Stewart Lee on 'Talk Radio'
I had trouble with 'Jerry Springer: The Opera' so that made me think about how jokes work and what annoys people and why should you be allowed to say particular things, and that does dove-tail quite nicely into 'Talk Radio'
| 14 Aug 2006
When I was 13 or 14, Eric Bogosian (writer and original star/director of 'Talk Radio') used to do sessions on John Peel's radio show as different characters, and I really liked them, so I started reading his stuff. I read 'Talk Radio' which was subsequently made into a film, but I liked the script more and always thought, I'd like to see that play, but it's never been done in the UK. So when Phil Nichol (the new production's lead) said he'd got the rights I was really excited because it meant that if I directed it, I'd get to see it! It's a perfectly streamlined piece of writing, so anything that's wrong with it will be my fault.
My last stand up show was about, 'What is comedy? What can you say and what can't you say?' I had trouble with 'Jerry Springer: The Opera' so that made me think about how jokes work and what annoys people and why should you be allowed to say particular things, and that does dove-tail quite nicely into 'Talk Radio'. But 'Talk Radio''s also about a man who's on the verge of mainstream success with his radio show and has doubts about whether he wants that loss of control, and that's also something you think about a lot as a stand up. You imagine that you want a degree of acceptance or success but then with 'JSTO' I found that being known created a whole load of new problems. That also made me think, is it worth trying to do anything that is this widely known? That's something that goes through the mind of the DJ in 'Talk Radio'.
There's been a lot in the news over the last year and a half about 'freedom of speech', 'glorification of terrorism', 'incitement to racial hatred' etc., and the interesting thing about the Fringe is that, because it doesn't have a curator and people just put their own shows on, it reflects what people really want to talk about, and it would appear the things people want to talk about this year are the things the government doesn't want people to talk about. I think that's great and I think 'Talk Radio' fits in really well with this year's acts.
Everybody in it, apart from Phil and Stephen K Amos who are both onstage all the time, gets to do loads of other voices offstage so it's also a real showcase. There's about forty different characters that are done mainly by five people, so I'm looking forward to the end when this relatively small group of actors come onstage and bow and the audience goes, 'Wow, where did all those voices come from?'"
My last stand up show was about, 'What is comedy? What can you say and what can't you say?' I had trouble with 'Jerry Springer: The Opera' so that made me think about how jokes work and what annoys people and why should you be allowed to say particular things, and that does dove-tail quite nicely into 'Talk Radio'. But 'Talk Radio''s also about a man who's on the verge of mainstream success with his radio show and has doubts about whether he wants that loss of control, and that's also something you think about a lot as a stand up. You imagine that you want a degree of acceptance or success but then with 'JSTO' I found that being known created a whole load of new problems. That also made me think, is it worth trying to do anything that is this widely known? That's something that goes through the mind of the DJ in 'Talk Radio'.
There's been a lot in the news over the last year and a half about 'freedom of speech', 'glorification of terrorism', 'incitement to racial hatred' etc., and the interesting thing about the Fringe is that, because it doesn't have a curator and people just put their own shows on, it reflects what people really want to talk about, and it would appear the things people want to talk about this year are the things the government doesn't want people to talk about. I think that's great and I think 'Talk Radio' fits in really well with this year's acts.
Everybody in it, apart from Phil and Stephen K Amos who are both onstage all the time, gets to do loads of other voices offstage so it's also a real showcase. There's about forty different characters that are done mainly by five people, so I'm looking forward to the end when this relatively small group of actors come onstage and bow and the audience goes, 'Wow, where did all those voices come from?'"
Underbelly Productions and The Comedians' Theatre company, E4 Udderbelly, 3rd to 28th August, not 15th, 17.15 (1hr 15mins), £14.50/13/12.50/10