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WHAT’S ON EDITOR GORDON BARR CHATS TO IMPRACTICAL JOKERS’ MURR AHEAD OF TOMORROW’S GIG AT THE METRO RADIO ARENA IN NEWCASTLE

YOU’VE seen them on the telly, now the gang behind hit series Impractical Jokers are bringing their brand of comedy live to Newcastle.

American comedy sensations The Tenderloins bring ‘Where’s Larry?’ to the Metro Radio Arena this Saturday.

New York-based comedy troupe The Tenderloins, whose four members – Joe Gatto, James Murray, Brian Quinn and Sal Vulcano – are the creators, executive producers, and stars of truTV’s hit series, Impractical Jokers.

Recently green-lit for its seventh season, Impractical Jokers follows The Tenderloins as they coerce one another into doing public pranks while being filmed by hidden cameras.

Now they are bringing their antics to the Toon, and Murr (James Murray) cannot wait. They already know they have a huge following here, as he explains: “The guys and I performed in the UK in January this year and after that tour we got so much fan mail from Newcastle, and Tweets and Facebook messages, saying please, please, please to go there.

“No joke, this is not an exaggeration, we all said right we have to go to Newcastle.”

Natives of Staten Island, New York who met in High School, The Tenderloins were formed in 1999. After years of performing live improv and sketch comedy shows, The Tenderloins graduated to the web, captivating a new found audience of millions with their internet sketches before taking their hidden camera pranks to the small screen with Impractical Jokers.

Now, Impractical Jokers airs in over 70+ countries and is the #1 show on Comedy Central UK, Comedy Central India, and the #1 show in its timeslot on US cable. But what can fans expect from the live show? “It’s like a stand-up comedy show. The four of us are on stage at all times, with four microphones,” says Murr. “Behind us is a giant video screen. We tell lots of jokes, show videos that were shot just for the live show, hidden camera challenges that you can only see on the live tour.

“The show is more like a live rock concert than any stand-up comedy show you have ever seen. It’s like seeing your best friends live. All our escapades are there – even more so, really, in the live setting.

“It’s not an improv show but it feels like we are making a lot of things up. It’s just great fun and I think it is funnier than the TV show. There’s a lot of material you will never have seen – and there is a part of the show that has audience involvement.

“Ten years ago, before the TV show, we performed live in a theatre in Manhattan and two people bought tickets to see us perform. It was like performing for half a person each.

“Ten years later to be coming across the ocean and performing for tens of thousands of people and going to cities we have never been to before is a blessing and overwhelming and unbelievable.

“So get ready Newcastle.”