The Mighty Boosh
The Boosh From left to right: Howard Moon (Julian Barratt), Bollo (Dave Brown), Naboo the Enigma (Michael Fielding), Vince Noir (Noel Fielding) and Bob Fossil (Rich Fulcher).
	Theatre, Radio, Television
Years active	1998present
Genres	Double act, surreal humour
Subject(s)	Surrealism, fashion victims, fantasy
Influences	The Goodies, Mr Benn, Monty Python, Frank Zappa, Basil Brush, Ziggy Stardust.
Notable works and roles	Autoboosh (2000) The Boosh (2001) The Mighty Boosh (TV series, 2004present) The Mighty Boosh Live (2006)
Members	Julian Barratt Noel Fielding Dave Brown Michael Fielding Rich Fulcher
Website	The Mighty Boosh Online

The Mighty Boosh, colloquially referred to as The Boosh, is the collective name for the creators of the British comedy written by and starring comedians Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding. Developed from three stage shows and a six episode radio series, it has since spawned a total of twenty television episodes for BBC Three and a live tour of the UK. A recent festival has been held and forthcoming album of their music and another live tour are also planned.

Fielding first met Barratt after seeing him perform his solo stand-up routine at the Hellfire Comedy Club in the Wycombe Swan theatre. 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 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 Comedys Unnatural Acts. It was here that they also met Rich Fulcher, who would become Bob Fossil. Fieldings friend Dave Brown and Fielding's own brother Michael also became regular collaborators. Richard Ayoade was another original cast member, playing the role of adventurer Dixon Bainbridge, though was later to be replaced by Matt Berry in the first television series, since he was under contract with Channel 4. Ayoade did return in the second and third series however, as a belligerent shaman named Saboo.

The Boosh soon produced three 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 eight-part series, directed by Paul King, was then commissioned for BBC Three and broadcast in 2004, with a second of six episodes the following year. The second series moved away from the zoo setting, and instead sees 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 to the small screen in November 2007. Set in Naboos second-hand shop below the flat, the third series drew in approximately one million viewers with its first episode, and in light of its success, BBC Three broadcast an entire night of The Mighty Boosh on March 22, 2008, which included a new documentary and six of Barratt and Fielding's favourite episodes from all three series.

In April 2008 it was announced that the Boosh are planning to "get dressed up for a day in the country", organising their own one-off festival day, with "a load of friends and comedians and bands" at The Hop Farm in Kent on July 5. Reports suggest that U2 will headline the event. Later, in August, they are to have an "entire Mighty Boosh-curated evening" at The Big Chill music festival. Other upcoming projects include a second tour of the UK from September 2008 through January 2009, an album of Boosh music currently being recorded,, a feature-length film version of the series A book called "The Mighty Book of Boosh" has been released.

On Channel 4 TV programme "Transmission", rock star Alice Cooper mentioned a possible collaboration between Cooper and The Boosh.

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.

In 1998, they took The Mighty Boosh to the Edinburgh Festival, recruiting fellow comedian Rich Fulcher, whom the pair had met while working on Unnatural Acts. The show won the Perrier Award for Best Newcomer. During their residency at the Hen and Chickens Theatre in North London the following year, they built up a cult following, introducing new characters whilst developing old ones.

Poster used in magazines and venues around the UK to promote the Boosh's nationwide 2008 tour.

In 1999, the Boosh returned to the Edinburgh Festival with a new show, Arctic Boosh, with Dave Brown acting as choreographer and photographer, as well as playing a variety of characters. Arctic Boosh sold out every night and was nominated for the Perrier Award.

In 2000, the Boosh premiered their third stage show, Autoboosh, at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, adding Fielding's younger brother Michael to the cast. Autoboosh won the festival's Barry Humphries Award.

The Boosh returned to the stage in 2006, touring the UK for the first time. Though drawing heavily from their earlier material, the main story combined these elements into a new narrative. A recording of this show at the Brixton Academy was later released on DVD, before being broadcast on BBC Three on Boxing Day, 2007.

The Boosh are undertaking a second tour of the UK and Ireland from September 2008 until February 2009. The show features characters from all three series as well as the Boosh Band.

They will be making appearances and DJ'ing throughout the U.K after their live shows, at after parties held in different places in each city. The events will be called "Outrage", named after the saying by one Tony Harrison.

From the success of Autoboosh, the BBC commissioned a six-part radio series for the Boosh. In October 2001 The Boosh radio series, produced by Danny Wallace, was broadcast on BBC London Live, then BBC Radio 4, and later on BBC 7. The show focuses on the adventures of a pair of zookeepers at "Bob Fossil's Funworld": deluded jazz enthusiast Howard TJ Moon, and fan of retro fashion Vince Noir.

The Mighty Boosh returned to radio on October 22, 2004, in one-off comedy special for The Breezeblock, a show on BBC Radio 1. Instead of the plot driven nature of their own series, this show featured improvised conversational comedy with Barratt, Fielding and Fulcher, combined with the show's usual mix of electronic music.

On November 15, 2007, as part of the publicity for the premier of their third series the same day, Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding returned to Radio 1, this time on Jo Whiley's Live Lounge.

In May 2004, after the success of a Boosh pilot, Steve Coogan's company, Baby Cow Productions, produced the first television series of The Mighty Boosh for BBC Three, before it moved to BBC Two in November that same year. Though each episode invariably starts and ends in Bob Fossils dilapidated zoo, the "Zooniverse", the characters of Vince and Howard often depart for other locations, such as the Arctic tundra and limbo.

Noel Fielding (left) and Julian Barratt (right) in the first of their live links for BBC Three's Mighty Boosh Night.

A second series was then shown in July 2005, which saw Howard and Vince now sharing a flat in Dalston with previously minor characters Naboo and his familiar, Bollo. This series had an even looser setting as the four characters leave the confines of the flat in every episode, using their van to travel to further surreal environments. Series three started in November 2007, still set in Dalston, but this time has the foursome working in their shop called the Nabootique. Their adventures and outings in the third series were more toned down than the previous two series', and they focused more on the involvement of new characters (e.g. Sammy the Crab, or Lester Corncrake etc) than just the two of them 'journeying through time and space'. A fourth series has been rumoured since the broadcast of the third, though no official confirmation has been released regarding this speculation. It transpires that the fourth series won't be written until at least 2010, because of the duo's other commitments throughout 2009. [1]

It has been confirmed that The Mighty Boosh will be airing in North America on the Cartoon Network's Adult Swim, starting April 2009.

On 22 March, 2008 BBC Three broadcast a whole night of The Mighty Boosh from 9.05pm, starting with a new documentary entitled The Mighty Boosh: A Journey Through Time and Space, documenting the history of the Boosh from their first amateur performances to their upcoming 2008 tour. This was followed by six of Barratt and Fielding's favourite episodes from the three series: "Party", "The Power of the Crimp", "The Nightmare of Milky Joe", "The Priest and the Beast", "The Legend of Old Gregg" and "Tundra". The pair also appeared in live links throughout the night, in a similar style to the openings of Series 1 episodes. And on 23rd December 2008, BBC3 held a Merry Booshmas Party featuring the entire series 3 as well as a broadcast of Boosh Live.

It has been confirmed that BBC Films are interested in producing a film adaptation of the series, and though the first draft of the script is currently being written, work is not likely to start on the film until after their tour. After their tour they will be taking a short break, then either make a new series (the fourth) or release a movie.

It was announced on 11th November 2008 that MTV have commissioned a spin-off series of The Mighty Boosh, starring Rich Fulcher as Eleanor the Tour Whore, the transvestite who appeared in the Series Three episode "Eels". [2] Although rumoured, it is not clear if any other Mighty Boosh characters will appear in it. A 20-minute pilot episode has already been made, which can be viewed on several comedy websites currently and is expected to air on MTV2 shortly (as will the series).