John Bishop has opened up about the joke that saved his marriage to his wife Melanie Bishop.
The comedian, 57, has recalled how he and Melanie were in the process of divorce, when a joke he made on stage about missing her got them back together after an 18-month split.
A late comedy bloomer, John first got on stage in Manchester’s Frog and Bucket at the age of 33 to cheer himself up after splitting from Melanie. He agreed to get on stage and try to make the audience laugh in order to avoid paying the £4 entry fee.
This chance comedy encounter would turn into a regular slot at the club, and then a career as one of the UK’s best-loved comedians, as he quit his job to do comedy full-time at the age of 40.
But it was in those early days that a joke about missing his wife actually halted the divorce process and got them back together.
‘I used to do a joke about missing my ex so much that I kept her severed head in the fridge,’ John revealed to The Mirror.
‘It’s not the best joke, and as I said it I realised the head that was meant to be in the fridge was in the audience,”‘ he said.
‘We were at the decree nisi stage in our divorce at this point, so we only had to finalise the finances.
‘I remember thinking, ‘”That joke’s going to cost me another £20,000.” Afterwards she came over to the bar. I was expecting a row but instead we started chatting.’
The chat ended in the couple agreeing to get counselling, and they got back together after 18 months apart, going on to have three sons; Joe, Luke and Daniel.
Still married over 30 years later, John still mentions Melanie in his stand-up comedy sets – and it was her who convinced the TV comedian not to quit comedy two years ago.
She told John he’d become a ‘miserable git’ – so he returned to the stage and found a whole new love for stand-up.
Now, John has hired a comedy coach called Cameron – who has produced a lot of his TV shows – to help land his jokes as best he can, as he tours huge venues including Manchester’s Co-op Live.
John told the High Performance podcast how he now has a new ‘zest’ for comedy again, and the same excitement he did when he got on stage at the Frog and Bucket all those years ago.
This comes after John did something brilliant for fans amid the Oasis dynamic pricing drama, and set all his tour tickets at £25 each plus fees.
Making the announcement about his 25th anniversary tour, John took to social media and said: ‘I can’t believe that next year it will be 25 years since I first performed at the Frog and Bucket in Manchester.
‘It’s been a rollercoaster! And I can’t thank the fans enough who have supported me all the way. I wanted to mark the anniversary with a brand-new tour and do something to say thank you – so every ticket throughout the tour will be £25*.
‘I really hope you can come and celebrate with me.’
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