CityLife

Punk and folk? Ade's recipe for a riot

Ade and the Bad Shepherds

MILLIONS were glued to Hell's Kitchen, won by Dynasty star Linda Evans. Manchester University graduate Ade Edmonson, most famous for his portrayal of deranged student Vyvyan in cult comedy The Young Ones, took the runner's up position.

But many will have wondered why established actor, comedian, writer and director Ade even wanted to go into the kitchen in the first place.

He explains: "I've always wanted to learn more about cooking food and I've a herd of my own cattle - as Marco says, I grow my own!"

He didn't get off to a good start though, accidentally burning Marco's hand and being relegated to a waiter.

"I was keen to get back into the kitchen because it was so tiring being nice to everyone," he says. "At first I found Marco intimidating but I think he found my impersonation of him quite amusing."

So, Ade's verdict on the other celebs? Grant: 'a bit precious', Anthea: 'never stops talking', Jody: `enjoys getting people into trouble, and Linda Evans: 'my favourite'.

"However, it was a stupendous learning experience and I was really proud to be in the finals," he says.

But it's in a very different guise that we'll see Ade in Manchester next month when he brings his band, The Good Shepherds, to The Academy.

As well as scoring a number one with The Young Ones - the Comic Relief version of Living Doll with Cliff Richard - Ade has had a stint with The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band. And his own outfit now tackles covers of punk classics on folk instruments.

"If you've ever been out drinking at New Year, then you'll understand why I suddenly bought a mandolin and taught myself to play," he explains. "It's a pretty wonderful sound and makes songs like The Stranglers' No More Heroes sound completely different."

Holland

The Bad Shepherds have a new album called Yan Tan Tethera Methera - Northumberland shepherd's dialect for One, Two, Three, Four - and are on a 50-date tour of Britain and Holland.

"I'm really excited about the Manchester gig," he says. "I've visited regularly and watched it grow into an exciting city - much more vibrant than when I was a student."

Ade met comedy double act partner Rik Mayall while the pair were drama students in Manchester.

"We hit it off straight away because we had so much in common. Our parents were teachers. We shared the same sarcastic humour and became class clowns to mask the fact that we were completely non sporty. Our mums even sent us to university with the same dressing gowns!"

He also visits the city regularly because his middle daughter, Beattie, now lives here and has her own band, The Lady Garden, who are gaining some recognition.

The 52-year-old dad of three girls muses over whether his children think their parents are cool or not: "It must be cool having Jennifer Saunders as a mum. I'd like to think Beattie looks on me as a fellow musician but I'm probably a constant source of embarrassment to all my daughters - a bit like the character of Vernon I played in the television series Teenage Kicks."

Mayall and Edmonson helped set up The Comedy Store in London, along with other stalwarts of the 80s alternative comedy scene like Nigel Planer, Alexei Sayle and French and Saunders.

Their big break came in 1982 when their TV series, The Comic Strip Presents, debuted on the launch night of Channel 4.

The success of The Comic Strip Presents was followed by The Young Ones and several years later Rik and Ade were back with Bottom, and then Filthy, Rich and Catflap.

In 1997, Bottom became a stage show which toured for several years and it was after the 2003 stage tour, when they were working on a film version, that Rik's accident left him seriously ill. He was in a coma with a fractured skull for several days and now has to take medication to control epileptic fits.

Although Ade completed most of the script for the film - it became Guest House Paradiso - Rik was well enough to help. Since then the pair have worked together less, with Mayall's accident appearing to take the impetus out of their work.

But all might not be lost for fans of the double act. Ade says: "Since Rik's accident we've worked less together but we've both said that one day, when we're really old and grey, we'll do something - about two old pensioners sitting on a bench."

The Bad Shepherds play Band On The Wall tonight (Sept 30). £14.50.