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Funnyman EDDIE IZZARD struggled to make audiences laugh during his early days on the stand-up circuit, according to comedienne JO BRAND.
The comic-turned-actor, who starred alongside Tom Cruise in World War II drama Valkyrie, first found fame with his comedy routines in the U.K.
But British stand-up Brand insists Izzard was so bad when he first started, his fellow comedians pitied him - until he finally proved them wrong.
In her new autobiography, Look Back In Hunger, she writes: "Eddie Izzard was absolutely terrible when he started, just not funny. It became a standing joke: ‘Eddie’s died again’.
"One night at the Red Rose Labour Club we were steeling ourselves for Eddie to have another nightmare, feeling sorry for him because we all liked him, and out of the blue he stormed. The crowd went mental, gave him an encore, and he never looked back."

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Asian superstar EDISON CHEN is returning to the big screen for the first time since a sex photo scandal threatened to ruin his career.
The Hong Kong-based singer/actor hit headlines last year (08) after over 1,000 intimate shots of him engaged in sexual acts with several different women - all rising stars in Asia - hit the web.
The furore around the sex snaps forced Chen to flee Hong Kong and the controversy ended the entertainment careers of most of the girls involved.
But studio bosses have decided to give Chen another chance, and have signed him up to appear in new English-language comedy Almost Perfect.
The film tells the story of a girl who juggles her boyfriend and her family, and is reportedly set to his Chinese cinemas next year (10).
Chen has previously appeared in Infernal Affairs, The Grudge 2, and also had a cameo in last year’s (08) Batman movie The Dark Knight.

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Filmmaker KEVIN SMITH has credited actor SETH ROGEN - and a newfound love of marijuana - with pulling him out of a creative downturn.
The Clerks director was uninspired and unsure where his career was headed until the Pineapple Express star talked him into smoking cannabis last summer (08).
Now Smith lights up at least three times daily and is swamped with new projects, including a Batman comic and the release of upcoming movie A Pair Of Dicks, starring Bruce Willis.
He tells the New York Post, "I know you’re supposed to tell kids not to do drugs, but, kids, do it! Do weed! Don’t do the other stuff, but weed is good. What you want to do is what I did, build a movie empire and, at age 38, smoke it all away." And Smith concedes he’s "just not good" at directing his own screenplays anymore: "Judd Apatow is way better at being Kevin Smith now than Kevin Smith ever was. So Judd Apatow should do it for a while, and I should figure out something else, and weed has been helpful with that."

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The son of late U.S. TV mogul MERV GRIFFIN, JR. risks forfeiting his annual cheque from his father’s estate if he refuses to drop his battle against its trustees, according to new legal documents.
Tony Griffin has accused executives at Merv Griffin Entertainment and The Griffin Group of squandering his dad’s multi-million dollar fortune, and is suing them in a bid to remove them from power.
But the trustees of Griffin’s estate have filed new papers in Los Angeles County Superior Court declaring the younger Griffin’s challenge violates the trust’s "no contest clause", reports TMZ.com.
The bosses insists Griffin risks losing his yearly $2 million (£1.3 million) payment if he goes through with the legal battle.
Griffin, Jr., who created game shows Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy!, died from cancer in 2007.

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Actress PAMELA STEPHENSON has paid tribute to the "extraordinary" people of Samoa after the country was devastated by a tsunami on Tuesday (29Sep09).
The Superman III star, who has been living in the South Pacific country, was terrified after an earthquake shook her hilltop home, and is still struggling to cope with the damage caused by a resulting tidal wave.
And Stephenson, who is married to Scottish funnyman Billy Connolly, is still picking up the pieces of her life after losing a friend in the giant waves.
The star writes in Britain’s Guardian newspaper, "Huge piles of debris lay everywhere; it was clear the wave had whacked every structure with incredible might.
"Cars teetered where they had been thrown, on top of rubble from collapsed dwellings. Fridges and air conditioners floated in the sea.
"I looked along the bay and saw that a well-known jetty was missing. So were villages that once lined the shore." Stephenson has since been amazed by the Samoan people: "Many are homeless, but the extended family system means they will stay with relatives in other villages. Samoans are extraordinary people, and their resilience is evident." At least 110 people were killed when the tidal wave, triggered by a powerful 8.3-magnitude earthquake, surged onto the remote Pacific island.

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DAME MAGGIE SMITH is frightened of accepting another theatre role - because her battle with cancer has left her physically weak and emotionally "flattened".
The veteran actress has starred in more than 50 stage shows in the U.K. and U.S. since the 1950s, even winning a Tony award for her role in 1990 play Lettice and Lovage.
But her fight against breast cancer and chemotherapy treatment last year (08) has left Smith, 74, doubting whether she has the strength to return to the stage.
She says, "It leaves you so flattened. I’m not sure I could go back to theatre work, although film work is more tiring. I’m frightened to work in theatre now. I feel very uncertain. I haven’t done it for a while.
"It’s one of those things you ought to keep on doing and I haven’t for a bit. I would love to be able to, because I do love it, but I feel a great lack of confidence.
"I think it’s the age I was when it happened. It knocks you sideways. It takes you longer to recover, you are not so resilient. I am fearful of the amount of energy one needs to be in a film or a play."

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Veteran actor TONY ROBERTS is "doing well" in hospital after suddenly collapsing in the middle of a performance on Broadway on Sunday (04Sun09).
The Annie Hall star was onstage for the matinee showing of The Royal Family when he began speaking incoherently, sparking fears he had suffered a stroke.
Audience members only realised something was wrong when co-star John Glover walked offstage and asked for the curtain to be brought down, according to a report in the New York Post.
Theatregoer Roger Lorente tells the publication, "He looked fine and moved around fine, but he was speaking nothing but gibberish for about a minute. It was very strange. The curtain came down and the lights went up, and the usher asked if there were any doctors in the house." Roberts was taken to New York’s St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center, where he is currently recovering in a stable condition.
And the star’s cousin insists he has regained control of his speech, confirming: "He’s doing well. He’s talking. I think he’s going to be fine."

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TWILIGHT hunk ROBERT PATTINSON is a "sloppy" dresser, according to top U.S. fashion expert TIM GUNN.
The revered Liz Claiborne CEO and Project Runway regular insists the Brit could be a style king if he dressed up his image a little bit.
Gunn says, "He could be stunning, but I think it’s (his look) a little sloppy for my taste."

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Bosses of the Heal the World Foundation have vowed to fight the lawsuit MICHAEL JACKSON’s estate administrators have filed against them - insisting they are the King Of Pop’s "friends".
John Branca and John McClain filed suit against the Foundation officials last week (begs28Sep09), accusing them of using the Thriller icon’s name and likeness without permission.
The executors alleged the bosses had registered six trademarks and applied for 41 additional ones, all linked to Jackson, who created his own Heal the World Foundation in 1992. Jackson’s charity has no connection to the defendants.
The suit alleges the defendants cybersquatted various domain names - but foundation officials are adamant they wish no harm to Jackson’s memory.
Denying all the allegations, a statement from the charity says, "This suit has not been brought against the charity to ‘protect’ Mr. Jackson, his estate, his legacy and certainly not his humanitarian aims as has been claimed. You don’t ‘protect’ yourself from a friend and we are no adversary."

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SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE star IRRFAN KHAN is leading the race to play CATE BLANCHETT’s lover in new period movie INDIAN SUMMER.
The Bollywood star is slated to play India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in the controversial drama about Lady Edwina Mountbatten’s alleged romance.
Blanchett will play Mountbatten, the wife of the last British viceroy of India, in the project.
Producers only got the greenlight to commence shooting in India last week (ends02Oct09) after film officials insisted on scrutinising the script - to make sure it was respectful of Nehru.
Insider Rajan Zed says, "Officials will reportedly oversee the shooting and it has to be okayed before release." Reports suggest Hugh Grant will play Blanchett’s husband, Lord Louis Mountbatten, in the film, scheduled for release in 2011.
Filming will reportedly follow the important events surrounding India’s Independence and will be shot on location in Delhi, Punjab, Jammu-Kashmir, and other parts of the country.

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SIR ELTON JOHN’s dream of adopting a Ukrainian boy has inspired the tot’s troubled mother to try and turn her life around.
John and his partner David Furnish wanted to take 15-month-old Lev back to England after meeting him during a visit to an orphanage in Makeeva, Ukraine last month (Sep09).
The country has a ban on gay couples fostering children so the couple was forced to give up on their dream of playing parents to Lev.
But the tot’s alcoholic mother Marina - who had both her children taken into care by social workers - saw her son’s plight on television, and has now vowed to recover from her addictions to give Lev a happy childhood in the Ukraine.
She tells Britain’s The Sun newspaper, "I love him so much and desperately want him back so I can hold him again. I know Elton fell in love with my Lev. I saw him holding him and kissing him on TV and in the newspapers. I understand Elton’s feelings. Lev is a very sunny and cheerful boy. It’s impossible not to love him. But I’m going to overcome my problems. I so much want my babies back.
"When I last saw Lev, he was crawling and could barely stand. But now he walks very confidently. I know I had problems - but I hope this black period in my life will soon be over."

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A Malaysian pop star has been arrested in Hong Kong, a week after he admitted attacking a fellow singer.
Gary Chaw was arrested on Friday (02Oct09) for alleged common assault after he was caught on camera fighting Justin Lo on 23 September (09).
The star admitted to the crime a day later (24Sep09) and said, "Justin did not try to injure me or hit back a single time. This was obviously not a fight. I lost control. I made the mistake that I feared the most. I don’t have any excuses. I don’t have any reasons. I was plain wrong. I’m willing to accept full responsibility, full punishment." Chaw has been freed on bail while the case is investigated and will report back to officials in early November (09), according to police spokesman Lawrence Li.
Common assault carries a maximum penalty of one year’s imprisonment in Hong Kong.

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LEONA LEWIS almost missed her chance at fame - her boyfriend had to convince her to audition for U.K. TV talent show THE X FACTOR.
The 24 year has enjoyed worldwide fame since 2006, when she wowed Brit viewers with her voice and stormed to victory in the finale of the singing competition.
But Lewis’ success is all down to her longterm boyfriend Lou Al-Chamaa - who encouraged her to try out for the show.
She tells Britain’s Hello! magazine, "Lou was the one who suggested it. I dreaded the thought of being rejected by judges and my family had been going through a hard time. Then it struck me that perhaps this opportunity had been sent to me and I should grasp it."

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MUSE star MATT BELLAMY won’t be happy until he’s matched his father’s success and scored a number one in America.
The British trio is just breaking big in the U.S. and Bellamy is thrilled American fans have started to discover the band - but he has some way to go to match his father George, who was a guitarist with The Tornados when they scored a massive global hit with Telstar in the 1960s.
The younger Bellamy says, "Until I get a number one in America, I’ll always have a slight chip on my shoulder. If I can get a number one album there, we’re truly even." The Muse star had no idea his dad was a star growing up in Cambridge, England - because George had turned his back on showbusiness to become a building contractor.
He tells Rolling Stone magazine, "My dad got burned by the industry - he didn’t get paid anything… Weirdly, he thinks I’ve done way better (than him) in terms of success."

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LIZA MINNELLI stunned a star-studded audience by breaking down mid-performance during a show last week (begs28Sep09).
The Cabaret star was belting out a medley originally arranged for her mother, Judy Garland, at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas when she became "too emotional" to continue.
Stars including Barry Manilow, Renee Zellweger and Alan Cumming looked on as Minnelli took a few moments from singing before she "composed herself and finished the showstopper to a standing ovation", according to New York Post’s gossip column PageSix.

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JERMAINE JACKSON has hit out at critics accusing him of "cashing in" on his brother MICHAEL’s death, insisting he just wants to keep the King Of Pop’s legacy alive.
The Thriller hitmaker passed away in June (09) after suffering a cardiac arrest and Jermaine has been in the press speaking about his brother ever since.
He was also the driving force behind a doomed memorial concert in Vienna, Austria, which was scrapped when he failed to pull in enough big names to appear at the show.
But Jermaine has slammed allegations he is using his brother’s death to make money for himself, branding the claims "absurd".
He says, "That is the most ridiculous thing ever. It is not about cashing in on what has happened. It is responsibility on all of our parts as brothers and sisters to keep his legacy alive.
"I would love to see something done in my brother’s honour every year, because he was that well-respected around the globe. So for the media to say this is absurd. It is stupid. It is crazy."

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RUPERT GRINT has thanked his fans after they launched a successful online campaign to secure his new film CHERRYBOMB a distributor.
More than 10,000 of the Harry Potter star’s devotees signed a petition in a bid to gain the risque movie backing from a studio.
Now The Cherrybomb Distribution Campaign has proved successful - the picture’s sales agent The Little Film Company have found the film a major distributor in Britain.
And Grint is thrilled with the news.
He says, "I’m delighted by the huge support the film has already received on the official Facebook page and other sites on the web and am so grateful to my fans in particular, who have travelled the world to support the film at festivals and preview screenings."

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DAME MAGGIE SMITH found it hard to believe her cancer diagnosis because she had previously received the all-clear over a suspicious lump.
The Harry Potter star underwent chemotherapy for breast cancer in a London hospital last year (08) and even lost her hair during the intense treatments.
But the actress struggled to accept the doctor’s news that she had the disease.
She says, "I was never nervous, well I was, but I didn’t think it was anything serious because years ago I felt one (a lump) before and had been hurled into hospital. It was benign and (I) assumed this one would be too. It was a bit unnerving when it wasn’t. But treatment is so swift you don’t have time to think about anything." Smith admits she found the aggressive chemo so difficult that, in her darkest moments, she would have been relieved if she had lost her fight against the disease.
She adds, "(Chemotherapy) was very peculiar, something that makes you feel much worse than the cancer itself, a very nasty thing. I used to go to treatment on my own, and nearly everybody else was with somebody. I wouldn’t have liked that. Why would you want to make anybody sit in those places? "I was relieved to be the age I was, because by now you feel like it’s all over anyway. That’s why I hated seeing young people receiving treatment. I couldn’t bear that, it didn’t seem fair. To be honest, you feel so ghastly you wouldn’t mind dying a lot of the time." The 74 year old has since received the all-clear from doctors and is due back for a check-up later this month (Oct09).

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