The Mighty Boosh is a British comedy troupe featuring comedians Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding. Developed from three stage shows and a six-episode radio series, it has since spanned a total of 20 television episodes for BBC Three which aired from 2004 to 2007, and two live tours of the UK, as well as two live shows in the United States. The first television series is set in a zoo operated by Bob Fossil, the second in a flat and the third in a secondhand shop in Dalston called Nabootique.
Various members of The Mighty Boosh have appeared in a number of different comedy series including Nathan Barley, Snuff Box and Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy, and regular Boosh collaborators included Richard Ayoade and Matt Berry. The troupe is named after a childhood hairstyle of co-star Michael Fielding.
History
Fielding first met Barratt after seeing him perform his solo stand-up routine at the Hellfire Comedy Club in the Wycombe Swan Theatre, in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. The pair soon found that they shared comic interests, formed a double act, and "decided to be the new Goodies". After their first performance together at a bar, De Hems, in London in April 1998, Barratt and Fielding developed their zookeeper characters – Howard Moon and Vince Noir, respectively – in a series of sketches for Paramount Comedy’s Unnatural Acts. Here they also met American Rich Fulcher, who became Bob Fossil. Fielding's friend Dave Brown and Fielding's brother Michael also became regular collaborators. Richard Ayoade was another original cast member, playing adventurer Dixon Bainbridge, but Matt Berry replaced him in the first television series, since Ayoade was under contract with Channel 4. Ayoade returned in the second and third series as a belligerent shaman named Saboo. Noel Fielding and Michael Fielding have each separately stated that the name "Mighty Boosh" was originally a phrase used by a friend of Michael's to describe the hair that Michael had as a child.
The Boosh produced 3 stage shows – The Mighty Boosh (1998), Arctic Boosh (1999) and Autoboosh (2000) – all of which were taken to the Edinburgh Fringe. With the success of Autoboosh, a radio series was commissioned by the BBC. Produced by Danny Wallace, The Boosh was first broadcast in 2001 on BBC London Live, later transferring to BBC Radio 4, from which the team were given a half-hour television pilot of the same name.
The first 8-part series, directed by Paul King, was then commissioned for BBC Three and broadcast in 2004, with a second of 6 episodes the next year. The second series moved away from the zoo setting to show Howard, Vince, Naboo the shaman and Bollo the talking ape living in a flat in Dalston. In 2006, the Boosh returned to theatre with The Mighty Boosh Live, which featured a new story entitled "The Ruby of Kukundu".
After two years away from television, the Boosh returned in November 2007. Set in Naboo's second-hand shop below the flat, the third series drew approximately 1 million viewers with its first episode, and in light of its success, BBC Three broadcast an entire night of The Mighty Boosh on 22 March 2008, which included a new documentary and 6 of Barratt and Fielding's favourite episodes from all 3 series. J. G. Quintel has said that The Mighty Boosh was a large influence on his animated series Regular Show.
In June 2013, it was confirmed that The Mighty Boosh would reunite for a US festival called Festival Supreme in October 2013.
On 1 January 2020, Fielding posted an image of himself and Barratt on Instagram with the caption, "There really wasn't enough Boosh this decade ! let's try and rectify that in the next one ;) x".
Main cast
Julian Barratt as Howard Moon
Noel Fielding as Vince Noir
Michael Fielding as Naboo
Dave Brown as Bollo
Rich Fulcher as Bob Fossil
The cast members also play smaller roles throughout the series, the roles listed above are their most frequently appearing characters. For a full list of characters, see the List of The Mighty Boosh characters.
Theatre
Original stage shows
The Mighty Boosh (1998)
The Boosh, then consisting of only Barratt and Fielding, conceived The Mighty Boosh whilst working on Stewart Lee's Edinburgh Festival show King Dong vs. Moby Dick in which they played a giant penis and a whale respectively.