I think I was listening to the Manchester one via
an internet audio stream just yesterday – can’t think whose it was – and thought
it was a great show.
On a serious note, heaps of thanks to you Espen
for the audio stream. I’m always careful to tell anyone who links it to me to
acknowledge that it isn’t my work. I find myself listening to it at different
times most days, often hearing shows I hadn’t heard for a while. It’s a
wonderful service and it always provokes some thought on my part about how the
show has changed so much – yet in all eras has been so funny.
Commenting on the thread about a new gang of
four... just to note that in the three and a half years since Clement’s death,
the top 10 performers in terms of appearances are (includes 80 radio
shows, 10 TV shows, and 4 radio shows recorded but not yet
broadcast)-
Paul Merton 82
Gyles Brandreth 31
Sue Perkins 28
Tony Hawks 24
Graham Norton 22
Julian Clary 16
Jenny Eclair 15
Liza Tarbuck 12
Josie Lawrence 11
Alun Cochrane 9
We all will have our own preferences of course,
but trying to be objective – if you were trying to reduce that list to
four...
* Paul obviously
* given Graham Norton’s huge fame and the warmth
with which he is regarded throughout the UK, you’d want him – he is simply far
more well-known and popular than anyone else on that list.
* you’d want a woman – Sue Perkins is the obvious
choice.
* the last person should be someone who provides
a contrast in styles – both in content and how they sound – I think that’s Gyles
Brandreth.
that’s a bit unfair on Tony Hawks who’s been on
the show more often than anyone else except Paul – but there we
are.
But again, trying to be realistic – it may be
that Graham wouldn’t commit to appearing more often than he does with his other
commitments. Do you then bring in Tony – or again look for a contrast in styles
with either Julian Clary or Jenny Eclair?
cheers
Dean