The man behind a myriad of celebrity faces, Charlie Hides is a comedy performer constantly evolving with the times.
He indulges his loyal following with fresh and clever new material, via his YouTube channel and new Sunday residency at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern. QX Cabaret reporter, Jason Reid caught up with him this week…
How is it going at the RVT?
It’s going well, I’m really enjoying it. Sunday is now my favourite day of the week.
It’s quite an illustrious slot to fill. Is it what you expected it to be?
Yeah, I sort of knew what it was and what it could be because I’d filled in for Jonathan Hellyer [aka D.E Experience] a few times in the past.
I did feel like the substitute teacher, though, so now it’s good to know that when I walk onto the stage they’re all there because they really want to see me.
Did you have to make any adaptations to your show when you moved over from the Two Brewers?
I’d already adapted the show, slightly, at the ‘Brewers, working in more of the characters from my viral videos. But, yes, when I moved to the RVT it was the perfect opportunity to start afresh with a different type of show, including more topical comedy and visuals.
They’re quite different audiences. But both great ones.
You started your YouTube channel a couple of years ago now. What was the initial intention?
The initial intention was to upload videos of material from my live show. Also, to try things that I couldn’t do live, such as multiple characters. It was the easiest platform in which to do it. At first I thought it’d be just people who came to my shows who’d view them but then when I started to get messages from people from all over the world I realised that this was a different beast. The two mediums – my live shows and my videos – worked totally independently, as there were things I couldn’t do in one that I could in the other, and vice versa. So when I started at the RVT I just decided to mash it all up into the show.
“I want to do some dead divas, such as Judy Garland and Amy Winehouse. Maybe in the style of a Divas Anonymous seance”
Onto the characters… How did Cher end up becoming the signature one?
[Laughs] I really have no idea! For some reason the public loved my interpretation of her from the start. The thing is, I wouldn’t really consider myself an amazing impersonator. What I am good at is creating comic characters and twisted versions of these celebrities, in my own alternate reality.
Tell us how her catchphrase ‘Whoooooo?’ came about…
I was doing a video called Madonna’s Gaga Nightmare and Cher answered the phone to Madonna with an exaggerated ‘Whooooo?’ I had absolutely no idea it’d stick. Within a week, I had people coming up to me in gay bars and clubs saying it to me, so I thought, as you do in comedy, that I should expand on it, as it’s clearly something the audience has taken to. I just gave them what they wanted.
One of your most recent additions, Lana Del Rey, is a favourite of mine. What routine do you follow when learning new characters like Lana?
I watch as much as I can about them and research thoroughly. Then I start picking up on nuances. Everything from gestures and vocabulary to the speed of their speech. Of course, I also transform myself to look as much like the person as I can, with make up, costuming and wigs. Looking for a hook in the person’s personality that you can twist for comic effect is very important. For example, Madonna has the whole control thing, Cher has the vibrato in her voice and Liza has the manic behaviour.
What’s Lana’s hook?
It’s her slightly pretentious use of vocabulary [laughs] and airy-fairy-ness. I added a weird, ethereal feel to her videos, too, because that’s a theme she has running through her own music videos.
Give us a scoop. Are you working on any new characters?
Marina and the Diamonds and Paloma Faith interest me. Both acts have crossed over to the US and I’m getting requests from my American viewers to do them. Something else I’d like to do is a ‘Keeping up with the Kardashian’s’ parody.
Any more divas?
I actually want to do some dead divas, such as Judy Garland and Amy Winehouse. Maybe in the style of a Divas Anonymous seance.
• Charlie Hides is at S.L.A.G.S./Chill Out (RVT, 372 Kennington Lane, SE11 5HY) every Sunday, 2pm-midnight.
