Whether boxing clever in a Costa Rican prison, taking to the skies in a Piper Warrior plane or entertaining troops in Basra hotspots there’s certainly never a dull moment when you’re Joe Pasquale. As he prepares to embark on two major UK tours we were able to catch up with him for a few moments.
Torquay is a special place for me. I love doing the gigs in the summer, at all the venues, but nothing ever comes close to the great memories I have of the English Riviera. It was the first place I ever did a show. I had been picked up by a local agency run by Billie & Trevor George, the agency is still running today, headed by their daughter Anne.
Billie & Trevor had kindly taken me in & agreed to write me an act & get me some work in exchange for plastering a house they had bought which needed doing up. The house had a German name called the Walden Blick, & me being a labourer for a plasterer, lied through my eye teeth saying I knew what I was doing, of course I didn’t have a clue, but I ploughed on & did in 6 weeks what a professional plasterer would’ve taken 5 days to do – it was complete cack, the ceiling in the kitchen fell down & the walls looked like Crippen had buried the bodies there. But Billie & Trevor were amazing, & still continued to help me. They entered me into a talent competition with my new act, written & rehearsed by Billie, in the Rainbow Rooms in Torquay, I didn’t win , I came second. But I was more than happy with that. A few years later I entered new faces hosted by Marti Caine, armed with my Billie & Trevor George act, I won the heat & came second once again. Even now 23 years later whenever I come to Torquay, I always drive past the old house just to see if it’s still standing. Thank you Billie & Trevor, & thank you Torquay!
I’m really looking forward to my summer tour this year. We’ve never been in more need of a good laugh than now. I can’t promise a solution to the global meltdown, but I can offer two hours of escapism. The show is going to be more ridiculous than ever. We’ve got some great new magic, mishaps & music & my trusty twin brother, Raynard, will of course be joining in the fun.
I’m also including a personal tribute to Nostradamus, who it turns out is related to me through a second cousin & I’ll be making a few predictions of my own during the course of the show.
Such a hectic work schedule requires considerable stamina. Luckily the 48-year-old Pasquale is in the best shape of his life. The catalyst for the all-new & improved Joe Pasquale was undoubtedly winning I’m a Celebrity back in 2004. Not only did being crowned “King of the Jungle” send his career into overdrive, it also made him determined to get into shape.
As part of his new-found drive, Joe took part in the Man Alive campaign, which aimed to make men more aware of life-threatening diseases linked to excessive weight. He also developed a passion for one of the world’s most demanding sports – boxing.
“I was struggling with the gym to be honest. The only machine that was doing it for me was the vending machine. The carrot cake was proving a particular draw. I was turning into a right biffer and then one of the trainers pointed me in the direction of a punch bag and I never looked back.
Today I train four or five days a week. I doubt I’ll be doing a Mickey Rourke and embarking on a complete career change – I get beaten up too much for that – but I absolutely love it.”
It wasn’t only physical changes that Joe’s rumble in the jungle brought about.
“Before I went on the show I was a complete coward, but then on the first day they threw me out of a plane, then a couple of days later I was hanging out of a helicopter.”
Joe Pasquale now relishes such challenges.
“It’s like getting a second chance at life. For me, the more dangerous things are, the better I like it.”
From 18 July to 31 August, Joe will be regaling audiences throughout the UK with his own inimitable brand of humour. He will then emark on a 34 date Autumn tour starting on the 1st October.
You can catch Joe at the Princess Theatre, Torquay on the 10th & 24th August : Box Office: 08448 472315 www.princesstheatre.org.uk
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Tags: joe pasquale, princess theatre, Theatre
