Youp van 't Hek


Joseph Jacobus Maria "Youp" van 't Hek is a Dutch author, columnist, singer-songwriter, playwright, critic and former comedian.
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Biography

Van 't Hek was born and raised in the Gooi, an upper-class region to the southeast of Amsterdam. In 1973 he changed his name from Joep to Youp. He was one of the founding members of Cabaret NAR. In the early 1980s, Cabaret NAR's success declined and moved on as a solo artist.
His big break came in 1983 on KRO's De alles is anders-show. His energetic performance made him a household name overnight.
In his 1989 "oudejaarsconference", he ridiculed Buckler, a low-alcohol beer brewed by Heineken. As a result sales plummeted and the brand was eventually withdrawn from the market. has often cited this as the best joke in his career and has subsequently referred to it in all his retrospective shows.
In 2021, Van 't Hek announced that he would stop as a comedian in 2024, when he turned 70 and had been a comedian for 50 years. The tour of his last show started in 2021. On May 25, 2024, he gave his last performance in the Carré theater in Amsterdam. On June 1, 2024, his last show was broadcast by BNNVARA, which was watched by 2.3 million people.
Van 't Hek is the brother of field hockey international Tom van 't Hek.

Theater performances

With Cabaret NAR

Your Youp for you Meer geluk dan wijsheid Gele ellebogen Blaffende honden Alles in Wonderland Romantiek met mayonnaise Geen vakantie voor Youp en Jan Zat ik maar thuis met een goed boek
  • ''Zonder twijfel''

Solo

Man vermist Gebroken glas Verlopen en verlaten Tunnel zonder vluchtstrook This is not a solo-show; he worked with dutch actor Onno Molenkamp. It was Youp's only 2-men-show.Hond op het ijs Oudejaarsconference 1989 Alles of nooit Ergens in de verte Spelen met je leven Oudejaarsconference 1995 Scherven De waker, de slaper & de dromer Mond vol tanden De wereld draait door Youp speelt Youp Prachtige paprika's Het zelfmoordcommando Schreeuwstorm Troost Omdat de nacht De tweede viool Wigwam Mooie verhalen Wat is de vraag? Licht Een vloek en een zucht Met de kennis van nu Korrel zout
  • ''De laatste ronde!''

Music

Van 't Hek has worked with a changing group of musicians to supply the music to the songs in his shows. The constant factor in his musical backup during almost his entire career has been Ton Scherpenzeel, who has composed almost all of his songs. In most of his shows he also worked with multi-instrumentalist Rens van der Zalm. The music to 's songs is mostly played on piano, accordion, violin and acoustic guitar, which reflects 's preference for classical music. One example of this is his rendition of the song Flappie, ostensibly about a Christmas he experienced in 1961. In 2020, the song was covered by Todd Rundgren.

Columns and books

Van 't Hek has written columns on sports and later on general topics for NRC Handelsblad since 1988. Several collections of these columns have been published by Thomas Rap publishing. This company was founded by a friend of, and has printed the texts of 's shows from the very first, unsuccessful days, when publishing them seemed a waste of money. Because of this, never switched publishers. A list of the titles of his books that do not contain the texts of his shows:
Sports columns:
  • Niks spel, knikkers
  • Het hemd van de leeuw
  • Sportgek
  • Floppie, Yourie en andere helden
  • Eerst de man, dan de bal
  • De selectie
General columns:
  • Amah hoela
  • Ik schreeuwlelijk
  • En het bleef nog lang onrustig in mijn hoofd
  • Majesteit,
  • Fax
  • Zaterdag
  • Het zal me jeuken
  • Iedereen is in de war
  • 166x Youp
  • Het platte land
  • Liegangst
  • Hartjeuk en zieleczeem
  • Het leven is wél leuk
  • Oelikoeli en andere goden
  • Youp is leuk?
  • Iedereen is eigenaar van iets
  • Bacteriën moeten ook leven
  • Omdat jij mijn beste vriend bent
Other books:
  • Rijke meiden
  • Liedjes van A tot Z
  • Komen & gaan, een week scharrelen rond Gare du Nord
  • De wonderlijke broertjes Pim en Pietje
  • Bob & Youp