This afternoon I'm on BBC Radio Leicester as
a guest of Ed Stagg. Ed (photo
above) hosts a weekly panel show,
broadcast live from 1200-1400, discussing news stories from the
past seven days. Rather like "The News Quiz", but without the benefit
of a studio audience.
The other guests are Kaitlynn Mendes (Senior Lecturer in Journalism at De
Montfort University) and Elaine Pantling (comedienne, actress and writer
who performs as the one-woman Laurie
Lorry Theatre Company). None of us know who'll
be in the studio until we turn up ten minutes before the show goes on air. I've
met Elaine before, but don't know Kaitlynn. In the photo below, Ed is flanked
by Kaitlynn (left) and Elaine (right).
I've been on Radio Leicester's Saturday afternoon show twice before (see blog entries for 14 July and 3 November 2012), when the show was hosted by Damien St John. It's interesting to see how Ed has put his own spin on the format - what he's kept and what he's changed. Ed hopes "to create the atmosphere of a relaxed and fun 'coffee-table' chat."
A couple of days before the show we each receive an email and phone call from Ed, briefing us on the forthcoming show. We each have a question to which he'd like us to respond, then encourage us all to discuss - and for listeners to email, text or tweet about. Our questions are as follows:
- "Are some people more equal than others?" (for me)
- "Should we encourage our children to watch the news?" (for Kaitlynn)
- "When is it too late to change?" (for Elaine)
- "What should you never leave the house without?" (for everyone)
Each of us gets to choose a piece of music. Under the previous regime, we each got to nominate a song and Damien would pick one of them. Ed asks us to keep it "radio-friendly" and preferably something that relates to our specialism, our question or something that fits the week. Mine is The Loving by XTC. I hope hearing that song brightens up someone's Saturday afternoon as much as it brightened mine to pick it.
This afternoon I'm on BBC Radio Leicester as a guest of Damien St John. Damien (photo above) hosts a weekly panel show, broadcast live from 1200-1400, discussing news stories from the past seven days. Rather like "Have I Got News For You", but with three panellists instead of four.
I've been on Damien's Saturday afternoon show once before (see blog entry, 14 July 2012).
The other guests today are Joel Hicks (male model and actor) and Ishy Khan Jackson (comedian, compere and laughter coach). None of us know who'll be in the studio until we turn up ten minutes before the show goes on air. I know Ishy, but haven't met Joel before.
The day before the show we each receive an email from Damien (photo above), briefing us on the topics we're most likely to cover:
Hurricane Sandy As the Eastern seaboard of the United States is devastated by severe weather conditions, what will you remember most about the so-called "superstorm"? What would you do if a storm was due to hit Leicester tomorrow? Novem-brr has been wet and windy so far, please complete this sentence- You know it's nearly winter when...
Marriage The number of unmarried parents is increasing in the UK... What impact does this have on children? Does it matter? What marital circumstances did you grow up under? Are there any benefits to marriage?
In a Pickle British brand Branston Pickle has been sold to a Japanese company... Another nail in British industry or can anything good come of it? Are British products still the best quality? Does it matter which country your items come from?
Wax On Wax Off The world's worst waxwork museum could close... Who do people say you look like? Are museums flawed now we have the internet? What do you do that you couldn't do online?
The Ironing Lady One of Margaret Thatcher's ex-bodyguards claims the former PM often tidied up after people and even cleaned up after "messy dogs"... What was the last good deed you did? Do we ever change our opinions of people?
I've Adder Nough The Foreign Office has spent £10k re-stuffing a 20ft snake in William Hague's office... What's the most useless gift you've ever been given? What do you definitely NOT need or want for Christmas?
Song Challenge Drying your clothes indoors can increase the chances of allergies and health problems... Come up with a well-known clothing-related song to play at the end of the show! I recommend "Hole in My Shoe" by Traffic (there's been an awful lot of rain lately) - and I'm glad to say that my choice gets the nod today!
Joel and I are both men, that much is true. But it's safe to say that we're very different examples of the male form. When we come to the looky-likey question, Joel says he is occasionally mistaken for Tom Hardy - who, of course, plays Bane in The Dark Knight Rises, the final film in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy. That would definitely make him popular with my son Harry. Damien suggests that it make good radio if Joel and I were to engage in a bout of arm wrestling live on air. I agree, on condition that a sound crew come with me in the ambulance to Leicester General and cover the operation to reattach my arm live on air. I'd say my impromptu response made good radio: how we laughed!
This afternoon I'm on BBC Radio Leicester as a guest of Damien St John. Damien (photo above) hosts a weekly panel show, broadcast live from 1200-1400, discussing news stories from the past seven days. Rather like "Mock The Week", but with fewer jokes.
The other guests today are Rob Gee (stand up comic, performance poet and former psychiatric nurse) and Suzanne Curley (a local woman taking Media Studies at the University of Aberystwyth). None of us know who'll be in the studio until we turn up ten minutes before the show goes on air. I know Rob, but haven't met Suzanne before.
The day before the show we each receive an email from Damien (photo above), briefing us on the topics we're most likely to cover. While it doesn't tempt me to do much research, it allows the chance for reflection - and a little discussion with one or two of my friends and colleagues. Here are the topics and Damien's briefing about them:
Slowhand Officers at Heathrow immigration were heckled by a crowd after they waited two hours to enter the UK. What's happened to our patience and our tolerance? Have you ever gone further than a tut or a sigh when faced with a queue or a problem? Are you worried about delays during the Olympics? What's your plan?
Milking It Farmers marched on Westminster this week against a proposed price cut to milk. Would you be prepared to subsidise British business with higher prices? Does it matter if we don't support "local" produce? What would happen if all the milk dried up? Would you drink synthetic milk if it was cheaper?
Space Oddity Newly declassified MoD documents reveal Britain's reported UFO sightings... Are we being watched by other beings? What would be the best way to take over this planet? Why do we have such a fascination (or fear) of alien life? When do you think we'll make "first contact" with a different race?
Paint it Gold The Rolling Stones this week celebrated their golden anniversary, 50 years since they started making music. You have 60 seconds to tell me why they are the greatest British band and why - If not, tell me why not and which band ARE the greatest. (you will be against the clock!). [I've never been much of a fan of the Stones, so I plump for a score draw between the Kinks and the Who.]
Tech a Look at Me Now The O2 mobile network crashed this week and the BBC website had a problem too... Are we too reliant on technology? Should we allow more of it into our lives like biometrics or are you a traditionalist who believes in keys, paper and letters? What positives can someone take from losing their mobile signal for 24 hours? Were customers right to get angry?
Fox in the City Leicester City are back in pre-season training having lost a lot of big-name players... Come up with a few well-known songs to play at the end of the show, think along the theme of "beginnings", "starting again" or "something new". [Despite my lack of fervour for the Rolling Stones, I suggest "Start It Up" - though Damien doesn't pick it.]
Lonely Boy A New York man felt alone in the big city and started giving his number to strangers... What has caused so many of us to become isolated and frustrated? Are cries for help too often confused for pathetic attention-seeking? What would it take to make everyone feel better? What's the last TRUE emotion you felt and what caused it? [unfortunately, we don't get round to this one]
There's nothing particularly "faithsy" about my contribution (though Damien states my job title and names my employer several times during the show), so I've not saved or transcribed any of the broadcast. I'd like to think that I make good use of my discernment, intelligence and wit throughout. It's fun and I'd welcome the opportunity to do this again sometime.
