26 December 2006
CHRISTMAS LOGGED
Come the arse end of Christmas Day, having a second go at the trifle, we switched on five's Greatest Most Embarrassing TV Moments (or a title something along those lines, anyway - I'm not going to look it up). It dawned on me that I'd actually seen it before, but still ... This was a transmission from a dying world when Donna McPhail, Richard Blackwood and Mike McClean still seemed to have some relevance. I enjoyed most of it.
Unlike Little Britain Abroad which actually could have slotted into the aforementioned countdown somewhere within the top 10. That two people could write a sketch which involves Steve Coogan saying, "Don't press that red button", and then Matt Lucas pressing that red button (and that was it) boggles the mind. Can you imagine getting up from the computer desk and saying to your colleague, "Right, that's that one finished, let's take a tea break"? Talk about insubstantial ... This was a terrible, terrible comedown for a show that I'm still happy to admit once loving.
Strictly Come Dancing's Christmas spesh was lots of fun, thankfully, albeit utterly pointless - all taking place in a pre-recorded vacuum wherein the champs of the current run had clearly yet to be crowned (cheers to Zoe Ball for making that obvious with her chat about all of the final four being potentially good enough to clinch it). I really did enjoy "Action" Jackson's routine.
The turkey sandwich viewing today thus far has been a job of work, clearing up programmes recorded on my TV Drive. We've had Doctor Who Confidential (very nice, but much too long), Doctor Who (I sensibly left it till Boxing Day, lest it be accused of ruining Christmas Chez Kibble-White for a second year running - although, as it happens it went down pretty well), and - my favourite so far - The Big Time, that episode where Gwen Wotsit cooks at the Dorchester.
How I ache once more for genuine TV characters like Magnus Pyke (he puts the "nuts" into nutritionist, says Esther Rantzen) and Robert Morley (who referred to Gwen as "my darling" throughout). I don't, however, pine for '70s cuisine, piped onto the plate and adorned with cocktail sticks and glace cherries.
And now? It's a DVD of Quatermass and the Pit - the original BBC version. The pace is glacial (I've written all this and not missed a plot point) but somehow it feels like perfect post Christmas Day viewing.
What have you been watching?
Unlike Little Britain Abroad which actually could have slotted into the aforementioned countdown somewhere within the top 10. That two people could write a sketch which involves Steve Coogan saying, "Don't press that red button", and then Matt Lucas pressing that red button (and that was it) boggles the mind. Can you imagine getting up from the computer desk and saying to your colleague, "Right, that's that one finished, let's take a tea break"? Talk about insubstantial ... This was a terrible, terrible comedown for a show that I'm still happy to admit once loving.
Strictly Come Dancing's Christmas spesh was lots of fun, thankfully, albeit utterly pointless - all taking place in a pre-recorded vacuum wherein the champs of the current run had clearly yet to be crowned (cheers to Zoe Ball for making that obvious with her chat about all of the final four being potentially good enough to clinch it). I really did enjoy "Action" Jackson's routine.
The turkey sandwich viewing today thus far has been a job of work, clearing up programmes recorded on my TV Drive. We've had Doctor Who Confidential (very nice, but much too long), Doctor Who (I sensibly left it till Boxing Day, lest it be accused of ruining Christmas Chez Kibble-White for a second year running - although, as it happens it went down pretty well), and - my favourite so far - The Big Time, that episode where Gwen Wotsit cooks at the Dorchester.
How I ache once more for genuine TV characters like Magnus Pyke (he puts the "nuts" into nutritionist, says Esther Rantzen) and Robert Morley (who referred to Gwen as "my darling" throughout). I don't, however, pine for '70s cuisine, piped onto the plate and adorned with cocktail sticks and glace cherries.
And now? It's a DVD of Quatermass and the Pit - the original BBC version. The pace is glacial (I've written all this and not missed a plot point) but somehow it feels like perfect post Christmas Day viewing.
What have you been watching?
20 December 2006
"INTERESTING ... VERY INTERESTING!"
In a cliched fashion, these days I spend most of the weekend, and a couple of weeknights, watching football on Sky Sports. In fact in terms of hours I probably watch Sky Sports more than any other channel, which I'm not proud of.
Fortunately, this figure didn't get any bigger last night given the scheduled Liverpool vs Arsenal match was called off. Only Sky could turn the announcement of a postponement into a full half-hour programme, including an ad break, with interviews with the referee, the stadium manager, both managers and the assembled pundits. Sadly situations like this always bring out the pompous worst in Richard Keys, asking everyone why they couldn't play it 24 hours later, when not only had this been explained (boring reason - the police need more notice) but if it had been, they wouldn't have been able to show it because another match is scheduled.
In any case, the highlight of the week, and the season, on Sky Sports, came from Ian Darke's commentary on Everton vs Chelsea at the weekend. I've never been crazy about Darke as a commentator - though at least he has a bit of life about him, unlike his monotone colleague Rob Hawthorne - but when Didier Drogba scored the winning goal, he hollered "Look at that, look at that!" This is a quote from one of the most famous lines by John Motson and it was great to hear what I'm assuming was an obvious homage from Darke.
If you'd like to know more about commentators, then why not take a look at this thread on Digital Spy, now nearly two years old and featuring 270 pages of incredibly intense commentator discussion, including a regular weekly sweepstake on who's commentating on what for Sky. I find this absolutely fascinating.
Ooh, I wish you could post here anonymously.
Fortunately, this figure didn't get any bigger last night given the scheduled Liverpool vs Arsenal match was called off. Only Sky could turn the announcement of a postponement into a full half-hour programme, including an ad break, with interviews with the referee, the stadium manager, both managers and the assembled pundits. Sadly situations like this always bring out the pompous worst in Richard Keys, asking everyone why they couldn't play it 24 hours later, when not only had this been explained (boring reason - the police need more notice) but if it had been, they wouldn't have been able to show it because another match is scheduled.
In any case, the highlight of the week, and the season, on Sky Sports, came from Ian Darke's commentary on Everton vs Chelsea at the weekend. I've never been crazy about Darke as a commentator - though at least he has a bit of life about him, unlike his monotone colleague Rob Hawthorne - but when Didier Drogba scored the winning goal, he hollered "Look at that, look at that!" This is a quote from one of the most famous lines by John Motson and it was great to hear what I'm assuming was an obvious homage from Darke.
If you'd like to know more about commentators, then why not take a look at this thread on Digital Spy, now nearly two years old and featuring 270 pages of incredibly intense commentator discussion, including a regular weekly sweepstake on who's commentating on what for Sky. I find this absolutely fascinating.
Ooh, I wish you could post here anonymously.
18 December 2006
"IT'S TERMINAL ..."
Or maybe that should be "interminable". I adore Coronation Street and always have, but in the run-up to Christmas we have two of the most unattractive and realism-lacking storylines in progress.
Cilla Battersby-Brown has a cancer scare, gets the all-clear and then decides to pretend she remains ill after hearing of a fling between her husband and best friend via her frantic son. It may bring out the best in Sam Aiston, who as Chesney has arguably become the most gifted child actor British soap has ever uncovered, but from a viewing angle, the adult characters most deeply involved do not evoke the sympathy or likeability to make the storyline worthwhile. Cilla is a temperamental, unreliable, selfish piece of work - she is played rather well by Wendi Peters - and so it would have suited the bloodthirsty viewer more if the cancer scare had been real.
For all the criticism Coronation Street took for killing off Alma a few years ago, it nonetheless was done with grace, dignity and no little drama. There's no drama in Cilla as a healthy woman deceiving her own kids, but there would have been wingspreading potential if the flighty, over made-up tart without a heart had been forced into harrowing treatment. I daresay that would have been a real test of Peters' considerable strength as an actress, as she's done deceitful and cruel until the cows come home, but has yet to be truly vulnerable.
The sympathy vote doesn't go to her crass husband Les either, nor her lax best friend Yana. Unless this is a ruse to show off Aiston's exceptional skills as the conscientious lad with the tear stains, the storyline can't go far. And if it is, then the really brave thing to do would have been to give Chesney the illness and test the mettle of the two parental figures around him.
As for Jamie and Frankie? Crikey, even the new sexy Coronation Street of the last decade or so seems to have hit a blind spot. It's not incest - despite what Norris might say - but it's not dramatic either. Frankie's brand of considerate, sassy but mature parenting and wifery makes the idea that she would sleep with her estranged husband's son and fall in love with him quite ludicrous. It's all leading to Debra Stephenson's departure as Frankie, but I'd rather they'd been predictable on this occasion and sent her away with Danny to the Spanish villa. Or better still, persuaded Bradley Walsh to stay.
There is light, of course. Tracy Barlow's fake woman-in-chains act is very cleverly written, and the performance from Kate Ford is the first time she has convinced me she is worthy of being the long-term answer to a character who has been through three previous actresses and had an unhealthy obsession with tape-playing. And the comic side of the Street remains - Norris is a diamond of pomposity; Eileen a beacon of sarcastic unfulfilment; Kirk a paragon of lovable dimwittery.
The best soap we have needs to revert to character-based drama to match this natural comic effect, as these two big storylines are clearly a mere rush job to try to secure one family's future with the viewers while ushering another off the radar.
Cilla Battersby-Brown has a cancer scare, gets the all-clear and then decides to pretend she remains ill after hearing of a fling between her husband and best friend via her frantic son. It may bring out the best in Sam Aiston, who as Chesney has arguably become the most gifted child actor British soap has ever uncovered, but from a viewing angle, the adult characters most deeply involved do not evoke the sympathy or likeability to make the storyline worthwhile. Cilla is a temperamental, unreliable, selfish piece of work - she is played rather well by Wendi Peters - and so it would have suited the bloodthirsty viewer more if the cancer scare had been real.
For all the criticism Coronation Street took for killing off Alma a few years ago, it nonetheless was done with grace, dignity and no little drama. There's no drama in Cilla as a healthy woman deceiving her own kids, but there would have been wingspreading potential if the flighty, over made-up tart without a heart had been forced into harrowing treatment. I daresay that would have been a real test of Peters' considerable strength as an actress, as she's done deceitful and cruel until the cows come home, but has yet to be truly vulnerable.
The sympathy vote doesn't go to her crass husband Les either, nor her lax best friend Yana. Unless this is a ruse to show off Aiston's exceptional skills as the conscientious lad with the tear stains, the storyline can't go far. And if it is, then the really brave thing to do would have been to give Chesney the illness and test the mettle of the two parental figures around him.
As for Jamie and Frankie? Crikey, even the new sexy Coronation Street of the last decade or so seems to have hit a blind spot. It's not incest - despite what Norris might say - but it's not dramatic either. Frankie's brand of considerate, sassy but mature parenting and wifery makes the idea that she would sleep with her estranged husband's son and fall in love with him quite ludicrous. It's all leading to Debra Stephenson's departure as Frankie, but I'd rather they'd been predictable on this occasion and sent her away with Danny to the Spanish villa. Or better still, persuaded Bradley Walsh to stay.
There is light, of course. Tracy Barlow's fake woman-in-chains act is very cleverly written, and the performance from Kate Ford is the first time she has convinced me she is worthy of being the long-term answer to a character who has been through three previous actresses and had an unhealthy obsession with tape-playing. And the comic side of the Street remains - Norris is a diamond of pomposity; Eileen a beacon of sarcastic unfulfilment; Kirk a paragon of lovable dimwittery.
The best soap we have needs to revert to character-based drama to match this natural comic effect, as these two big storylines are clearly a mere rush job to try to secure one family's future with the viewers while ushering another off the radar.
"ROSE"
Would it surprise you to learn that's the last word uttered in "The Runaway Bride", this year's Doctor Who Christmas special? The press screening was this morning at London's Soho Hotel, and an Ian Levine-less event it turned out to be. "I think he's getting the message," joshed, er, someone.
It was a slightly subdued affair - no continual applause at every mention of RTD's name - but a good-natured one nonetheless. "A few of us were at Matt Lucas and Kevin McGee's wedding," explained a lightly frazzled Peter Fincham. "We all had to go along in pantomime costumes. I went as Prince Charming. David Tennant was rather extravagantly dressed as Buttons ..." "Thanks very much," interjected Dr Who, "and Russell T Davies," continued Fincham, "... what character were you?" "Dame".
Fincham then went on to talk about the business of making a Who festive special, while the team were also working on series three. "It's like having Sergeant Pepper up your sleeve," he joshed, "but putting Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane out for Christmas, just because you can spare them".
As for the special, it was - well - pretty great. I feel like I'm damning it with faint praise, here, because I don't have an awful lot to say about it. Seeing Catherine Tate's name in the big fly-by font was unsettling, but her performance was pretty good. Where she did verge into being annoying was probably where the script demanded it, so all credit to her. Sarah Parish was ace as the baddy - a huge and convincingly achieved spider-woman ... and a proper old school villain to boot. As per last year's Christmas boogies, she was simply bad for the sake of being bad. And that's great.
As we're now coming to expect, Davies subverted some of the iconography of Christmas yet again - including a scene which surely wrong-footed everyone watching, as Christmas trees turn evil again ... just not in the way you might think - and there was a nice character moment for the Doctor come the final reel, as Tate tells him he needs to find a companion; someone who can curb his worse excesses.
Afterwards, Tennant, Tate and Parish did the Q&A honours ... and this was over in 11 minutes flat - probably due to the fact all the weeklies published their Doctor Who coverage last Tuesday. One interesting moment, though. Tennant was asked to comment on the "hints" he'd been dropping that the next series of Who would be his last.
"I haven't hinted anything to anybody," he said. "I'm very careful about not hinting anything ever. From the moment I took this job, everyone was going, 'When are you leaving?'. A boy could get a complex! So I have tried to remain as non-committal on that as possible, and I think I shall maintain that stance today."
It was a slightly subdued affair - no continual applause at every mention of RTD's name - but a good-natured one nonetheless. "A few of us were at Matt Lucas and Kevin McGee's wedding," explained a lightly frazzled Peter Fincham. "We all had to go along in pantomime costumes. I went as Prince Charming. David Tennant was rather extravagantly dressed as Buttons ..." "Thanks very much," interjected Dr Who, "and Russell T Davies," continued Fincham, "... what character were you?" "Dame".
Fincham then went on to talk about the business of making a Who festive special, while the team were also working on series three. "It's like having Sergeant Pepper up your sleeve," he joshed, "but putting Strawberry Fields and Penny Lane out for Christmas, just because you can spare them".
As for the special, it was - well - pretty great. I feel like I'm damning it with faint praise, here, because I don't have an awful lot to say about it. Seeing Catherine Tate's name in the big fly-by font was unsettling, but her performance was pretty good. Where she did verge into being annoying was probably where the script demanded it, so all credit to her. Sarah Parish was ace as the baddy - a huge and convincingly achieved spider-woman ... and a proper old school villain to boot. As per last year's Christmas boogies, she was simply bad for the sake of being bad. And that's great.
As we're now coming to expect, Davies subverted some of the iconography of Christmas yet again - including a scene which surely wrong-footed everyone watching, as Christmas trees turn evil again ... just not in the way you might think - and there was a nice character moment for the Doctor come the final reel, as Tate tells him he needs to find a companion; someone who can curb his worse excesses.
Afterwards, Tennant, Tate and Parish did the Q&A honours ... and this was over in 11 minutes flat - probably due to the fact all the weeklies published their Doctor Who coverage last Tuesday. One interesting moment, though. Tennant was asked to comment on the "hints" he'd been dropping that the next series of Who would be his last.
"I haven't hinted anything to anybody," he said. "I'm very careful about not hinting anything ever. From the moment I took this job, everyone was going, 'When are you leaving?'. A boy could get a complex! So I have tried to remain as non-committal on that as possible, and I think I shall maintain that stance today."
16 December 2006
"REMEMBER, IT'S 01 IF YOU'RE OUTSIDE LONDON"
It took a bloody age to get into the studio, but once I was there, it was great. Clapping eyes on the obligatory studio set recreation, and an audience clad in brightly coloured plastic hats ... well, it was almost a religious experience.
This was last night at BBC Television Centre, and the studio recording of It Started With Swap Shop. To go into too much detail would spoil the show - which goes out on December 28 on BBC2. Nevertheless, it'll be no surprise to report Noel, Maggie, Keith and John were all in attendance, along with a respectable representation from their successors (wot no Dick and Dom?).
Edmonds was utterly word perfect throughout, and proved quick on his feet when it came to improv. No - ahem - posh pauses here. Alas, sometimes "Liquid Sex" Noel put in an appearance. "Have you ever stroked a weasel?" asked one guest (come on, you can guess who). "I've stroked a badger," countered the bearded one. "And a few beavers".
Hopefully, that won't make the final cut.
Something, however, that might is the clear animosity between Keith and Maggie. Bounding on to set, Cheggers greeted Noel and John with delight, and then, "Hello, you" to his ex-wife. Later, when Keith was "out and about" scampering among the studio audience, Noel held up a pair of klackers and joked that Maggie had Cheggers' balls. And then, when Ms Philbin donned a pair of specs, she hissed "I haven't had laser treatment like someone".
But these are tiny details. The occasion itself was fantastic. Achingly nostalgic. Just seeing old footage of Keith reading bus route details was Proustian. How the celebratory atmosphere will translate to telly, though, is a different matter. I fear the studio audience will just be an irritant ... don't be too harsh on us.
When it was all over, Noel made a typically Noel speech. It had been an "extraordinary" night. No-one makes children's programmes like the BBC ... An organisation who, as he continued, he lapsed into referring as "we". We? Edmonds may claim he's happier than ever opening boxes after Countdown, but it's clear where his heart lies.
Noel on the Beeb. It's actually what we all want.
This was last night at BBC Television Centre, and the studio recording of It Started With Swap Shop. To go into too much detail would spoil the show - which goes out on December 28 on BBC2. Nevertheless, it'll be no surprise to report Noel, Maggie, Keith and John were all in attendance, along with a respectable representation from their successors (wot no Dick and Dom?).
Edmonds was utterly word perfect throughout, and proved quick on his feet when it came to improv. No - ahem - posh pauses here. Alas, sometimes "Liquid Sex" Noel put in an appearance. "Have you ever stroked a weasel?" asked one guest (come on, you can guess who). "I've stroked a badger," countered the bearded one. "And a few beavers".
Hopefully, that won't make the final cut.
Something, however, that might is the clear animosity between Keith and Maggie. Bounding on to set, Cheggers greeted Noel and John with delight, and then, "Hello, you" to his ex-wife. Later, when Keith was "out and about" scampering among the studio audience, Noel held up a pair of klackers and joked that Maggie had Cheggers' balls. And then, when Ms Philbin donned a pair of specs, she hissed "I haven't had laser treatment like someone".
But these are tiny details. The occasion itself was fantastic. Achingly nostalgic. Just seeing old footage of Keith reading bus route details was Proustian. How the celebratory atmosphere will translate to telly, though, is a different matter. I fear the studio audience will just be an irritant ... don't be too harsh on us.
When it was all over, Noel made a typically Noel speech. It had been an "extraordinary" night. No-one makes children's programmes like the BBC ... An organisation who, as he continued, he lapsed into referring as "we". We? Edmonds may claim he's happier than ever opening boxes after Countdown, but it's clear where his heart lies.
Noel on the Beeb. It's actually what we all want.
08 December 2006
A QUESTION OF HASTE
It seems to be with undue alacrity that Channel 4 has announced it is to make a drama based on the recent death of ex-KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko. The poor chap wasn't even buried when the news came out that acclaimed writer/director Peter Kosminsky would be crafting a script surrounding the mysterious events of the past month or so. Indeed, the news was tastelessly announced on the BBC News website on the morning of Litvinenko's funeral.
Kosminsky has a good track record with this kind of drama, having made The Government Inspector which covered the death of Dr David Kelly, but surely a little bit of distance could have been left before a film on the Litvinenko case was made? The story will most likely make for a gripping piece of television (especially with somebody like Kosminsky involved), but for the news to be released at such a unsettling time seems somewhat insensitive.
Kosminsky has a good track record with this kind of drama, having made The Government Inspector which covered the death of Dr David Kelly, but surely a little bit of distance could have been left before a film on the Litvinenko case was made? The story will most likely make for a gripping piece of television (especially with somebody like Kosminsky involved), but for the news to be released at such a unsettling time seems somewhat insensitive.
04 December 2006
"THIS TIME WE'LL KILL SARAH JANE SMITH PROPERLY!"
"Sonic lipstick", a giant fold-out computer called Mr Smith, SJ whizzing around in a Nissan Figaro, a craze for fizzy drinks sweeping the nation ... the preview disc for The Sarah Jane Adventures has hit my desk, and it looks awfully good.
"When the programme-makers first contacted me," said Elisabeth Sladen in interview recently, "I thought they were calling me about Torchwood. 'Ooh,' I said, 'I'm going to be in the 9pm slot for once! I'm going to be grown up!'."
But, from the excerpt I've seen, this is absolutely, deafeningly a kids' show, with a lot of the action told from the point of view of the juvenile lead, Maria. Sarah is very much portrayed as "the other", a fantastic, mysterious person who chats to aliens (one of whom has, fittingly, dropped in from Torchwood) on her back lawn. The baddy - Samantha Bond - is just this side of a cartoon, and that's how it should be.
Word of mouth about this show is already good. Unsurprisingly, I'm excited.
"When the programme-makers first contacted me," said Elisabeth Sladen in interview recently, "I thought they were calling me about Torchwood. 'Ooh,' I said, 'I'm going to be in the 9pm slot for once! I'm going to be grown up!'."
But, from the excerpt I've seen, this is absolutely, deafeningly a kids' show, with a lot of the action told from the point of view of the juvenile lead, Maria. Sarah is very much portrayed as "the other", a fantastic, mysterious person who chats to aliens (one of whom has, fittingly, dropped in from Torchwood) on her back lawn. The baddy - Samantha Bond - is just this side of a cartoon, and that's how it should be.
Word of mouth about this show is already good. Unsurprisingly, I'm excited.
01 December 2006
SEZ DES
C4 are circulating a Des O'Connor interview to promote his turn in the Countdown chair. Here's the relevant bit ...
YOU'RE JUST ABOUT TO START SHOOTING COUNTDOWN. ARE YOU EXCITED ABOUT IT?
Yes I am. A challenge is a challenge and this is something really different for me. It's got a really different flavour to it. It's not a quiz or a game show, it's more like a parlour game and it's very laid back, very relaxed, great fun. I'm excited to be part of a show that's been running nearly 25 years. I went to do some run-throughs a couple of weeks ago, and it was just so much fun. We never stopped giggling. That's what I love to do. I haven't done a day's work since I came into show business - I've done a lot of days' effort, but not work. It's too enjoyable to call work.
HAVE YOU BEEN A FAN OF THE SHOW OVER THE YEARS?
Oh yeah, I've watched it many, many times. I'm not very good with the maths but I'm quite good with the words. But Carol is just extraordinary. I don't know if she's got a computer in her head - I watched her do the numbers, quite often in a matter of seconds.
HAD YOU MET HER BEFORE YOU WENT UP FOR THE RUN-THROUGHS?
Oh yeah, she's been a guest on Des O'Connor two or three times, she's done Des & Mel two or three times. I've always found her very relaxed, a lot of fun, not afraid to chip away at herself a little bit. She's lovely. I'm very fortunate to be working with someone who's got a great sense of fun.
ARE YOU CONSCIOUS OF STEPPING INTO THE SHOES OF TWO VERY DISTINGUISHED HOSTS OF COUNTDOWN?
Obviously I'm aware of it. But I can't afford to look back too much at what's gone on before. I very much respect both gentlemen. Des Lynam really knows his television, he's an absolute pro. I've met him two or three times - funnily enough, twice at airports - absolutely charming guy. And Richard was great, I had a lot of time for him. He was very warm, really his warmth was his talent. He had real charm, a sweet gentleman.
YOU BECAME A FATHER AGAIN AT THE AGE OF 72. WILL YOU BE ENCOURAGING YOUR SON TO TUNE IN TO COUNTDOWN TO HELP HIM LEARN TO READ?
God, if he starts rattling off nine-letter words that have been mixed up he'll run the country! But I think if you start pushing kids too hard it's not good. The programme is watched by everyone from students through to senior citizens, but I think it might be a bit much for a two-year-old. I'll kick a ball around the garden with him, but I won't be throwing nine-letter words at him just yet.
- A NEW ERA OF COUNTDOWN, WITH DES O'CONNOR AT THE HELM, BEGINS ON 2 JANUARY AT 3:30PM.
YOU'RE JUST ABOUT TO START SHOOTING COUNTDOWN. ARE YOU EXCITED ABOUT IT?
Yes I am. A challenge is a challenge and this is something really different for me. It's got a really different flavour to it. It's not a quiz or a game show, it's more like a parlour game and it's very laid back, very relaxed, great fun. I'm excited to be part of a show that's been running nearly 25 years. I went to do some run-throughs a couple of weeks ago, and it was just so much fun. We never stopped giggling. That's what I love to do. I haven't done a day's work since I came into show business - I've done a lot of days' effort, but not work. It's too enjoyable to call work.
HAVE YOU BEEN A FAN OF THE SHOW OVER THE YEARS?
Oh yeah, I've watched it many, many times. I'm not very good with the maths but I'm quite good with the words. But Carol is just extraordinary. I don't know if she's got a computer in her head - I watched her do the numbers, quite often in a matter of seconds.
HAD YOU MET HER BEFORE YOU WENT UP FOR THE RUN-THROUGHS?
Oh yeah, she's been a guest on Des O'Connor two or three times, she's done Des & Mel two or three times. I've always found her very relaxed, a lot of fun, not afraid to chip away at herself a little bit. She's lovely. I'm very fortunate to be working with someone who's got a great sense of fun.
ARE YOU CONSCIOUS OF STEPPING INTO THE SHOES OF TWO VERY DISTINGUISHED HOSTS OF COUNTDOWN?
Obviously I'm aware of it. But I can't afford to look back too much at what's gone on before. I very much respect both gentlemen. Des Lynam really knows his television, he's an absolute pro. I've met him two or three times - funnily enough, twice at airports - absolutely charming guy. And Richard was great, I had a lot of time for him. He was very warm, really his warmth was his talent. He had real charm, a sweet gentleman.
YOU BECAME A FATHER AGAIN AT THE AGE OF 72. WILL YOU BE ENCOURAGING YOUR SON TO TUNE IN TO COUNTDOWN TO HELP HIM LEARN TO READ?
God, if he starts rattling off nine-letter words that have been mixed up he'll run the country! But I think if you start pushing kids too hard it's not good. The programme is watched by everyone from students through to senior citizens, but I think it might be a bit much for a two-year-old. I'll kick a ball around the garden with him, but I won't be throwing nine-letter words at him just yet.
- A NEW ERA OF COUNTDOWN, WITH DES O'CONNOR AT THE HELM, BEGINS ON 2 JANUARY AT 3:30PM.