About 2 million listeners a month, a Bell Center at capacity, a tour of Europe, several times named comedy podcast of the year at the Olivier’s Gala, Mike Ward added the Videotron Center to his list on Saturday night when more than 11,000 worshipers attended the recording of an episode of Bugged by Mike Ward.
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After a video montage tracing the history of the podcast since its inception in 2011, Mike Ward, imaged as a boxer, entered from the back of the room to a standing ovation.
He then climbed into his ring to the cheers of the crowd. With a beer in hand and a smile on his face, he settled into his throne before proving to everyone once again that he’s the king of French-language podcasts.
guests of honor
He received his guests, who were still unknown to the audience, at a table before he entered the stage. To the delight of the roaring audience, he first greeted his co-host Jean-Thomas Jobin.
The comedian Christine Morency, who for a few years was present on television, radio and not to say everywhere, followed the ball and sat down at the table in a dress with “penis bouquets”, like her humorous style.
Well-known in the humor world and winner of an Olivier 2021 for Unscripted Humorous Podcast of the Year, Thomas Levac also made his debut alongside Christine Morency.
The quartet, which explores sexuality, autism and other more raw subjects, will have managed to cause a great deal of laughter from the 11,000 or so spectators who got their money’s worth on Saturday night.
Mike Ward was able to avoid excess or more sensitive issues by once again leading the evening with an iron fist, as he has done so well for more than 400 episodes.
PASCAL HUOT/QMI AGENCY
The alcohol flows
The biggest star on the scene, however, was the alcohol, which prompted some confessions as well as funny moments reminiscent of Jean-Thomas Jobin’s viral fall at the Bell Center last year.
This anecdote was also an integral part of the evening. The latter then publicly announced that he would no longer abuse alcohol as much as he had in Montreal.
However, to retaliate, the audience boos him every time he speaks until he fires a shot.
Christine Morency also indulged herself, stringing drinks together and even asking for the bottle of rum to be brought to her table.
The audience also indulged in alcohol, although it was almost rare to see spectators without a glass in hand.
One member of the audience had quite the experience when he was invited by Mike Ward to stand up for a few minutes, a moment he will likely remember for the rest of his life.
The evening finally came to a close when the comedian was presented with his Guinness World Records plaque for entering the world record books and selling the most tickets for a podcast recording a year ago. The Bell Center was packed on this historic evening.
“It touches me so much, tonight we’re just over 11,000, it’s only the third time a podcast has been recorded in front of so many people. “Thank you,” Mike Ward opened up.
“I started doing comedy in the ’90s and I didn’t think I would have such a long career,” he concluded, likely pleased with the evening.
A well heated crowd
Though his performance only lasted a few minutes, young Étienne Moore, who is currently making waves on TikTok, received a good dose of love and laughter as the curtain rose by stringing together a few little jokes.
Then he gave way to Josiane Aubuchon, a humorist who certainly deserves to be better known. The “Next” season 2 contestant was certainly a huge revelation for several viewers, who had a blast listening to her hilarious life stories.
The Denis Drolet finally completed this first part in the best possible way. When the viewers in the Videotron Center heard the famous “Rince Crème” sound, they were already convinced. They also proceeded to produce an episode of their podcast, which is already well known and loved by the public.
PASCAL HUOT/QMI AGENCY
Despite some problems with the screens above the stage that necessitated the use of the jumbotron, the audience couldn’t have been fired up any better. This technical problem will also have allowed Josiane Aubuchon to gain a few more minutes on stage and not only win the love of the audience.