politically incorrect statements. Among the other regular
featured comedians on the show was Mackenzie Crook, later a co-star of The
Office. Two years later Gervais went on to present his own comedy chat show for
Channel 4 called [[Meet Ricky Gervais]]; it was poorly received and has since
been mocked by Gervais himself.

Throughout this time Gervais also wrote for BBC sketch show [[Bruiser (TV
series)|Bruiser]] and The [[Jim Tavare]] Show, and had cameo roles in Channel
4's sitcom [[Spaced]]; it is speculated that the cameo is indeed [[The Office
(UK TV series)|The Office]] character David Brent. However both series of Spaced
finished airing before The Office premiered. Gervais also appeared in a few of
Channel 4's 'Top 100...' list programmes, and voiced the character of Penguin in
Robbie the Reindeer's Legend of the Lost Tribe. His voice was redubbed for the
US market.

On 5 January 2006, he interviewed Larry David, in a one off special, Ricky
Gervais Meets... Larry David. On 25 December and 26 December of the same year,
Channel 4 aired similar specials where he interviewed the actor/comedian
Christopher Guest and infamously Garry Shandling. There are no plans for further
episodes of "Meets...", although editions with John Cleese and Matt Groening
were recorded in 2006, for broadcast in 2007. A source claimed "The Shandling
experience put him off for good."Deedes, Henry.
(2007). "PANDORA: By George, we salute you for your indefatigability"
Independent News and Media Limited Retrieved on 22 July 2007 from
http://news.independent.co.uk/people/pandora/article2125389.ece Independent News
and Media Limited

Gervais guest-starred in an episode of [[The Simpsons]] entitled "Homer Simpson,
This Is Your Wife", which aired on 26 March 2006 in the United States, on 23
April 2006 in the United Kingdom, and on 18 July 2006 in Australia. He is the
only British comic to write and star in a Simpsons episode. The episode was the
highest rated in Sky One's history, arguably due to its extensive promotion,
which revolved around the angle that Gervais was the episode's sole writer (and
the first guest star on the show to also receive a writing credit for the
episode of his appearance). Gervais clarified the extent of his input in a joint
interview (with Christopher Guest) for Dazed and Confused magazine (January
2006): "No, all I did was put down a load of observations on an email and they
made it look like a Simpsons script. I'm going to get the credit, but I think
everyone in the industry knows it was a joint effort." Asked in a separate
interview about how his idea for the episode (in which Homer swaps Marge on a
game show) came about, Gervais replied: "I've always been fascinated with
reality game shows but I think it was my girlfriend's idea. We watch Celebrity
Big Brother at the moment, we watch I'm a Celebrity, Get Me out of Here... we
watch all those reality TV shows – The Office came out of those docu-
soaps". Criticisms of the episode include its promotion of high
definition television (Sky had just launched an HD service) as well as the
quality of the script. Gervais is a long-standing Simpsons fan and presented a
segment to mark the show's 20th anniversary on BBC Two's [[The Culture Show]] on
16 June 2007.

Gervais has also guest-starred on [[Alias (TV series)|Alias]], appearing in the
third-season episode "Façade") as Daniel Ryan, a former Royal Navy bomb
disposal specialist turned rogue Irish Republican Army bomb-maker. He has said
about the appearance, "I did an episode of Alias, and I can't watch it. Me being
serious. I can't watch it."

In late 2007, Gervais expressed interest in performing in the worldwide hit TV
series [[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]. The character is said to be an 'extended'
temporary character, to appear in a number of episodes, as verified by Gervais
himself on the Heroes-related documentary "Heroes Unmasked".

Gervais made a cameo appearance on [[Saturday Night Live]] in a Digital Short
where he claims that The Office was adapted from a Japanese program of the same
name (with Steve Carell reprising his role as Michael Scott). The sketch
recreates scenes from the American and British pilot episode with Japanese
elements (albeit in an exaggerated way). "It's funny," Gervais laughs at the
end, "because it's racist."

He has also appeared several times on [[The Late Show With David Letterman]].

=''The Office''=

In August 1999, while on a BBC production course, Stephen Merchant had to make
his own short subject. He chose to make a docu-soap parody, set in an office.
This sketch later formed the basis of the interview episode.[http://www.fi-
ndarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20010824/ai_n14404548 Edinburgh Festival
2001: More than The Office comedian | Independent, The (London) | Find Articles
at BNET.com] With help from Ash Atalla,
Merchant passed this tape onto to the BBC's Head of Entertainment Paul Jackson
at the Edinburgh Fringe, who then passed it onto Head of Comedy Jon Plowman who
eventually commissioned a full pilot script from Merchant and Gervais.

The first six-episode series of [[The Office (UK TV series)|The Office]] aired
in the UK in July and August 2001 to little fanfare or attention.
[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2002/09/18/baoff.xml - The
big cheese, The Telegraph, 18/09/2002] Word-of-mouth, repeats and DVDs
helped spread the word, building up huge momentum and anticipation for the
second series, also comprising six episodes, in September
2002.[http://www.offthetelly.co.uk/comedy/funnybusiness.htm FUNNY
BUSINESS] The second series topped the BBC Two ratings, and the show then
switched to BBC One in December 2003 for its final two special episodes.

The Office has since been remade for audiences in France, Germany, Quebec, and the United States. Gervais and Merchant are producers of the
American version, and also co-wrote the episode "The Convict" for the show's
third season.

=''Extras''=

''Extras'' had its debut on the BBC on 21 July 2005; it received its premiere on
HBO in the United States in September 2005. Written and directed by Ricky
Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the sitcom ran for twelve episodes, and starred
Gervais as Andy Millman, a background artist. Millman is more self-aware and
intentionally humorous than Gervais's The Office character David Brent.

Guest stars on the first series of Extras include Ross Kemp, Les Dennis, Patrick
Stewart, Vinnie Jones, Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Stiller, Kate Winslet and
Francesca Martinez. A second series began on 14 September 2006 in the UK and
featured appearances by Daniel Radcliffe, Orlando Bloom, Sir Ian McKellen, Chris
Martin, Keith Chegwin, Robert Lindsay, Warwick Davis, Ronnie Corbett, Stephen
Fry, Richard Briers, Patricia Potter, Sophia Myles, Moira Stuart, David Bowie,
Kate Winslett, Robert De Niro and Jonathan Ross.

A Christmas special of Extras aired on 27 December 2007 in the UK and 16
December 2007 in the US, featuring guest appearances by George Michael, Clive
Owen, Gordon Ramsay, Jonathan Ross and David Tennant.

On 10 June 2006, Gervais and Merchant were seen in a specially-filmed
promotional sketch for Extras 2 in the middle of BBC1's World Cup football
coverage. This time, Gervais did not perform his famous dance. Instead, Merchant
did - a take-off of the Crouch Dance, recently popularised by England striker
Peter Crouch.

Some have suggested Gervais is influenced by [[Curb Your Enthusiasm]] and [[The
Larry Sanders Show]] in making Extras, particularly in the format of celebrities
making fools of themselves or subverting their public personas,[http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/organgrinder/2006/09/extras_work_needed-
_ricky.html Extras work needed, Ricky? | Organgrinder | Guardian Unlimited] and the Gervais joke of someone making
inappropriate remarks in front of a member of a minority. He has interviewed
both Larry David and Garry Shandling, creators of these shows, on Ricky Gervais
Meets...

Extras was awarded the Golden Globe award for Best Television Series - Musical
or Comedy on 14 January 2008.

Stand-up comedy Gervais made a few attempts at stand-up in the late 1990s, but
his first successful show took place at the Cafe Royal, as part of 2001's
Edinburgh Fringe. Titled Rubbernecker, the show also featured Jimmy Carr, Robin
Ince and Stephen Merchant.

Gervais later toured the UK in 2003 with his stand-up show [[Animals
(comedy)|Animals]]. The [[Politics (comedy)|Politics]] tour followed a year
later. Both of these shows were recorded for release on DVD and television
broadcast. The third part of the themed live trilogy, [[Fame (comedy)|Fame]],
took place in 2007. It started in Glasgow in January and ended in Sheffield in
April. Blackpool reported selling out of tickets within 45 minutes of them going
on sale.[http://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2006/12/13/4816/what_a_sell-out What
a sell-out, Huge demand for Gervais tour] More dates were added.

Newsnight Review's panel saw Animals during its Bloomsbury run and covered it in
January 2003. They were not favourable, with Private Eye editor Ian Hislop being
the most explicit in his criticism.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/-
newsnight/review/2654105.stm BBC News, 13 January 2003] After this,
Gervais closed each show by calling Hislop an "ugly little pug-faced cunt".
Further coverage on Newsnight Review has been overwhelmingly favourable, with
the panelists playing themselves in promos for the second series of Extras.
Panel regulars Germaine Greer, Mark Kermode and Mark Lawson also appeared as
themselves reviewing When The Whistle Blows in a series episode. Critic Mark
Lawson is a great admirer of Gervais and Merchant, having interviewed them
extensively for television, print [[Front Row (radio)|Front Row]] and the
Edinburgh International Television Festival.

[[Fame (comedy)|Fame]] was the subject of some controversy in January 2007 when
Gervais told a story, ostensibly about how people will do anything to become
famous, to a Scottish
audience.[http://www.entertainmentwise.com/news?id=26941 Entertainment
Wise] The story referred to a question asked of Gervais five years earlier
by a reporter: what can you do to become famous? To which he replied, "Go out
and kill a prostitute." He followed up with the punchline, "I won't do that bit
in Ipswich," referring to the December 2006 murders of five prostitutes in
Ipswich. The joke even drew criticism from the father of one of the victims,
Tania Nicol: "These days they want to make a joke out of anything. I feel he’s
just being uncaring, quite honestly." Gervais did not apologise, but did attempt
to defend himself: "I do want people to know that that happened five years ago
and is not related to anything now. That is the problem with comedy, a joke that
is funny today can be a terrible faux pas tomorrow."

He has performed stand-up in the U.S. three times. He performed two warm up
shows at the TriBeCa Performing Arts Center and headlined David Bowie's High
Line Festival in May 2007.[http://www.eonline.com/news/article/?uuid=6ebf9375-149d-4a10-b113-
858958b80614 E! News - Bowie Takes the High Line - David Bowie | Ricky Gervais]

In [[Grand Theft Auto IV]], Gervais can be seen at a comedy club performing a 4
minute routine. There are several different performances that can be seen,
composed mostly of material from his Fame tour.

Gervais's next stand-up comedy show will be entitled Science.

Books =Flanimals= Gervais released a children's book in 2004, [[Flanimals]] -
illustrated by his friend Rob Steen - which depicted nonsense animals. After the
success of this book he released its sequel [[More Flanimals]] in 2005, with
[[Flanimals of the Deep]] coming the next year. A new Flanimals book, Day of the
Bletching, came out in October 2007.

There is a wide range of Flanimals merchandise available, including dolls and
gift cards. A six-part Flanimals TV series has been commissioned by
ITV[http://www.flanimals.com/ Flanimals]
although Gervais had previously claimed signing a Hollywood movie
deal[http://old.chortle.co.uk/news/nov04/flanimals.php News: Gervais signs
Hollywood deal] so that a franchise could be
developed. "That way it stands a chance of being the next Dr. Seuss or Mr
Men".[http://news.independent.co.uk/people/profiles/article321354.ece Ricky
Gervais: My life as a superstar - People, News - Independent.co.uk]

=Other books= The Office scripts have been released in book form, with Series 1
issued in 2002, and the remaining episodes following in 2003.

In late 2006 the Extras script book was released, as well as [[The World of Karl
Pilkington]] presented by Gervais and Merchant. These were essentially
transcripts of Xfm/podcast routines performed by the three.

Film Gervais's film career has included small roles as the voice of a pigeon in
2005's [[Valiant (movie)|Valiant]], as a studio executive in 2006's [[For Your
Consideration (film)|For Your Consideration]], as museum director Dr. McPhee in
2006's [[Night at the Museum]], and as "Ferdy the Fence" in the 2007 film
[[Stardust (2007 film)|Stardust]]. His role in Night at the Museum has proven to
be one of Gervais's most popular roles, with the movie grossing $570 million
worldwide.Green, Graeme. (2007). "60 SECONDS: Ricky Gervais" Retrieved on
22 July 2007 from [http://www.metro.co.uk/fame/interviews/article.html?in_artic-
le_id=35340&in_page_id=11 http://www.metro.co.uk/fame/interviews/article.html?i-
n_article_id=35340&in_page_id=11] METRO NewspaperGreen, Graeme.
(2007)., -- "[Green:] After having your own Simpsons episode and working with
Robert De Niro, are there any other big ambitions left to fulfil? [...]
[Gervais:] I get offered 50 diversions a day. I could be the guest on every
panel show or the butler in loads of films. But when The Simpsons calls or
Robert De Niro calls, you say ‘yes’ to them and ‘no’ to the other 49."


At one point, Gervais was considered for a role in the Tom Cruise movie
[[Mission: Impossible III]], but it never came to fruition - Gervais cited
reasons for this, on [[Friday Night with Jonathan Ross]]: "It was a bigger part
than I first thought."

Gervais starred in [[Ghost Town (film)|Ghost Town]], which was released on 19
September 2008, and was in Lowell, Massachusetts during May 2008 filming his
next project, [[This Side of the Truth]], starring himself, Jennifer Garner, Rob
Lowe, and Jason Bateman, with appearances by Tina Fey and Jeffrey Tambor. The
comedy is co-written and co-directed by Gervais and Matt Robinson. name="variety"/>

Other appearances On 2 July 2005, Gervais appeared at the Live 8 event held in
Hyde Park, London, where he performed his famous dance. He produced a series of
short films for the cause, linked acts from the studio with Jonathan Ross, and
also introduced the group R.E.M.

Gervais also has a role in the video game [[Grand Theft Auto IV]], as himself,
appearing in his role as a comedian in a comedy club, and as an interviewee on
radio station We Know The Truth. For this, a special 3-minute act was written,
recorded and fully motion-captured.[http://kotaku.com/380990/british-office-star-ricky-
gervais-appears-in-gta-iv British Office Star Ricky Gervais Appears In GTA
IV]

=Boxing= In 2002, Gervais took part in a charity boxing match against
entrepreneur Grant Bovey - known largely by the public due to his relationship
with TV personality Anthea Turner. On his Saturday afternoon Radio show on Xfm
London Gervais and partners Merchant and Pilkington had discussions on both
Ricky's attitude towards boxing and training in general, as well as his
likelihood of victory against Bovey. Initially, Merchant had questions as to why
Gervais was participating in the event, due to his dislike of slight pain and
his inexperience with fitness in general.

In the weeks before the event was scheduled to take place both Merchant and
Pilkington voiced their doubts as to his fitness due to illness which he had
sustained weeks before the event, humorously, by stating that both they and
Gervais's family had written up a petition to the BBC stating "Please do not
allow this man to box."

Gervais was trained for the three-round contest by famous boxing trainer
brothers Frank and Eugene Maloney, at their Fight Factory gymnasium. It was the
second televised charity boxing match, the first being Bob Mortimer against Les
Dennis, for Comic Relief. The fight was televised by the BBC, and Gervais came
out on top by a split decision verdict. Gervais later said that the experience
was the 'most difficult thing' he had ever done. He donated his £5,000 prize
money to the training of a Macmillan nurse.

=Concert for Diana and Live Earth= On 1 July 2007, Gervais performed at the
Concert for Diana in Wembley Stadium, a music event celebrating the life of the
late Princess of Wales. Towards the end of the event - after a pre-recorded
introduction from Ben Stiller - Gervais appeared along with fellow [[The Office
(UK TV series)|Office]] star Mackenzie Crook. They performed [[Freelove
Freeway]], a song previously heard in the fourth episode of series one of The
Office. Due to a technical problem, Gervais then had to fill time until he was
able to re-introduce Elton John to close the show, so he did the David Brent
dance again, as well as singing the "Little Fat Man" song as performed by David
Bowie in episode two of the second series of [[Extras (TV series)|Extras]].

On 7 July, 2007 Gervais appeared at the UK leg of Live Earth at Wembley Stadium,
London. Gervais introduced Rob Reiner appearing in the guise of spoof film
director Marty Di Bergi, who in turn introduced Spinal Tap. At the start of the
concert, Radio 1 DJ Chris Moyles, who was acting as compère for part of the
event, announced that Gervais would be appearing and performing an 'extended 25-
minute set', which ultimately failed to happen. It is unclear whether this was
meant as a joke, perhaps referring to the time Gervais had to fill at the
Concert for Diana the previous Sunday, or if it was simply cut because of time
constraints, but in an off-stage segment later Moyles actually expressed
disappointment that it had not occurred. Gervais himself however did reference
his appearance at the Diana concert the previous week, saying, 'Now listen,
we're running late, so I'm gonna be off this stage in 30 seconds, whether Elton
John is fucking ready or not,' making him one of a number of people to swear on
live TV at the event.

Accolades Gervais has received many awards for his work on The Office, most
notably two Golden Globes (one for acting, one for the show itself), as well as
numerous British Academy Television Awards and British Comedy Awards, amongst
others. The show missed out on what was considered to be a definite Emmy Award
nomination because there were not enough episodes broadcast in the U.S. before
the deadline for consideration.

Gervais received an honorary award at the annual Rose d'Or ceremony in
Switzerland on 29 April 2006. The award is given to "an individual who has made
an exceptional contribution to the global entertainment
business".[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4809312.stm BBC NEWS |
Entertainment | Rose d'Or honour for TV's Gervais] The Guardian's Chris Tryhorn explained the "few
gripes" he had with Extras, "particularly in the second series". "You can
forgive Gervais a certain arrogance after the success of [[The Office (UK TV
series)|The Office]], but..." He remarks on the confused tone of the series,
taking in the clash between the broad comedy of characters Barry (Shaun
Williamson) and Darren (Stephen Merchant), and the apparent parody of this style
with When The Whistle Blows, and "given their total indulgence of Gervais, the
BBC is portrayed as interfering, its comedy department run by a rather crudely
stereotyped gay couple".

In September 2005 he caused mild controversy by recording a radio advert for a
prostate cancer charity which was only allowed to be broadcast from 9pm to 6am
because of its content.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4298076.stm BBC
NEWS | Health | Anger over cancer ad censorship]

In February 2007, British ventriloquist Keith Harris refused an invite to appear
on the second series of Extras, claiming that Gervais "wanted me to be a racist
bigot" and describing the script as "pure filth". When asked about
Harris's refusal on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, Gervais claimed that Harris
simply "didn't get it". Keith Chegwin, who assumed the role offered
to Harris, said "the people who didn't get it probably think Johnny Depp really
is a pirate."

In July 2007, following Gervais's appearance at the memorial concert for Diana,
Princess of Wales, the Guardian ran a column by Daily Mirror television critic
Jim Shelley entitled "Call Me Crazy... But Has Ricky Gervais Lost It?"[htt-
p://blogs.guardian.co.uk/tv/2007/07/call_me_crazy_but_has_ricky_ge.html Guardian
Unlimited: Arts blog - TV & radio: Call me crazy ... but has Ricky Gervais lost
it?] This related to his performance at the
concert for Diana in which he had to fill time after a technical fault in the
sound system for Elton John's performance. He was not allowed to use material
from his current stand-up show 'Fame' for legal reasons, so instead performed
his famous Brent Dance that the audience willed him to do and sang the song
"Little Fat Man" from Extras series two (originally performed by David Bowie in
the series) before being told he could hand back to the BBC. Gervais was
allegedly booed off stage.http://www.allgervais.com/index.php?subaction=sh-
owfull&id=1186920387&archive=&start_from=&ucat=& He tells British radio
station Heart FM, "After the Diana concert there was one guy - who works for a
tabloid - and he wrote that the crowd booed… they didn't boo, they loved it."
"People love it when something goes wrong and I was standing there and they
demanded I do 'the robot dance' and it was funny."

The following week, the Guardian noted that Gervais had responded with "an
exhilaratingly foul-mouthed tirade" on his website, concluding with the words,
"Yes I am resting on my laurels you cunt!", in this video Gervais mocked Jim
Shelley typing the words "Resting on his laurels" as Ricky jokingly lashed out
by stating he was resting on his laurels and that he was not going to make
another show for television and saying "What's the point? What is there to beat-
?".[http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/tv/2007/07/ricky_gervais_resting_on_my_la.-
html Guardian Unlimited: Arts blog - TV & radio: Ricky Gervais: 'Resting on my
laurels? Yes!']

Filmography {| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year !! Film !! Role !! Notes
|-
|rowspan="1"| 2001
| [[Dog Eat Dog (film)|Dog Eat Dog]] Bouncer
|
|-
|rowspan="1"| 2005
| [[Valiant (2005 film)|Valiant]] Bugsy (voice)
|
|-
|rowspan="2"| 2006
| [[For Your Consideration (film)|For Your Consideration]] Martin Gibb
|
|- [[Night at the Museum]] Dr. McPhee
|
|-
|rowspan="1"| 2007
| [[Stardust (2007 film)|Stardust]] Ferdy the Fence
|
|-
|rowspan="1"| 2008
| [[Ghost Town (film)|Ghost Town]] Bertram Pincus
|
|-
|rowspan="2"| 2009
| [[This Side of the Truth]]
|Mark Belson |in post-production; Also co-writer and co-director name="variety">
|- [[Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian]] Dr. McPhee in post-
|production }

References



Interviews *The Independent, et al. (2005). Ricky Gervais: My life as a
superstar [Electronic Version] Independent News Media: United Kingdom *The
Guardian Newspaper, et al. (2005). "Second Coming" Guardian Unlimited ©
Guardian News and Media Limited 2007: United Kingdom *Thomas, S., et al. (1983).
More to lose - everything to gain [Electronic Version] Retrieved on 8 July 2007
from [http://www.seonadancing.com/article.jpg] New Music Express : London

External links *[http://www.rickygervais.com RickyGervais.com] Official Site
*[http://www.allgervais.com AllGervais.com] - Ricky Gervais Resource *
*[http://fora.tv/fora/showthread.php?t=676 Ricky Gervais at the Oxonian Society]
video *[http://television.aol.com/tv-celebrity-interviews/ricky-gervais Ricky
Gervais interview] *[http://www.bbc.co.uk/suffolk/content/articles/2007/03/30/r-
icky_gervais_review_280307_feature.shtml BBC interview] *[http://www.bbc.co.uk/-
theoneshow/backstage/interviews.shtml?videogallery=bs_ricky_gervais1 BBC
backstage interview]












{{Persondata |NAME= Gervais, Ricky |ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
|SHORT DESCRIPTION= English actor, comedian, author, director, producer |DATE OF
BIRTH= 1961-06-25 |PLACE OF BIRTH= Reading, England |DATE OF DEATH= |PLACE OF
DEATH= }}