Ben Stebbings
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ben Stebbings is a British actor, musician and stand-up comedian who rose to fame in the early 21st century thanks to his racey stand-up act and musical style. Stebbings has appeared in minor roles in BBC shows 'Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps' and 'That Mitchell and Webb Look'. He is also among the members of unsigned ska band 'Red Paper Bag'. In 2006 it was widely reported that he had taken a break from acting to focus on his stand-up and his band. Stebbings is also one of the two founding members of 'Never Mind the Jazzocks'.
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[edit] Early Years
Born in Lowestoft, to a small peasant family in the 1980s young Ben was never expected to succeed. In school a young rapscallian by the name of Luke Ashman would regularly tease him for his love of comedy, music and all things good. This teasing would come to a tragic end when Luke Ashman was found dead on the doorstep of a local brothel. The autopsy showed that Ashman's death had been caused by a combination of AIDs and a viscous beating he took off one of the whores. Stebbings' later teenage years were spent at the local homeless shelters were he would feed the tramps pennys and The Denes High School a breeding ground for a generations talent that also included Karl Theobald and the dog who played Beethoven in the movies. It was during these years that Stebbings would meet a certain Daniel Bradley and his life would change forever as the two invented a radical new type of music known as 'Jazzock'.
[edit] The Invention of Jazzock
According to reports and interviews from Stebbings himself Jazzock is a mixture of jazz and rock and was pioneered by his then neighbour Daniel Bradley after Stebbings' own project, a pirate rock band by the name of The Jolly Rogers, fell through. The rest of the group went on to create a new band, Systematic Sound, which was critically panned and ended in tragedy after lead singer Taylor Westoby was killed by a travelling circus bear called Jethro. After leaving The Jolly Rogers Bradley and Stebbings came together to play sweet, sweet music together and created the band Never Mind the Jazzocks.
[edit] The End of an Era
Despite initial success, the relationship between the two founding members of 'Never Mind the Jazzocks' became increasingly heated due to the pressure of a heavy tour schedule and Bradley's coke addiction that had plagued him since birth. Eventually, after months of rumours, the band announced the mutual decision to part ways. Stebbings remains defiant to this day that although he wasn't the inventor of jazzock he had a big hand to play in its creation and therefore deserved equal rights to its trademark, a claim which Bradley always denied.
[edit] The Death of Daniel Bradley
Daniel Bradley, after months of battling his addiction, died on the 9th of November 2006. Although they were not on the best of terms when Bradley died, Stebbings was one of the first people to pay tribute to his former friend. In a statement released hours after his death Stebbings remarked that Bradley's death was a loss to the world and called him a "flawed genius". Bradley was buried at sea as requested in his will.
[edit] Recent Work
After the split of Jazzock Stebbings gained success in a variety of other mediums including acting in minor roles on BBC shows 'Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps' and 'That Mitchell and Webb Look'. He has also been widely applauded by fans and critics alike for his racey off-the-cuff stand-up humour. He is currently performing regular stand-up and working on projects with his newly formed band 'Red Paper Bag'. Many have predicted 2007 to be the year 'Red Paper Bag' make it big.
