Colin Mochrie: improv master

Award-winning Canadian performer shares perspectives on life after 50

Colin Mochrie is an award-winning, multi-talented performer and writer, born in the 1950s in Kilmarnock, Scotland, setting foot on Canadian soil in 1964, where he has since remained. You may know him from 12 years on the successful TV show Whose Line is It Anyway?, and for the comedy series Getting Along Famously for which he was co-creator, executive producer, writer and star with his wife Debra McGrath.

He has appeared in many Canadian comedy series, is a sought-after featured performer in several films – and will host the Canadian version of Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?

Resident of Toronto’s Leaside, Colin performs more than 100 live improv shows per year with Brad Sherwood. In 2009 Colin and Brad performed at the National Press Correspondents Dinner for the US President and the executive branch. Recently seen performing live in Toronto at the Princess of Wales Theatre, at the Gilda’s Club benefit It’s Always Something, he spoke with Tempo Toronto about life beyond 50. (And, by the way, he is a really good person.)

What is your career vision for the next decade?
I can do improv for as long as people come out to see me. I am also focusing on more TV, more movies and more theatre. Every improv is a brand new challenge of course, but I do like to try things outside my comfort zone. In March I’m doing a play at the Canadian Stage, called Art. The part I play is so different for me – a bit of an art snob, an intellectual who is good at arguing points: all attributes that I don’t really possess.

To what do you attribute your success as a performer?
Blind luck! Really, a big part of this business is good luck. I have this one skill where I have a leg up on others: improv. I think this came from being a shy child who was therefore a voracious reader, and I loved old comedy movies with Jack Benny and Bob Hope who were a quiet influence on me. I think I have an everyman quality, and I am non-threatening. Then a show came along that showcased all of that, Whose Line Is It Anyway?

What are your favourite career highlights?
Whose Line…? was such fun. But more than that it gave me a profile and provided the ability to meet fabulous people and do other things. The other favourite is Getting Along Famously, which I co-created with Deb. It was the first time we had ever produced anything, together, from idea to completion, and how great it was to have that concentrated time together with the bonus of having chemistry on screen.

What are the downsides, if any, to being over 50 in your career?
Not so many, although improv certainly is youth-oriented. Surprisingly so, as there are a lot of people our age who enjoy improv, and it would be great if that were realized and catered to more, instead of targeting a mainly younger audience.

How has your perspective on life changed now you’re in your fifties?
I’m more relaxed now. When I was younger I was more tied up with getting jobs and being successful. As you get older, you realize the more important things in life. Things have slowed down in a really nice way, and I make sure I have more fun with my wife Deb, and my son Luke who is 19. I feel great pride in all the family stuff – I have a great marriage and a great son. It has all taken a lot of work, but at this stage in life I appreciate it all a lot more. I certainly don’t take it for granted.

What would you describe as your biggest achievement?
Marrying the right woman! My marriage and my son are great achievements for me. Deb is really wonderful at working out problems, and through her I have learned to communicate more and deal with problems as they arrive. We were worried about the empty nest factor when Luke left for New York, but we’ve adapted to being just the two of us again, and it’s nice to rediscover each other.

How would your friends describe you?
Quiet. I tend to disappoint people who don’t know me because I’m not ‘the performer’. In fact, I am very shy in real life.

What is the one thing you would have people remember you for?
I’d like to be known as a guy who tried to do his best in his profession and in his personal life. We are all constantly evolving, and constantly changing, and you can never rest on your laurels or take anything for granted.