Tuesday, March 15, 2011

lonely hearts

I am really enjoying The Lonely Hearts Club, which airs on Saturday nights on Radio National. If it is as improvised as it seems, it's a testament to the great talents of those involved (Tony Martin, Angus Sampson, Stephen Curry, Sam Pang apparently, though they do it anonymously and 'straight'). I enjoy it 95% and the only two things I can say against it are: (1) that 'hmm'ing is too Mike Moore/Frontline and (2) it's all very well for Tony Martin, who I have the greatest respect for (with the caveat that he was incredibly rude to my sister) to joke about 80s music, but he has worked in commercial radio for decades - including in the 80s, when people were seemingly unable to produce anything except 80s music for an entire decade. 80s music is not per se funny anyway, but when you are a commercial radio dj/announcer providing the padding around that kind of thing normally, dub tf?
Fortunately in the podcasts the music can't be included so you just get a snippet of the beginning and ending; sometimes it makes a nice little sting in itself. Check the whole thing out here, I highly recommend it.

Later: I have now listened to all 5 extant episodes, and continue to enjoy it. One of the most impressive things about it is that though I gather it is mostly improvised, probably with some kind of rough structure, no-one laughs. How on earth can anyone be so professional, and stay in character? Even if it was heavily scripted, the fact that it's live (some of it definitely is - the talkback stuff) surely would generate a bit of nervous energy. But no-one does laugh. They must be on some kind of awful drug.
Duncan Jardine's whole spiel about John Wood solving genuine crimes during the making of
Blue Heelers was just extraordinary (episode 3 I think).

2 comments:

fxh said...

I've tuned in a few times late at night in the car or something - I've never listened through.

I don't get it.

Its not funny or interesting, its not dry, wry or sly.


And worse it sounds a bit smug and superior.

David Nichols said...

Listen to them all. It is funny. If you like funny things. It builds.

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