Mark Watson (comedian)
Encyclopedia
Mark Andrew Watson is an English stand-up comedian
and novelist.
to Welsh
parents and attended Henleaze Junior school and then Bristol Grammar School
, where he won the prize of 'Gabbler of the year', before going to Queens' College, Cambridge
, where he studied English, gaining a first class degree.
At university he wrote, starred in, and directed a number of plays and comedy sketch shows including two years with the Cambridge Footlights
, with whom he was nominated for a Perrier Comedy Award (Best Newcomer) at the 2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe
.
Watson has appeared regularly at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, winning the first ever Panel Prize at the if.comeddies in 2006
and being nominated for Best Newcomer at the 2005 Perrier Comedy Awards. His other awards include the Time Out Critic's Choice Award 2006 and a Barry Award nomination for best show at the Melbourne Comedy Festival 2006.
Watson has performed several unusual shows at the Edinburgh Fringe and Melbourne Festivals, including marathon shows lasting 24 hours and more. His shows have featured guest appearances from other performers such as Tim Key
, Tim Minchin
, Adam Hills
, Daniel Kitson
, David O'Doherty
, Brendon Burns and John Dorney
as the balladeer.
Watson undertook his first long show at the 2004 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, which lasted 24 hours. At the end of the show he proposed to his girlfriend Emily Howes, who accepted.
At the 2006 Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Watson hosted a literary workshop-cum-interactive comedy show entitled Mark Watson, And His Audience, Write A Novel. The aim was to write, by the end of August, a novel begun from scratch and woven entirely from audience suggestions, with another 2,000 words or so added each day. The novel was not finished within the month but the project is set to continue albeit in by an, as yet, undecided method now that the festival has finished. The book so far is posted on the website MySpace
.
At the 2007 Fringe, Watson hosted a panel show We Need Answers with Alex Horne
and Tim Key
. This saw 16 comedians take part in a knock out quiz where all the questions and answers came from text service Any Question Answered
. Paul Sinha
won the competition, beating Josie Long
in the final. We Need Answers returned in 2008 with fewer rounds, Josie Long emerged as winner, beating Sinha in the semi-final and Kristen Schaal
in the final.
Watson performed his final 24 hour show at the 2009 Fringe along with his "Earth Summit" and his "Edit". The Earth Summit was Watson's version of the Al Gore
talk about world pollution and global warming and the Edit was a compilation of Watson's fringe shows to date, made particularly for those who had not seen him perform there. Watson's debut DVD, titled The Mark Watson Edit was initially due for release on 15 November 2010. However, Watson was forced to shelve the project and a new DVD recording will be released as his first DVD in late 2011.
In 2010, Watson took part in Channel 4's Comedy Gala
, a benefit show
held in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital
, filmed live at the O2 Arena
in London on 30 March.
on 12 February 2009, based on the Edinburgh Fringe
show of the same name. As with the live show, Watson co-hosted with Tim Key
and Alex Horne
. A further 13 episodes were broadcast later in 2009. Guests for the series included Germaine Greer
, Michael Rosen
and Jilly Goolden
.
's comedy panel show Mock The Week
; he has also been a panellist on BBC music quiz show Never Mind The Buzzcocks
four times—once as guest captain and once as presenter—in addition to appearing on current affairs panel show Have I Got News for You
. He has appeared on the popular BBC panel show Would I Lie To You?
and he also makes regular appearances on panel show debate programme Argumental
.
Watson appeared as a talking head
in Armando Iannucci
's spoof documentary series Time Trumpet
.
In Australia, Watson has been seen on Rove, Good News Week
, Spicks and Specks and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival
, all aired in April 2007.
Watson performed stand up
on episode one of Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow
, aired 7 June 2009.
On 6 May 2011 he appeared on New Zealand comedy panel show 7 Days
.
aired on BBC Radio 4
in February 2007, followed by a second series in August 2008. Both series featured poems by Tim Key
and music, performed by Tim Minchin
in the first series and Tom Basden
in the second. In August 2009, Watson hosted a three-episode series on BBC Radio 5 Live
called 100 Million or Bust, where a panel of guests attempted to spend £100 million on transfers as managers of an English Premier League team.
Another collaboration with Basden and Key, Mark Watson's Live Address To The Nation, was broadcast as a pilot in February 2011, and the BBC have commissioned another six episodes. These are planned for the last quarter of 2011.
show Fighting Talk
where he took part in the infamous "pen Gate" against Tom Watt, and got into a verbal fracas with John Rawling on his début appearance; he also boasted about of his show-biz meetings with Cameron Jerome
and Ricardo Fuller
.
. "Eleven" was released in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2010. He has written another book, Crap at the Environment (2008), following his own efforts to halve his carbon footprint over the course of one year and was the Book of the Week on BBC Radio 4
in the last week of July 2008.
as part of his 2009, "If You Prefer A Milder Comedian, Please Ask For One" live show).
As well as this he is also the voice over for the rabbit in an Innocent Smoothies advert in 2010.
On 25 February, Watson presented the 2009 NME Awards at Brixton Academy. At the start of the 2009/2010 season, Watson writes a regular article in the Bristol City official matchday programme Well Red.
In December 2009, Watson's television drama A Child's Christmases in Wales
was screened on BBC Four
.
was Watson's best man. On February 23, 2010, Emily gave birth to their first child, Kit Watson.
Stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy is a comedic art form. Usually, a comedian performs in front of a live audience, speaking directly to them. Their performances are sometimes filmed for later release via DVD, the internet, and television...
and novelist.
Early life
Watson was born in BristolBristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
to Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
parents and attended Henleaze Junior school and then Bristol Grammar School
Bristol Grammar School
Bristol Grammar School is a co-educational independent school in Clifton, Bristol, England. The school was founded in 1532 by two brothers, Robert and Nicholas Thorne....
, where he won the prize of 'Gabbler of the year', before going to Queens' College, Cambridge
Queens' College, Cambridge
Queens' College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England.The college was founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou , and refounded in 1465 by Elizabeth Woodville...
, where he studied English, gaining a first class degree.
At university he wrote, starred in, and directed a number of plays and comedy sketch shows including two years with the Cambridge Footlights
Footlights
Cambridge University Footlights Dramatic Club, commonly referred to simply as the Footlights, is an amateur theatrical club in Cambridge, England, founded in 1883 and run by the students of Cambridge University....
, with whom he was nominated for a Perrier Comedy Award (Best Newcomer) at the 2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe
2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe
The 2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe was the 54th Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The Fringe ran from 5–27 August 2001 and presented 1462 shows over 176 venues.-Scotsman Fringe First Awards:Week One:*Gagarin Way*Runt*Like Thunder*Bedbound...
.
Comedy
Although not Welsh himself, Watson delivers his act with a common Welsh accent which is not quite his own. He adopted it when he started stand-up comedy saying that it made him "more comfortable to be talking in a voice that I didn't quite recognise as my own".Watson has appeared regularly at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, winning the first ever Panel Prize at the if.comeddies in 2006
2006 Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-Events:2006 was the first Fringe following the introduction of the new legislation banning smoking indoors. During a photocall at the Assembly Rooms for a play in which he was playing Winston Churchill, the actor Mel Smith lit a cigar, flouting the ban...
and being nominated for Best Newcomer at the 2005 Perrier Comedy Awards. His other awards include the Time Out Critic's Choice Award 2006 and a Barry Award nomination for best show at the Melbourne Comedy Festival 2006.
Watson has performed several unusual shows at the Edinburgh Fringe and Melbourne Festivals, including marathon shows lasting 24 hours and more. His shows have featured guest appearances from other performers such as Tim Key
Tim Key
Tim Key is an English actor, comedy writer, and performance poet. In 2009, he was the winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award and was also nominated for the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality.-Edinburgh Fringe:...
, Tim Minchin
Tim Minchin
Timothy David "Tim" Minchin is a British-Australian comedian, actor, and musician.Tim Minchin is best known for his musical comedy, which has featured in six CDs, three DVDs and a number of live comedy shows which he has performed internationally. He has also appeared on television in Australia,...
, Adam Hills
Adam Hills
Adam Hills is an Australian comedian and television presenter. He has appeared on Australian and British television and is best known for his role hosting the Australian ABC music trivia show Spicks and Specks...
, Daniel Kitson
Daniel Kitson
Daniel Kitson is an English stand-up comedian.-Career:Born to a lecturer father and primary school head teacher mother, Kitson began performing comedy at the age of 16. He was a pupil at Scissett Middle School and Shelley College in Yorkshire, England...
, David O'Doherty
David O'Doherty
David Nicholas O'Doherty is a Perrier Award winning Irish stand-up comedian, author, musician, actor and playwright. His stand-up has won two awards at the Edinburgh Fringe, Best Newcomer first of all and the if.comedy award in 2008 for his show Let's Comedy. He has been nominated twice more for...
, Brendon Burns and John Dorney
John Dorney
John Dorney is a British writer and actor best known for stage roles including the National Theatre and his scripts for the Big Finish Doctor Who range...
as the balladeer.
Watson undertook his first long show at the 2004 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, which lasted 24 hours. At the end of the show he proposed to his girlfriend Emily Howes, who accepted.
At the 2006 Edinburgh Festival Fringe
2006 Edinburgh Festival Fringe
-Events:2006 was the first Fringe following the introduction of the new legislation banning smoking indoors. During a photocall at the Assembly Rooms for a play in which he was playing Winston Churchill, the actor Mel Smith lit a cigar, flouting the ban...
Watson hosted a literary workshop-cum-interactive comedy show entitled Mark Watson, And His Audience, Write A Novel. The aim was to write, by the end of August, a novel begun from scratch and woven entirely from audience suggestions, with another 2,000 words or so added each day. The novel was not finished within the month but the project is set to continue albeit in by an, as yet, undecided method now that the festival has finished. The book so far is posted on the website MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
.
At the 2007 Fringe, Watson hosted a panel show We Need Answers with Alex Horne
Alex Horne
Alex Horne is a British comedian.He was educated at Lancing College and the University of Cambridge, where he was a member of Footlights.-Career:...
and Tim Key
Tim Key
Tim Key is an English actor, comedy writer, and performance poet. In 2009, he was the winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award and was also nominated for the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality.-Edinburgh Fringe:...
. This saw 16 comedians take part in a knock out quiz where all the questions and answers came from text service Any Question Answered
Any Question Answered
63336 , is a premium-rate SMS mobile question and answer service and micropublishing service based in the United Kingdom, operated by 63336 Ltd . Mobile phone users can text 63336 with any question and get a reply, on a charge per question basis...
. Paul Sinha
Paul Sinha
Paul Sinha is a British stand-up comedian and broadcaster. Sinha is openly gay, a subject he has discussed on stage.-Education:Sinha was educated at Dulwich College and St George's Hospital Medical School...
won the competition, beating Josie Long
Josie Long
Josie Long is an English comedian.-Background:Long spent her early life in Orpington, South East London, where she attended Newstead Wood School for Girls in Swift House. She also attended GIFT Ltd. summer schools. She began performing stand-up comedy at 14, winning the BBC New Comedy Awards at...
in the final. We Need Answers returned in 2008 with fewer rounds, Josie Long emerged as winner, beating Sinha in the semi-final and Kristen Schaal
Kristen Schaal
Kristen Schaal is an American actress, writer and comedienne, best known for her role as Mel in the HBO series Flight of the Conchords, as Louise in Bob's Burgers and as a contributor on The Daily Show.-Early life:...
in the final.
Watson performed his final 24 hour show at the 2009 Fringe along with his "Earth Summit" and his "Edit". The Earth Summit was Watson's version of the Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....
talk about world pollution and global warming and the Edit was a compilation of Watson's fringe shows to date, made particularly for those who had not seen him perform there. Watson's debut DVD, titled The Mark Watson Edit was initially due for release on 15 November 2010. However, Watson was forced to shelve the project and a new DVD recording will be released as his first DVD in late 2011.
In 2010, Watson took part in Channel 4's Comedy Gala
Channel 4's Comedy Gala
Channel 4's Comedy Gala is a British stand-up comedy benefit show organised Channel 4 in aid of the Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital. The gig is filmed live at the O2 Arena in London, and then broadcast later by Channel 4...
, a benefit show
Benefit concert
A benefit concert or charity concert is a concert, show or gala featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate humanitarian crisis. Such events raise both funds and public awareness to address the cause at...
held in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children is a children's hospital located in London, United Kingdom...
, filmed live at the O2 Arena
The O2 arena (London)
The O2 Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the centre of The O2, a large entertainment complex on the Greenwich peninsula in London, England.With a capacity of up to 20,000 depending on the event, it is second largest...
in London on 30 March.
Live shows
| Show name | Notes | |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe The 2001 Edinburgh Festival Fringe was the 54th Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The Fringe ran from 5–27 August 2001 and presented 1462 shows over 176 venues.-Scotsman Fringe First Awards:Week One:*Gagarin Way*Runt*Like Thunder*Bedbound... |
Far too Happy | Cambridge Footlights revue with Edward Jaspers, Tim Key Tim Key Tim Key is an English actor, comedy writer, and performance poet. In 2009, he was the winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award and was also nominated for the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality.-Edinburgh Fringe:... , Day Macaskill, James Morris and Sophie Winkleman Sophie Winkleman Sophie Lara Winkleman is an English actress who has worked extensively in television, film and stage. On 14 February 2009, she became engaged to Lord Frederick Windsor, the son of Prince Michael and Princess Michael of Kent. They married in Hampton Court on 12 September 2009... . Perrier Comedy Award nomination |
| 2004 Edinburgh Festival Fringe | Stereocomics | With Rhod Gilbert Rhod Gilbert Rhodri "Rhod" Gilbert, is a Welsh comedian who was nominated in 2005 for the Perrier Best Newcomer Award. In 2008, he was nominated for the main if.comedy .... |
| Mark Watson's Overambitious 24-Hour Show | ||
| 2005 Edinburgh Festival Fringe | 50 Years Before Death And The Awful Prospect Of Eternity | Perrier Best Newcomer Award nomination |
| 2005 Years in 2005 Minutes | ||
| 2006 Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2006 Edinburgh Festival Fringe -Events:2006 was the first Fringe following the introduction of the new legislation banning smoking indoors. During a photocall at the Assembly Rooms for a play in which he was playing Winston Churchill, the actor Mel Smith lit a cigar, flouting the ban... |
I'm Worried That I'm Starting To Hate Almost Everyone In The World | |
| Mark Watson's Seemingly Impossible 36-Hour Circuit Of The World | Won if.comeddie award Panel Prize | |
| Mark Watson, And His Audience, Write A Novel | ||
| 2007 Edinburgh Festival Fringe | Can I Briefly Talk To You About The Point Of Life? | Followed by UK tour |
| Mark Watson's 24 Hour Jamboree To Save The Planet | ||
| We Need Answers | Gameshow. With Tim Key and Alex Horne Alex Horne Alex Horne is a British comedian.He was educated at Lancing College and the University of Cambridge, where he was a member of Footlights.-Career:... . Later transferred to BBC Four BBC Four BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable.... |
|
| Melbourne International Comedy Festival Melbourne International Comedy Festival The Melbourne International Comedy Festival is the third-largest international comedy festival in the world and the largest cultural event in Australia. Established in 1987, it takes place annually in Melbourne over four weeks in April typically opening on or around April Fool's Day... 2008 |
Mark Watson (And Friends) Take Control Of The World In 24 Hours | |
| 2008 Edinburgh Festival Fringe | All The Thoughts I've Had Since I Was Born | Followed by UK tour |
| We Need Answers | With Tim Key and Alex Horne | |
| 2009 Edinburgh Festival Fringe | Mark Watson's Last Ever 24-Hour Show | |
| 2011 Edinburgh Festival Fringe | Mark Watson's First Ever Week Long Show | |
| Mark Watson's Earth Summit | ||
| The Mark Watson Edit | ||
| The Hotel | Comedic theatre show written and directed by Mark Watson | |
We Need Answers
A three-episode run of We Need Answers began on BBC FourBBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
on 12 February 2009, based on the Edinburgh Fringe
Edinburgh Fringe
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is the world’s largest arts festival. Established in 1947 as an alternative to the Edinburgh International Festival, it takes place annually in Scotland's capital, in the month of August...
show of the same name. As with the live show, Watson co-hosted with Tim Key
Tim Key
Tim Key is an English actor, comedy writer, and performance poet. In 2009, he was the winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award and was also nominated for the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality.-Edinburgh Fringe:...
and Alex Horne
Alex Horne
Alex Horne is a British comedian.He was educated at Lancing College and the University of Cambridge, where he was a member of Footlights.-Career:...
. A further 13 episodes were broadcast later in 2009. Guests for the series included Germaine Greer
Germaine Greer
Germaine Greer is an Australian writer, academic, journalist and scholar of early modern English literature, widely regarded as one of the most significant feminist voices of the later 20th century....
, Michael Rosen
Michael Rosen
Michael Wayne Rosen is a broadcaster, children's novelist and poet and the author of 140 books. He was appointed as the fifth Children's Laureate in June 2007, succeeding Jacqueline Wilson, and held this honour until 2009....
and Jilly Goolden
Jilly Goolden
Jilly Goolden is a British wine critic, journalist and television personality.-Education:Goolden was educated at an independent convent school ,-Career:...
.
Mark Watson Kicks Off
In 2010 ITV 4 commissioned Mark Watson Kicks Off. This is a sports panel show hosted by Watson where each week are 3 celebrities taken part in numerous rounds. Rounds include "Beat the Best" where Mark takes on a sporting champion but with a twist and "I'm not a successful sports star but I'm related to someone who is" where the 3 celebrities ask questions to a guest who is related to a sports star.Improvisation My Dear Mark Watson
Mark Watson's current TV show is Improvisation My Dear Mark Watson, on Dave.Guest appearances
Watson has made regular appearances on BBC TwoBBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
's comedy panel show Mock The Week
Mock the Week
Mock the Week is a British topical celebrity panel game hosted by Dara Ó Briain that launched in 2005. The game is influenced by improvised topical stand-up comedy, with several rounds requiring players to deliver answers on unexpected subjects on the spur of the moment.It is made by independent...
; he has also been a panellist on BBC music quiz show Never Mind The Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a comedy panel game television show with a pop music theme, currently without a permanent presenter. It stars Phill Jupitus and Noel Fielding as team captains. The show is produced by Talkback Thames for the BBC, and is usually aired on BBC Two...
four times—once as guest captain and once as presenter—in addition to appearing on current affairs panel show Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show...
. He has appeared on the popular BBC panel show Would I Lie To You?
Would I Lie to You?
"Would I Lie to You?" is a song recorded by British pop duo Eurythmics. It was written by band members Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart. Released in the UK and the U.S. from Eurythmics' fifth album Be Yourself Tonight, the song was the first by the duo to feature their change in musical direction...
and he also makes regular appearances on panel show debate programme Argumental
Argumental
Argumental is a British improvised comedy panel game in which two teams captained by Robert Webb and Seann Walsh debate and argue on various topics. Sean Lock hosts the game. It is made by independent production company Tiger Aspect Productions for Dave and made its debut on 27 October 2008...
.
Watson appeared as a talking head
Talking head
Talking head may refer to:Computers and internet*Computer facial animation, area of computer graphics that animates images of the human head and face*Interactive online charactersFilm and television*Talking Head , 1992 film by Mamoru Oshii...
in Armando Iannucci
Armando Iannucci
Armando Giovanni Iannucci is a Scottish comedian, satirist, writer, director, performer and radio producer. Born in Glasgow, he studied at Oxford University and left graduate work on a PhD about John Milton to pursue a career in comedy....
's spoof documentary series Time Trumpet
Time Trumpet
Time Trumpet is a six-episode satirical television comedy series which aired on BBC Two in 2006. The series was written by Armando Iannucci, Roger Drew and Will Smith in a similar manner to Iannucci's earlier one-off programmes 2004: The Stupid Version and Clinton: His Struggle with...
.
In Australia, Watson has been seen on Rove, Good News Week
Good News Week
Good News Week is an Australian satirical panel game show hosted by Paul McDermott that initially aired from 19 April 1996 to 27 May 2000, and resumed on 11 February 2008 to 9 May 2011. The show aired first on ABC TV before it was bought by Network Ten in 1999...
, Spicks and Specks and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival
Melbourne International Comedy Festival
The Melbourne International Comedy Festival is the third-largest international comedy festival in the world and the largest cultural event in Australia. Established in 1987, it takes place annually in Melbourne over four weeks in April typically opening on or around April Fool's Day...
, all aired in April 2007.
Watson performed stand up
Stand-up comedy
Stand-up comedy is a comedic art form. Usually, a comedian performs in front of a live audience, speaking directly to them. Their performances are sometimes filmed for later release via DVD, the internet, and television...
on episode one of Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow
Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow
Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow is a British stand-up comedy television series hosted by comedian Michael McIntyre from different venues around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The first series was broadcast with six episodes in 2009. Each episode features a routine from McIntyre,...
, aired 7 June 2009.
On 6 May 2011 he appeared on New Zealand comedy panel show 7 Days
7 Days (New Zealand)
7 Days is a New Zealand comedy gameshow similar to the British program Have I Got News for You, hosted by Jeremy Corbett. Paul Ego and Dai Henwood usually appear on each episode, along with other comedians, who form teams and answer questions about news stories from the last week.-Show format:At...
.
Radio
Mark Watson Makes the World Substantially BetterMark Watson Makes the World Substantially Better
Mark Watson Makes the World Substantially Better is a radio comedy programme starring Mark Watson. It started on BBC Radio 4 on 13 February 2007...
aired on BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
in February 2007, followed by a second series in August 2008. Both series featured poems by Tim Key
Tim Key
Tim Key is an English actor, comedy writer, and performance poet. In 2009, he was the winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award and was also nominated for the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality.-Edinburgh Fringe:...
and music, performed by Tim Minchin
Tim Minchin
Timothy David "Tim" Minchin is a British-Australian comedian, actor, and musician.Tim Minchin is best known for his musical comedy, which has featured in six CDs, three DVDs and a number of live comedy shows which he has performed internationally. He has also appeared on television in Australia,...
in the first series and Tom Basden
Tom Basden
Tom Basden is a British actor and comedy writer, and a member of the British four man sketch group Cowards. He has written and performed extensively for comedy shows on the BBC and Channel 4 and often collaborates in two-man shows with fellow Cowards member Tim Key.-Education:Basden was educated...
in the second. In August 2009, Watson hosted a three-episode series on BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is the BBC's national radio service that specialises in live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries...
called 100 Million or Bust, where a panel of guests attempted to spend £100 million on transfers as managers of an English Premier League team.
Another collaboration with Basden and Key, Mark Watson's Live Address To The Nation, was broadcast as a pilot in February 2011, and the BBC have commissioned another six episodes. These are planned for the last quarter of 2011.
Guest appearances
Watson has made regular appearances on the BBC Radio 5 LiveBBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is the BBC's national radio service that specialises in live BBC News, phone-ins, and sports commentaries...
show Fighting Talk
Fighting Talk
Fighting Talk is a topical sports show broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live during the English football season. Its first series aired in October 2003, and was presented by Johnny Vaughan. The second series featured Christian O'Connell. It is currently hosted by Colin Murray and is aired on Saturday...
where he took part in the infamous "pen Gate" against Tom Watt, and got into a verbal fracas with John Rawling on his début appearance; he also boasted about of his show-biz meetings with Cameron Jerome
Cameron Jerome
Cameron Zishan Rana-Jerome is an English footballer who plays for Stoke City as a striker. He also played for Cardiff City in the Football League, and for Birmingham City in the Football League and Premier League, and at international level has several caps for the England under-21 team.-Early...
and Ricardo Fuller
Ricardo Fuller
Ricardo Dwayne Fuller is a Jamaican footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Stoke City and the Jamaica national team....
.
Books
Watson has written three novels: Bullet Points (2004), A Light-Hearted Look At Murder (2007) and Eleven (2010), published by Chatto and WindusChatto and Windus
Chatto & Windus has been, since 1987, an imprint of Random House, publishers. It was originally an important publisher of books in London, founded in the Victorian era....
. "Eleven" was released in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2010. He has written another book, Crap at the Environment (2008), following his own efforts to halve his carbon footprint over the course of one year and was the Book of the Week on BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
in the last week of July 2008.
Other work
In 2009, Watson appeared in adverts for Magners Pear Cider (which became the subject of an extended routine by fellow comic Stewart LeeStewart Lee
Stewart Lee is an English stand-up comedian, writer and director known for being one half of the 1990s comedy duo Lee and Herring, and for co-writing and directing the critically acclaimed and controversial stage show Jerry Springer - The Opera...
as part of his 2009, "If You Prefer A Milder Comedian, Please Ask For One" live show).
As well as this he is also the voice over for the rabbit in an Innocent Smoothies advert in 2010.
On 25 February, Watson presented the 2009 NME Awards at Brixton Academy. At the start of the 2009/2010 season, Watson writes a regular article in the Bristol City official matchday programme Well Red.
In December 2009, Watson's television drama A Child's Christmases in Wales
A Child's Christmases in Wales
A Child's Christmases in Wales was a 2009 one off period comedy written by comedian Mark Watson, starring Ruth Jones, Paul Kaye, and Steve Speirs...
was screened on BBC Four
BBC Four
BBC Four is a British television network operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation and available to digital television viewers on Freeview, IPTV, satellite and cable....
.
Personal life
Watson is married to Emily Watson-Howes, a fellow writer and performer. Tim KeyTim Key
Tim Key is an English actor, comedy writer, and performance poet. In 2009, he was the winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award and was also nominated for the Malcolm Hardee Award for Comic Originality.-Edinburgh Fringe:...
was Watson's best man. On February 23, 2010, Emily gave birth to their first child, Kit Watson.