Eddie Izzard is a stand-up guy

Eddie Izzard. Photo / Supplied

Eddie Izzard is taking a break from his screen career to bring his latest stand-up show to New Zealand. He talks to Michele Manelis.

There are many and diverse sides to Eddie Izzard. Comedian, actor, marathon runner, self-described transvestite, and budding politician. Of late, he's also been the voice of a car - Sir Miles Axlerod, the Richard Branson-inspired vehicle in recent Pixar production Cars 2, though the cartoon section of his widening CV also includes having voiced Queen Elizabeth, and Nigel Baker-Butcher on The Simpsons.

But Izzard he hasn't just been playing it for laughs. His drama resume in recent years has included movies Rage in 2009 with Judi Dench and Jude Law, and Valkyrie in 2008 with Tom Cruise. On television he was the star of the short-lived American series The Riches had a recurring role in United States of Tara.

"Finally, I'm getting decent roles," he acknowledges. "I've wanted to be an actor since I was 7, and now it's happening when I'm 150 years old."

He says of his bumpy road to success, "I always say, 'I think like an American.' It's that economic migrant thing of going and pushing for it, and sticking true to your dreams. 'If you shoot for the stars, you can reach the moon.' That's my kind of motto."

He is he son of British parents, Dorothy, a midwife, and Harold, a former employee of BP, stationed in Aden when Eddie was born. A year later, the family moved to Bangor, Northern Ireland. Then when Eddie turned five, they were relocated to South Wales. His mother died the following year, and he and his older brother attended boarding schools.

After completing a course in accountancy, the fledgling comedian took to the streets of Europe and the UK before finding his feet in the world of stand-up comedy.

"There was a long, long period of not getting my career off the ground," he recalls. "I couldn't even get my street performing shows together. That was a time of things not working out, but I always hoped and planned for the career I have now."

It wasn't an easy process to begin a career as a live performer in the UK. "It's not like there's a guidebook on how to do it. But one thing I learned was that I had to stop talking to negative people. They'd say to me, 'Oh, it's never going to happen for you.'

"I remember working as a waiter and telling people I wanted to be an actor and performer. The response was always, 'You're wasting your time.' So I realised, I have to not be in this environment. I need to be struggling with people who are trying to make their careers happen."

Like others who have thrived in spite of negative reinforcement, Izzard says, "My strength in the end is that I've got this far without any help. No one ever said to me, 'Oh, here's the next step."

Full of surprises, in 2009, he completed 43 marathons in 51 days for Sport Relief, despite having no athletic background, let alone endurance training. "People thought I was crazy, but, in fact, it was very bright. I raised £1.8 million In NZ dollars, that's about $73 million," he jokes.

And for his next trick? "Well, I'm going into politics in nine years time. I already announced that two years ago. I have been campaigning politically. I am a radical centrist, but I do believe in a safety net and encouraging people to set up businesses. I love the business model of Pixar, the business model of Apple, and Google, and Ben and Jerry's. I love Richard Branson. I like ideas and initiative, putting things out, encouraging kids to go and do it," he says.

"It's like Peter Jackson saying, 'I'm going to take on the whole world, I'm going to do this stuff, and I'm going to do it in different ways,' That's just great. It's having imagination, energy, love, all that. And having a positive heart behind it."

Considering he's a self-declared 'lesbian trapped in a man's body', his political aspirations might prove to be more than a challenge.

He deadpans,"I've come to peace with it. These are the genetic cards I've been given. But I'm a straight card-carrying transvestite. I'm not gay. For some reason I'm not even bi-sexual. So, yes, I'm a lesbian in a man's body."

So, in other words, Izzard is a heterosexual male?

"Yes. But I'm a lesbian. I know about heels, I know about makeup, the whole girly bit that some women go for. I've got that ability and it works for me. I'm genetically girly. It's not part of my comedy act. I'm a comedian and I happen to be a transvestite," he explains.

Izzard's forthcoming stand-up tour Stripped returns him to New Zealand stages. "I love Dunedin. I remember that audience being fantastic. I got the impression that they couldn't quite believe I'd come down there."

He's recently taken the show to Pigalle, the red-light district of Paris, performing an hour-long stand-up in French. "I learned to speak it at school, but the trick is to push yourself and then book into a three-month gig where you have to speak fluently, even if you're crap. After a month you'll get it. I've always liked languages. Now I want to do it in German, Russian and Arabic. I'm a bit of a nut."

Lowdown
Who: Eddie Izzard, Brit stand-up
When and where: St James Wellington, Nov 7& 8; Civic, Auckland, Nov 9, 10, 11

- TimeOut