Silent Voices Meets Joe Pasquale

Although Joe Pasquale might not automatically come to mind when you think about the Psychic and Spiritual field, our co-Editor Deb Hawken had the good
fortune to meet him recently and found him to have some very interesting stories to tell that will resonate with people interested in synchronicity and Cosmic
Ordering.

Joe is a multi-talented man. His numerous television credits include Total Wipeout in Buenos Aires where he competed against the likes of Sally Gunnell and
Fatima Whitbread.  He also took part in Guinness World Records Smashed, where he attempted to smash the ‘Most Amount of Martial Arts Throws in a Minute’.

He has been a guest host on the Paul O’Grady Show numerous times, appeared in As Seen on TV, competed in Celebrity Mastermind, and taken part in the All Star Impressions Show for ITV and What Do the Kids Know? For Watch. He will also be well remembered for winning I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here in December 2004, the jungle reality show which he assures us is as hard as it looks and stories of the behind-the-cameras cushy lifestyle are wildly over exaggerated.

Amongst Joe’s many television appearances he hosted his own TV special An Audience with Joe Pasquale, which was enjoyed by more than 9 million viewers. He presented the long-running television series The Price Is Right for ITV, and recorded the voice of Frankenstein’s Cat for the television series. Joe also hosted ‘Bingo Lotto’ for Virgin One, and presented a documentary as part of Virgin One’s The Prisoner X documentary season from a prison in Costa Rica.

Joe often turns his hand to acting, and toured for 12 weeks in the lead role of The Nerd delivering a performance that “Time Out” magazine called “rib shatteringly funny”.  He also starred in Mel Brooks’ The Producers, Ray Cooney’s farce Tom, Dick and Harry, and took on the role of Guildenstern in Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. He was the only British performer to be invited to appear in the 25th anniversary edition of The Muppet Show alongside his hero Jon Voight, who has become one of Joe’s biggest fans. Joe also starred in a film playing “The Pink Lieutenant” in Dead Long Enough. His cartoon voiceovers include playing the role of Claudius the mouse in ‘Garfield: A Tale of Two Kitties’ for 20th Century Fox, and also played the part of “The Dentist of Whoville” in the major cartoon starring Jim Carrey and Steve Carrell called Horton Hears a Who!.

Already established as one of Britain’s top-selling live comedians, selling out theatres around the country, he is a pantomime regular who broke his own box office record when he appeared in the Southend Cliffs Pavilion production of Cinderella in 2007. He signed a 3 year contract with Qdos and made his directorial debut in 2008 directing Peter Pan at the Orchard Theatre in Dartford Kent. He also played the Scarecrow in the 2010 production of The Wizard of Oz

As an author he co-authored “The Big Thick Joe Pasquale Book” and is currently writing his autobiography.

Joe will be doing another sell-out theatre tour in 2011, taking his own brand of humour on the road once more.

For a man with such an eclectic career ranging from making his name as a television comedian to critically acclaimed theatre and film acting, it’s hardly surprising that we should find out that his many interests include Geoscience, with a particular interest in crystals and fossils.

Joe, you’re currently studying for a degree in Geoscience with the Open University.

I’m doing a BSc in Geoscience. Currently I’m doing the Foundation year and that has bought with it a number of challenges for me to overcome including studying maths and black holes!

You have a real interest in fossils and crystals, where did that start?

I’ve been collecting since I was 6 years old. My dad used to go to a pub in Grays in Essex but I was too young to go in, so I used to go along the beach on my own collecting fossils, stones, clay pipes, anything that interested me really. I was always fascinated by them, I don’t know why. Sometimes it was the shape, sometimes the colour. I never collected them just because they sparkled, and I think my interest in their shape and formation probably led me to considering the degree.

Do you collect them purely for their geological interest or do you feel that there is a different feeling about each type of crystal?

I collect them for all sorts of reasons, but I do feel that each type of crystal is different and they have a different energy. I have a large number of crystals at home and I tend to change them round from time to time.

I do feel that they have healing and cleansing properties and this was borne out during my experiences on I’m a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! We had to collect our water from a stream that was filthy to say the least. The water was cloudy and murky; there were bugs of all kinds floating in the water, and to be honest only thirst made you consider drinking it. I had a small piece of quartz crystal with me and for some unknown reason I was drawn to put it in my water bottle. I hadn’t thought any more about it until other celebrities started asking where I got my water. I told them from the same stream as everyone else, and they pointed out that the water in my bottle was crystal clear whereas theirs was pretty disgusting. I could only put that down to the quartz crystal in the bottle. It did generate a lot of surprise and discussion though and I had to guard my crystal with my life after that! Only kidding.

Are you particularly drawn to any type of crystal, if so why?

I have two particular favourites that I take on the road with me if I’m away for any length of time. One is a 3” x 6” quartz crystal that always travels with me and sits on my dressing table. It was given to me by the late, great Bob Monkhouse just before he died and as such it has a deeply personal connection for me. The other is a Labradorite that fascinates me, it’s a really nice piece and I like the different colours in it and the way it catches the light. I wouldn’t take either of them into the jungle though.

Do you carry them for luck, as part of a theatrical superstition?

Not at all, I believe that you make your own luck in life. I collected all my crystals because I was drawn to them for one reason or another or because they have a particular personal resonance for me, as with the quartz above.

What are your personal feelings about life after death?

I think there has to be something and I feel that life after death definitely exists. I don’t believe that once you die that’s it, but I do believe that the belief is something that is personal and you have to work out for yourself.

Although I was born a Catholic I don’t believe that God is a man with a long white beard, dressed in white. I can’t begin to imagine what the Spirit World would look like or what goes on there though.

Ghost hunting teams often visit old theatres, have you ever been in one that’s haunted and have you seen or heard anything?

I’ve never had a paranormal encounter myself, but whenever you go to an old theatre someone will tell you that it’s haunted and what happened there. I still await my first experience though. Although I’m so focussed on my work when I’m getting ready to go on I might not notice if something ethereal wafted past me.

We understand that in studying for your degree you have come across some subjects that you have found difficult to master, yet every time you find yourself struggling someone appears who can help you. Can you tell us about that?

I discovered that the Foundation year of the degree course covers a range of subjects about which I knew nothing, for example oceanography, respiration and photosynthesis, algebra and the black hole at the centre of the universe. At first I really struggled with oceanography, respiration and photosynthesis, but one day I arrived at a theatre to do a show and happened to mention the degree course only to be told that the Stage Manager had a degree in Oceanography.A few weeks later I was trying to get my head around algebra and certain aspects of the subject just wouldn’t go in. So it occurred to me to ask if anyone at the theatre knew anything about algebra, and again one of the Stage Management team members had just left university with a degree in Maths.

Do you believe in concepts such as Cosmic Ordering and Synchronicity?

It isn’t that I don’t believe in them, they’re just something I’ve never really thought about. I live my life following paths as they open up for me. I believe that the effort you put in will bring its own rewards. However, the experiences with the degree and the crystal are a bit strange in a good way and certainly very useful. If these things work then I’ll just go along with it as I always do.

Do you do a lot of travelling with your work and otherwise, and do you enjoy it?

I love travelling, particularly in South America. I’ve been to Machu Pichu and Peru. I climbed a volcano last year as well. I find South America geologically fascinating and I always go looking for fossils, crystals and rocks if I have the time.

I’m filing a programme for the “Discover Channel” at the end of May called Alone in the Wild in Guyana in South America. It promises to be a fascinating experience; I enjoy doing things that test me as a human being, challenge my boundaries and expand my comfort zone. I hope I’ll have time to do a bit of crystal and rock hunting too, and I’ll take my quartz crystal to cleanse the drinking water.

Has anyone particularly inspired you in your work?

Obviously all the famous comedians of my youth inspire me such as Tommy Cooper, Spike Milligan, Norman Wisdom, and of course the unforgettable Bob Monkhouse.
I was also inspired by Professor Brian Cox OBE, formerly a keyboard player for the pop band D:Ream, but he might be better remembered now as a presenter for a number of BBC Science programmes. I liked the way he made a success of a career in one field and then developed his interests in another. Although I have no intentions of giving up show business it is great to explore other interests in life and realise that you can be good at more than one thing.

Do you have a favourite inspirational saying, if so what is it?

I don’t have a particular favourite. I tend to be inspired by life. I believe life is for living and I don’t see the point of just sitting back watching life on television, you have to go out and find life.

You recently ran the London Marathon on behalf of Diabetes UK. Why that particular charity?

I’ve always wanted to run the London Marathon and decided to go for it this year. My daughter has Type 2 Diabetes so it seemed the logical charity for me to support. I finished the course in 5 hours 22 minutes, and although I wasn’t fast I was just relieved that I didn’t die at the finish line. It was more important to survive the experience.

Did you enjoy it and is it a magic weight loss programme?

I really did it although it was hard on the day, but I didn’t lose any weight. When you’re running 40 miles a week you’re always hungry and whatever you take off during the run you put on again when you get home and demolish all the food in the kitchen. I do feel fitter though.

How much money did you raise for Diabetes ?

I’ve raised £8000 so far for Diabetes UK and people are still donating via the website - http://www.joepasquale.com/.  There’s a donate button at the bottom of the home page.

What have you got coming up with your work? Where can our readers come and see you on stage?

 I have a UK tour starting in July and running through until the end of the year. Then I will be doing Panto in Nottingham at the Theatre Royal.

We’d like to thank Joe for taking the time to be interviewed by us. It was particularly interesting to speak to someone who does not work in our field or consciously follow our philosophy, isn’t into cosmic ordering or synchronicity, and yet has experienced those things in the course of ordinary life.

Perhaps it shows us something about the success that is generated when you commit yourself to something you love and live in the moment. Many spiritual people believe that the universe will put the right things in our path at the right time and it’s good to remember that this happens naturally even to people who don’t spend their time worrying about missing the message.

We wish Joe all the best with his career and his degree, and hope that he will always find someone to answer his questions. We’re sure that he will continue to amuse audiences (to put it mildly) for many years.

If you visit Joe’s website at http://www.joepasquale.com/ you can find details of his upcoming UK tour and other work. You can also make a donation to Diabetes UK by clicking on the button at the bottom of the home page.