The Road Home
Craig Ferguson wrapped up his 2011 stand up comedy tour in Hollywood, Florida Sunday night with a sold-out show at the Seminole Hard Rock Live Arena.  In all, Craig performed 36 live shows in the past twelve months, covering thousands of miles by land and air from Vancouver to Miami and plenty of places in between.  Many robot skeletons who are regular readers had a chance to see Craig this year and we hope you get a chance to do the same in 2012.  As soon as we get word of Craig’s shows being booked for the new year, we’ll pass them along to you and include them on our Live Comedy Tour page.

Fort Myers Pictures
John Patrick, the chief meteorologist at the local ABC television station in Fort Myers was in the crowd on Saturday night and took some pictures of Craig during the show. We thank him for sharing them with us:

On The Road with Joe
Craig’s opening act in Fort Myers and Hollywood, FL this weekend is comedian Joe Matarese, who tweeted on Saturday after the show:

Like I predicted great crowd in Ft Myers tonight opening for @CraigyFerg. And I’m in my first Tour bus! Here it is! http://pic.twitter.com/VFhWVpHy

Holding Down the Fort
The RSA’s @NancyInTampa has been following Craig through his three-day trip around Florida, blogging about her experience.  Here is what she had to say about the show in Fort Myers on Saturday night:

[stextbox id=”custom”]Craig On The Road – The Florida Tour, Part deux

I remember Ft. Myers from years ago when we used to travel across Alligator Alley for a weekend away from our crazy life in Ft. Lauderdale. And here I was, day 2 of Craig’s Florida tour, driving from Tallahassee to make this 8PM show in a neighborhood that looks somewhat familiar. Getting a feel for life on the road. It’s great to be at (your venue’s name) (in your region). 🙂
Craig stayed on the beach in Naples. I know that place, it’s really sweet. Did you see the photos? I stayed five minutes from the Barbara Mann. And my hotel was very cool. With a random upgrade to the private floor, I felt pampered. But all concentration was on getting to the show.

Once I arrived at the Mann, it was already time to take my seat. I met people at the hotel who were in town just to see Craig. Those people were there, but there were plenty of locals too. John Patrick from WZVN-TV posted some great pics! https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.325082414173675.98636.220565714625346&type=3  And there were some older people who were surprised that Craig didn’t have a little “tootsiefrootsie” pop up in front of his face when he said a curse word. I wish I’d had that “warning” flyer from the high school show in Bucks County. Really.

One of the things I loved most about this evening was the very beginning, before Craig’s opening act Joe Matarese came out. No spoilers because there’s a show tonight.   Joe was hilarious! I saw him in Red Bank. He is very funny, a really nice guy, and he has a CD out. http://twitpic.com/7h2pxo Check him out here - http://joematarese.com

Then it was time for Craig, dressed in a fresh white shirt, suit jacket and jeans, looking relaxed (like he’d been at the beach!). This was his night. The night before had been so much about the FSU event. Tonight there was time for more of the material I’ve come to know and love. The crowd was enthusiastic with plenty of whistles and outbursts (positive ones).  The one person I couldn’t see or hear from my 6th row seat was down in front and seemed to have a running commentary on everything Craig said. He used great restraint in not really going after her. In spite of the distraction, Craig put on a fantastic show, even getting to the family stories. ? Kudos to Craig for great concentration and a standing-O worthy show!

I met Joe Matarese in the lobby after the show, bought his CD, talked with him a bit. Then he had to run for the bus. Craig and the tour bus bring back great memories of last year in Florida. I waved to them as they drove away. One more night! The Hard Rock. Will I get to say hello to the Chief before this is all over? Wish me luck! [/stextbox]

Doctor Who Movie
With word spreading quickly in places like Britain’s Daily Mail that a Hollywood film of Doctor Who is in the works for release possibly in 2014, the folks at IGN.com make an impassioned plea for the filmmakers to pay close attention to the beloved franchise’s history and storylines before crafting a script.  They make the point that part of the reason the latest reboot of Star Trek was successful is because the creative team respectfully acknowledged the show’s past as they came up with a new story.  MTV.com gathered similar reactions.  Let’s hope that when it comes to casting, writing and storytelling, the Doctor gets the same consideration.

Christmas Special
Meanwhile, the new trailer for the 2011 Doctor Who television Christmas special has been released:

Video courtesy: BBCAmerica



This Week’s Guests

Thanks to some creative pre-taping (Shh!  It’s the magic of television!), we’ll get to enjoy three all-new episodes of the Late Late Show this week, even as Craig and company are taking the week off for Thanksgiving.  On Monday, Craig’s guests are actor Robin Williams who helps out with tweets and emails, plus actor Johnny Galecki.  On Tuesday, it’s actor Jason Segel and actress Eliza Coupe.  And on Wednesday, Craig welcomes actor Ty Burrell and the long-awaited guest, actor Wilford Brimley.   We’ll have a visit from the re-run fairy on Thursday and Friday this week, as folks enjoy some time with their families and shop at odd hours.  Thursday’s show is from September 13th, and features comedian Tim Meadows and actress Lauren Graham.  Friday’s episdoe is a rebroadcast from September 14th, with the Dancers from the Moulin Rouge, actor Danny DeVito and actress Olivia Munn.  New episodes return on Monday, November 28th.  For the latest listings, see our Guests page.

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