7285/19805
Absolute nightmare of a night. Actually a nightmare would have been better. I had another of my mild, probably digestive-based panic attacks and was awake from 1am to about 4.30am when I finally fell asleep for a bit on the sofa. Catie kindly allowed me a little bit of a lie-in when I crawled back into bed at 6am, but I was well out of whack and detached from my brain for the whole day and was worried about getting through my two podcast records (I mean one podcast record).
I couldn’t really risk driving, especially post show so got cabs into town and back again (which I think might be worth doing for future shows - it’s the driving that is the most stressful and tiring thing from these crazy Mondays).
I was a bit scatty, making mistakes as I recorded the credits and forgetting one of the guests surnames as I interviewed them back stage, but weirdly in the actual shows I was mainly pretty focused. If anything doing the shows with sleep deprivation gives them a giddy quality and further opens the barriers in my brain that would usually prevent me from saying stupid shit. But stupid shit is my emeralds and that’s how I will become a billionaire who wastes his money destroying something that was working just fine.
I knew the interview with Joe Lycett would be good. In the three or four years since he was last on he has been involved in so many extraordinary events whether it’s holing the last PM below the water before she’d even taken office, nearly being arrested for a joke, releasing a ridiculous Sue Gray report that fooled some MPs and having his kitchen extension opened by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham. He is on fire and literally shitting out of his mouth (which beats just saying shit) and has created amazing comedy that perfectly combines righteous anger with mischief. It’s wonderful to witness. And as he explained the tragic circumstances that motivated his fury at the Downing Street parties during lockdown Joe became very emotional. It was heartbreaking and electric. He thought that I had somehow used my magical interviewer skills to get him to open up like this, though in reality I think it was the memory of what happened at his last appearance here that had choked him up. But as flippant and childish and silly as Joe can be (all positives in my opinion) this did show the seriousness of what lies beneath his comedy and it was incredible to witness.
He also talked passionately about
his attempt to make David Beckham break off his role with Qatar. It was all so good and so relevant to now that we have decided to bump this podcast up to broadcast this week, so you will get to hear it (and see it if you’re with Acast Plus Plus Plus) on Wednesday. Though if you can’t wait you can still watch the video for a small fee here http://gfsboxoffice.com.
Jim and Mat from Ghosts (and everything else) were terrific as well. We talked a lot about the hidden darkness in Ghosts and all agreed that it was a horrible show that should no longer be broadcast. It is heartening to see how much these two (and the whole gang) love each other and they have achieved the holy grail of creating family comedy that isn’t also shit and is in fact excellent. They really are the Monty Python of their generation and I can’t wait to see what they come up with next.
Thank God I got a cab home or I would be a ghost now. But at least I might have a part in Ghosts if I was.
