Tim FitzHigham
Encyclopedia
Tim FitzHigham FRSA FRGS is an award winning British
comedian
, author
, and world record
holder. The feats he has performed include paddling a paper boat down 160 miles of the River Thames
, rowing a bathtub
across the English Channel
, and inflating the world's largest balloon
.
and Jonny Saunders
in "Infinite Number of Monkeys - Sketch Comedy of Hypotheticals", where he was nominated for the Perrier Comedy Award (now the Edinburgh Comedy Award) for best newcomer. In 2000 he established Infinite Number of Monkeys as a production company and in the same year won a Spirit of the Fringe Award. His live shows, with topics ranging from the Karma Sutra to Morris Dancing, have been made Critic’s Choice in various newspapers, including The Times
, The Sunday Times
, The Daily Telegraph
, The Independent
, The Guardian
, The Observer
, The Scotsman
, Scotland on Sunday
, The Evening Standard, Time Out and Metro.
The shows he has performed include Don Quixote, in which he attempted to live like a medieval knight errant in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the publication of the novel Don Quixote. When he appeared as a guest on BBC Radio 4
's The Museum of Curiosity
, he donated the novel Don Quixote to the museum. Eventually it was decided that Don Quixote would be better suited as the security guard on the museum steps where he could do less damage.
In 2011, he was nominated for the Malcolm Hardee
Cunning Stunt Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
. The record had stood for 383 years, having been set in 1619 by John Taylor
, a Jacobite
poet
and Queen's Waterman.
His second such feat was being the first person to row a bathtub across the English Channel. His first attempt was in 2004 for Sport Relief
, when he tried to row from France
to Tower Bridge
, London
in a bathtub made by Thomas Crapper and Co. Ltd
, named "Lilibet II", after the childhood nickname of Queen Elizabeth II
. However, a storm on 14 July consisting of Force 6 winds resulted in the attempt failing and bathtub being damaged. In 2005, FitzHigham made a second attempt, this time for Comic Relief, and successfully crossed. He later wrote about the experience in his first book, In The Bath, later retitled All At Sea, and the story was turned into a show that was performed at the Fringe. In honour of the event, Thomas Crapper and Co. Ltd made a special lavatory named after him. It is only the second commemorative lavatory in history, the other being made for Queen Victoria's jubilee
.
In June 2006, FitzHigham, along with impressionist Alistair McGowan
, the UK Environment Agency
and the United Nations
set new British and European records assembling the longest washing line in the country in Trafalgar Square
, London. It was done in order to raise awareness environmental issues and UN World Environment Day.
In November, 2006, FitzHigham inflated the world's largest man-inflated balloon to raise awareness of environmental issues, which held 19,000 pints of air. During the attempt he fainted twice within two hours.
In film, he appears as a drunk actor in the DVD cut of The Wolfman alongside Benicio del Toro
and as himself in the cinema release of Hereafter starring Matt Damon
and directed by Clint Eastwood
. His book All At Sea is also featured in the film. He also starred in Morgan Flynn – a short by Academy Award-nominated director Tanel Toom
.
, Freeman of the Company of Watermen and Lightermen of the River Thames, Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts, Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, the Commodore of Sudbury Quay, Pittancer of Selby Town and Most Puissant Knight de Santa Maria.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, and world record
World record
A world record is usually the best global performance ever recorded and verified in a specific skill or sport. The book Guinness World Records collates and publishes notable records of all types, from first and best to worst human achievements, to extremes in the natural world and beyond...
holder. The feats he has performed include paddling a paper boat down 160 miles of the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
, rowing a bathtub
Bathtub
A bath , bathtub , or tub is a large container for holding water in which a person may bathe . Most modern bathtubs are made of acrylic or fiberglass, but alternatives are available in enamel over steel or cast iron, and occasionally waterproof finished wood...
across the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
, and inflating the world's largest balloon
Balloon
A balloon is an inflatable flexible bag filled with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, or air. Modern balloons can be made from materials such as rubber, latex, polychloroprene, or a nylon fabric, while some early balloons were made of dried animal bladders, such as the pig...
.
Career
FitzHigham began telling funny stories in a rum shop in the West Indies while working as a pig farmer, this may have been the beginnings of his work as a stand-up comedian. Back in the UK in 1999, he performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with James CareyJames Carey
James Carey was a Fenian and informer most notable for his involvement in the Phoenix Park murders.Carey was son of Francis Carey, a bricklayer, who came from Celbridge, in Kildare, to Dublin, where his son was born in James Street in 1845. He also was a bricklayer, and for 18 years continued in...
and Jonny Saunders
Jonny Saunders
Jonny Saunders is a former British radio sports reporter, presenter and commentator. He worked for the BBC and featured on Radios 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6 Music...
in "Infinite Number of Monkeys - Sketch Comedy of Hypotheticals", where he was nominated for the Perrier Comedy Award (now the Edinburgh Comedy Award) for best newcomer. In 2000 he established Infinite Number of Monkeys as a production company and in the same year won a Spirit of the Fringe Award. His live shows, with topics ranging from the Karma Sutra to Morris Dancing, have been made Critic’s Choice in various newspapers, including The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
, The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, The Observer
The Observer
The Observer is a British newspaper, published on Sundays. In the same place on the political spectrum as its daily sister paper The Guardian, which acquired it in 1993, it takes a liberal or social democratic line on most issues. It is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper.-Origins:The first issue,...
, The Scotsman
The Scotsman
The Scotsman is a British newspaper, published in Edinburgh.As of August 2011 it had an audited circulation of 38,423, down from about 100,000 in the 1980s....
, Scotland on Sunday
Scotland on Sunday
Scotland on Sunday is a Scottish Sunday newspaper, published in Edinburgh by The Scotsman Publications Ltd and consequently assuming the role of Sunday sister to its daily stablemate The Scotsman...
, The Evening Standard, Time Out and Metro.
The shows he has performed include Don Quixote, in which he attempted to live like a medieval knight errant in celebration of the 400th anniversary of the publication of the novel Don Quixote. When he appeared as a guest 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...
's The Museum of Curiosity
The Museum of Curiosity
The Museum of Curiosity, formerly titled The Professor of Curiosity, is a comedy panel game on BBC Radio 4 that was first broadcast on 20 February 2008. It stars John Lloyd as "The Professor of Ignorance at the University of Buckingham" and owner of the fictional "Museum of Curiosity"...
, he donated the novel Don Quixote to the museum. Eventually it was decided that Don Quixote would be better suited as the security guard on the museum steps where he could do less damage.
In 2011, he was nominated for the Malcolm Hardee
Malcolm Hardee
Malcolm Hardee was an English comedian, author, comedy club proprietor, compère, agent, manager and "amateur sensationalist"....
Cunning Stunt Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Feats
FitzHigham holds several world records and has achieved many unusual feats. The first he achieved in 2003, which was to paddle a paper boat down 160 miles of the River Thames, which he did to raise money for Comic ReliefComic Relief
Comic Relief is an operating British charity, founded in 1985 by the comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and comedian Lenny Henry in response to famine in Ethiopia. The highlight of Comic Relief's appeal is Red Nose Day, a biennial telethon held in March, alternating with sister project Sport Relief...
. The record had stood for 383 years, having been set in 1619 by John Taylor
John Taylor (poet)
John Taylor was an English poet who dubbed himself "The Water Poet".-Biography:He was born in Gloucester, 24 August 1578....
, a Jacobite
Jacobitism
Jacobitism was the political movement in Britain dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England, Scotland, later the Kingdom of Great Britain, and the Kingdom of Ireland...
poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and Queen's Waterman.
His second such feat was being the first person to row a bathtub across the English Channel. His first attempt was in 2004 for Sport Relief
Sport Relief
Sport Relief is a biennial charity event from Comic Relief, in association with BBC Sport, which brings together the worlds of sport and entertainment to raise money to help vulnerable people in both the UK and the world's poorest countries...
, when he tried to row from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
to Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, England, over the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, from which it takes its name...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in a bathtub made by Thomas Crapper and Co. Ltd
Thomas Crapper
Thomas Crapper was a plumber who founded Thomas Crapper & Co. in London. Contrary to widespread misconceptions, Crapper did not invent the flush toilet. He did, however, do much to increase the popularity of the toilet, and developed some important related inventions, such as the ballcock...
, named "Lilibet II", after the childhood nickname of Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
. However, a storm on 14 July consisting of Force 6 winds resulted in the attempt failing and bathtub being damaged. In 2005, FitzHigham made a second attempt, this time for Comic Relief, and successfully crossed. He later wrote about the experience in his first book, In The Bath, later retitled All At Sea, and the story was turned into a show that was performed at the Fringe. In honour of the event, Thomas Crapper and Co. Ltd made a special lavatory named after him. It is only the second commemorative lavatory in history, the other being made for Queen Victoria's jubilee
Golden Jubilee
A Golden Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 50th anniversary.- In Thailand :King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest-reigning monarch, celebrated his Golden Jubilee on 9 June 1996.- In the Commonwealth Realms :...
.
In June 2006, FitzHigham, along with impressionist Alistair McGowan
Alistair McGowan
Alistair McGowan is a British impressionist, stand-up comic, actor, singer and writer best known to British audiences for The Big Impression , which was, for four years, one of BBC1's top-rating comedy programmes - winning numerous awards, including a BAFTA in 2003...
, the UK Environment Agency
Environment Agency
The Environment Agency is a British non-departmental public body of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and an Assembly Government Sponsored Body of the Welsh Assembly Government that serves England and Wales.-Purpose:...
and the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
set new British and European records assembling the longest washing line in the country in Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square is a public space and tourist attraction in central London, England, United Kingdom. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. There are a number of statues and sculptures in the square, with one plinth displaying changing pieces of...
, London. It was done in order to raise awareness environmental issues and UN World Environment Day.
In November, 2006, FitzHigham inflated the world's largest man-inflated balloon to raise awareness of environmental issues, which held 19,000 pints of air. During the attempt he fainted twice within two hours.
In film, he appears as a drunk actor in the DVD cut of The Wolfman alongside Benicio del Toro
Benicio del Toro
Benicio Monserrate Rafael del Toro Sánchez is a Puerto Rican and Spanish actor and film producer. He won an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a BAFTA Award for his role as Javier Rodríguez in Traffic . He is also known for his roles as Fred Fenster in The Usual...
and as himself in the cinema release of Hereafter starring Matt Damon
Matt Damon
Matthew Paige "Matt" Damon is an American actor, screenwriter, and philanthropist whose career was launched following the success of the film Good Will Hunting , from a screenplay he co-wrote with friend Ben Affleck...
and directed by Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
. His book All At Sea is also featured in the film. He also starred in Morgan Flynn – a short by Academy Award-nominated director Tanel Toom
Tanel Toom
Tanel Toom is an Estonian Oscar nominated director and screenwriter.Tanel Toom studied filmmaking at the Tallinn University, graduating with a BA in 2005. After that, he worked as a director for commercials and as a first assistant director. In 2008 he completed his fourth short film, The Second...
.
Titles
Other than his records, FitzHigham has been kindly recognised in various ways, titles and honours. These include being a Freeman of the City of LondonFreedom of the City
Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by some municipalities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and Rhodesia to esteemed members of its community and to organisations to be honoured, often for service to the community;...
, Freeman of the Company of Watermen and Lightermen of the River Thames, Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts, Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, the Commodore of Sudbury Quay, Pittancer of Selby Town and Most Puissant Knight de Santa Maria.
External links
- FitzHigham.com, general website about his life.
- TimsTub.com, website covering his world record boating trips.