Alexis Dubus Explained

Alexis Dubus
Pseudonym:	Marcel Lucont
Nationality:	British
Birth Place:	Buckinghamshire, England
Medium:	Stand-up, character comedy, spoken word

Alexis Dubus (born 1979) is an English alternative comedian and actor known for his French alter ego Marcel Lucont.

Born in Buckinghamshire, he studied Philosophy and Psychology at the University of Warwick, where he became part of the sketch troupe Ubersausage.

In 2003 he set up Falling Down With Laughter Comedy Club in London Bridge with fellow comedian Sy Thomas. The club ran until 2010.

He is a board member of The Alternative Comedy Memorial Society, at which he has appeared in various guises.

Dubus studied Le Jeu and Clowning at École Philippe Gaulier under master clown Philippe Gaulier.

His television acting roles include Nathan Barley (Channel 4), Pramface (BBC3), Derek (Channel 4) and Red Dwarf XI (Dave). As a stand-up comedian he's appeared on John Bishop's 2014 Christmas Show,^[1] Set List,^[2] Russell Howard's Good News and various stand-up shows on Comedy Central.^[3] He was also a regular on series 2 and 3 of Live at the Electric.^[4]

In New Zealand he has been a panellist on Best Bits and 7 Days.^[5]

He has made radio appearances on BBC Radio 4 Extra in 4 Extra Stands Up^[6] and BBC Radio 1's Phil And Alice's Comedy Lounge.^[7]

He performed at the Adelaide Fringe for several years, where he stirred local debate in 2016 after saying that the festival had lost its way, making it increasingly difficult for independent producers to make money. He returned to perform in the 2018 Fringe, praising a new initiative which helped to put more money in the artists' pockets by dropping inside ticket charges, but left disappointed that the festival was still not suited to independent producers and venues, losing track of the reason for its initial inception.^{[8] [9] [10]}

Dubus hosts the Comedy Cul-de-Sac podcast, in which established comedians give accounts of their worst ever experiences on stage.

Bibliography

• Lucont, Marcel (New Holland Publishers, 2011). What We French Think of You British... And Where You Are Going Wrong^[11]

Discography

As Marcel Lucont, he released the albums Vive Lucont! (2013) and Flâneur, Raconteur, Bon-Viveur (2018), both featuring songs and poetry.^[12]

Edinburgh Fringe shows

• A R#ddy Brief History of Swearing (2008/9). A comedy lecture on the history of curse words, which won Dubus a Three Weeks Editors' award.^[13]
• Marcel Lucont: Sexual Metro (2009). The debut of Dubus's long-running French character Marcel Lucont, which won the Best Comedy Individual Award at Buxton Fringe.^[14]
• A Surprisingly Tasteful Show About Nudity (2010). Another lecture in the vein of his Swearing show, Dubus addressed the taboo of nudity, enlisting a different Fringe performer every night to stand as a life model as the audience entered the room.
• Marcel Lucont: Encore (2010). Dubus's second hour performed in character, also featuring a live artist on stage, sketching audience members. The show debuted at Edinburgh Fringe and went on to play at Adelaide Fringe, Melbourne Comedy Festival, Sydney Comedy Festival and New Zealand Comedy Festival.
• Marcel Lucont Etc. – A Chat Show (2011). An irreverent chat show hosted by Marcel Lucont, described as "the prince of the chat-show genre" by The List.^[15]
• Marcel Lucont: Gallic Symbol (2012). Winner of the Amused Moose Laughter Award for Best Comedy^[16] and also the Fringe World Award for Best Comedy.^[17] Alexis toured the UK with a 90-minute version of the show.
• Marcel Lucont A La Carte (2013). A concept show in which, for 10 days, people could bid for Marcel to perform for an hour a day at a time and location of their choosing, selecting certain poems, songs and routines from a menu.^[18]
• Alexis Dubus: Cars And Girls (2013/14). A series of true travel tales, first performed as a stand-up show and then adapted into a 50-minute poem, listed in Chortle's Ten Most Memorable Shows of 2014^[19] and receiving 5 stars from The Scotsman.^[20]
• Marcel Lucont Is (2014). A multimedia show focusing on morality, mortality and masculinity, which also became a 90-minute touring show and was nominated for Best Comedy Show at the Fringe World Awards.
• Alexis Dubus Verses The World (2016–18). A collection of nonsense poems, songs and one-liners, shortlisted for Best Comedy Show at the Fringe World Awards 2018.
• Marcel Lucont's Whine List (2016–18). An interactive show, discussing audience members' worst moments in life. It was billed as "a kind of group therapy session, but one where everyone leaves more depressed." Whine List became a 30-date UK tour in 2017 and toured for 4 months around Australia and New Zealand in 2018.
• Marcel Lucont: No. Dix (2019–20). A celebration of Marcel's tenth year performing, featuring a live band. It was listed as one of the top ten comedy shows at Edinburgh Fringe 2019 by The Telegraph. ^[21]

External links

• Official website
  • The Comedy Cul-de-Sac podcast
• Interview on The Comedian's Comedian with Stuart Goldsmith podcast

Notes and References

1. Web site: John Bishop's Christmas Show episode guide . bbc.co.uk.
2. Web site: Set List episode guide . comedy.co.uk.
3. Web site: Russell Howard's Good News episode guide . bbc.co.uk.
4. Web site: Live At The Electric episode guide . comedy.co.uk.
5. Web site: 7 Days official site . tv3.co.nz.
6. Web site: 4 Extra Stands Up episode guide . comedy.co.uk.
7. Web site: Phil And Alice's Comedy Lounge . bbc.co.uk.
8. Web site: Adelaide Fringe. Artists Praise Adelaide Fringe For Cutting Inside Charges. 7 March 2018. 19 August 2019. 19 August 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190819054750/https://adelaidefringe.com.au/news/artists-praise-adelaide-fringe-for-cutting-inside-charges. dead.
9. Web site: Adelaide Fringe: If you can make it here... . Keen . Suzie. 8 March 2016 . InDaily . Solstice Media . 14 March 2016.
10. Web site: Political leaders welcome Fringe debate . Richardson . Tom. 8 March 2016 . InDaily . Solstice Media . 14 March 2016.
11. Web site: What We French Think of You British... And Where You Are Going Wrong . 1847738257 . goodreads.com.
12. Web site: Marcel Lucont on Bandcamp . bandcamp.com.
13. News: A R#ddy Brief History of Swearing. Three Weeks. 24 August 2008.
14. News: Buxton Fringe Awards 2009. 26 July 2009.
15. News: Prince of the chat show genre. The List. 24 August 2011.
16. News: Marcel Lucont wins Amused Moose Laughter Award. British Comedy Guide. 19 August 2012.
17. News: Fringe World Award winners 2013. 30 April 2013. 11 March 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20160305003646/https://www.fringeworld.com.au/downloads/2706/FRINGE_WORLD_2013_Report.pdf. 5 March 2016. dead.
18. News: French comedian turns auction hero. Daily Record. 26 July 2013.
19. News: Ten Most Memorable Shows of 2014 . Chortle.co.uk. 28 December 2014.
20. News: Alexis Dubus: Cars And Girls. The Scotsman. 22 August 2014. 11 March 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150402095006/http://www.wow247.co.uk/blog/2014/08/22/alexis-dubus-cars-and-girls/. 2 April 2015. dead.
21. News: 50 Best Things To See At Edinburgh Fringe 2019 . The Telegraph. 16 August 2019.