Arnaud Tsamere

Tsamere's paternal grandparents are from Guipavas, and his father is Breton. He was born in Bordeaux, but grew up in Versailles, Rocquencourt and Trappes, in the Yvelines department. His father was a general in the French Air Force who was awarded the Legion of Honour, and his mother a housewife, whom he has described as "the best in her domain". He has two brothers. He describes himself as having had a "strict upbringing".

Speaking about his early life and its relation to his surreal comic style, Tsamere said: "I grew up in a very comfortable environment. I wanted for nothing; serious things never happened to me in life. I have never been a victim of injustice, so I have nothing to protest. I don't have any particular origins which would be interesting to talk about. ... So, I do absurd stuff because I don't want to talk about other things."

After getting his baccalauréat, he studied law at university, where he discovered an improvisational match in his first year and "fell in love" with the performance. In 1998, he obtained a master's degree in business law and later got a job working in export sales. However, he realised that he "could no longer live without the stage", and on the advice of his friend Arnaud Joyet and Déclic Théâtre co-founder Alain Degois, quit his job and launched his career as a comedian.

After quitting his previous job, Tsamere took part in the Déclic Théâtre improvisation group under its co-founder Alain "Papy" Degois, who he said "pushed me, gave me confidence, coddled me [and] got me to act in plays and improvisation matches". Between 2003 and 2005, he played the baron Christian de Neuvillette in an adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac at the Château de Gizeux with the theatre group La Pastière, to which he was introduced by Degois. ...