‘My theory is that together we can solve each other’s problems…’
In January 2010 Sarah celebrated the beginning of a new year along with a brand new phase of her career – because it was the month that she first moved into the world of radio.
First, she was a guest on a brand new radio show on 5 Live called 7 Day Sunday. Broadcast for an hour in the 11am to 12pm slot, the show was presented by Mancunian Chris Addison, the gangly-limbled, baby-faced comic best known for his portrayal of Ollie in political comedy satire The Thick of It.
When the show was first announced, it was pitched as a topical news series aiming to ‘pull apart the week’s big news stories and see what makes them tick’. But Addison cheekily described it as ‘four relatively ill-informed idiots fail to take the news seriously for an hour’. Taking an irreverent look at the news stories of the previous seven days, it featured special guest stars including Pub Landlord Al Murray, who eventually took over hosting duties from Addison a year later.
But despite Millican’s sharp wit, it was not a critical success. After the first show, Jane Thynne from The Independent was perturbed by the lack of variety – it covered mainly the season’s heavy snowfall and featured little political content. She found it odd, considering Addison had made his name in a politics-based programme. She called Addison witty, but ultimately reserved judgment on the show overall, recommending he slow down the pace and stop his ‘nervous giggling’.
The Times was less positive. Chris Campling described the first episode as a duplicate of the ‘dismal, desperate show it had replaced – The Christian O’Connell Solution.’ He gave it another chance by listening in on the second episode, but said it had no chemistry and ‘none of the News Quizesque scoring of laughter points, where clever people fall over themselves in their desperation to be funnier than the last’.
Elisabeth Mahoney, from The Guardian, found the show quite funny, but hit the nail on the head when she said that the listener had to stay very focused, as the four-way dialogue could be confusing because it covered a comprehensive sweep of topics. It was a rocky start, but Sarah’s presence as a regular guest during series one and two certainly lifted it.
However, Sarah’s dulcet tones were about to dominate the airwaves in a completely different show – one she was infinitely more suited to. Occasional guest spots would now become a side-project for Sarah, because she had been given her own Radio 4 slot. Sarah Millican’s Support Group was born.
It wasn’t the first time Sarah had written for Radio 4. In 2008, after her first Fringe Show had been so well-received, Millican had penned a one-off special for the station, called Keeping Your Chins Up.
It was essentially a version of Sarah Millican’s Not Nice in which she explained, in story form, how she had reacted to her husband leaving her. But this time, Radio 4 were giving Sarah her own show, not just a one-off slot. Support Group was a perfect vehicle for Millican’s cosy, aunt-like persona, and featured Sarah in the role of a modern-day agony aunt dealing with a variety of often ridiculous and pointless woes.
‘Hello, I’m Sarah Millican,’ read the BBC promo material. ‘My new series for the wireless, Sarah Millican’s Support Group, is starting on Radio 4 and we’re inviting you to join us. We all have problems. Sometimes you just need cream from Boots. Sometimes you need advice. For the latter, come to us. For the former you’re on your own. There’s no membership fee and all are welcome. Particularly those in pyjamas, like me.’
Just as Sarah was coaxing her audience to confide in her during her live shows, her soothing voice would now invite the ‘public’ – in reality a series of excellent actors – to share their private conundrums. Pretending to be an agony aunt, she would offer advice and consolation.
‘Often my friends come to me with their problems,’ she said in a promotional video for the BBC’s website. ‘I used to think it was because I’m sensible and logical and good at sorting things out. But I’ve got a feeling that it might actually just be because I’ve got loads of problems. I’m just like you – well, some of you. Not the posh ones, obviously.’
The show was actually piloted in November of the previous year, and immediately tested positively. It was recorded on 2 December 2009, and 7, 14 and 27 January 2010, at The Drill Hall in London – which now houses the RADA studios. The series first aired a month later on Radio 4, on Thursdays at 11pm. The late slot was decided on because of the adult content of the show, which was largely scripted but did feature some fairly blue improvisation. A host of fine actors played the various roles of Sarah’s guest callers – divulging their most personal of problems in front of the live audience.
Sarah’s solutions usually involved a combination of cake, tea and hugs, the kind of homely comfort that she had experienced her whole life from her parents. A blend of fiction and live audience interaction, it was a novel concept, and it gave Sarah the chance to freewheel into the funny little comedy asides she was so good at.
The first problem Sarah and her ‘support group’ tackled, was the issue of dating outside of your class. ‘Should you, why would you, and will it work,’ asked Sarah, introducing the topic. ‘I consider myself working class,’ she explained to the audience. ‘I choose The Simpsons over the news any day. Once in London I stayed with a wonderful friend of mine who had dimmer switches. I had no idea how they worked. I was 29. I’ve never dated outside of my class. Posh blokes don’t work for me. I like proper blokes, who normally go to ASDA but sometimes treat themselves to Tesco’s. Blokes who wear the creases out of a shirt.’
After her comedy preamble, the show’s first problem caller was invited into the studio. Played by an actress, a very posh ‘Carol’ explained her issue, which involved falling for a working class plumber. She was worried about what her friends and family might think.
What followed was a back-and-forth comedy duet on the issue, littered with some truly excellent plumbing euphemisms, on which the audience was invited to offer their own opinions. It was an interesting format, made exceptional by both the performing skills of her acting co-stars, and Sarah’s witty and quick-fire interactions with the audience. The ‘problems’ were all well-written and sparked a landslide of great material for Sarah to deliver gags from.
‘I can’t get hair to grow on my head, but my nostrils, ears and back are lush with new growth. Any way to change this direction?’ ‘This is quite a common problem among men in their mid-thirties,’ Sarah replied with authority. ‘I think maybe you could just try sleeping upside down? If that doesn’t work, then you need to accept the fact that you’re going bald, pet. It’s fine, you’ll be all right – it’s quite attractive really. Big, bushy nostrils? Not so sexy. Maybe you should get your girlfriend to pluck them – they love that.’
‘I took up the guitar to make girls like me. It didn’t work, so I took up the ukelele. Is this a step backwards? Because I’ve not had any interest for over two years now.’ Sarah replied: ‘If there’s one thing I know about women, it’s that if we don’t respond to a big instrument, we’re not going to respond to a small one. Talk to women. Be nice.’
‘I’ve honed my skills with women by researching Dear Deirdre columns, religiously. It’s still not working. Where am I going wrong?’ ‘That’s weird, because women bone up on men by reading Viz and that always works. Maybe Dear Deirdre only works if you think all women only solve their problems by overacting in bikinis?’ Cue massive guffaws.
Her co-star, Simon Daye, also regularly received some big laughs. His character, Terry, was billed as a random member of the audience, giving his own opinion on the problems discussed. In one episode, when faced with the knowledge that escorts get free dinners – a revelation that Sarah was very interested in – he shouted out: ‘I can eat dinner at home, I can’t see the point of that at all.’ Talking about his fictional ex-girlfriend in another episode, he said: ‘I picked her up in Aldi. Literally. She was standing in front of the beans and I moved her away from the beans.’
A ‘man of the people’ cabbie,
on the show Sarah described Terry as ‘ill-informed but from the heart’. He sounds remarkably like Sarah’s dad, Philip, who many believe is the inspiration for the hugely funny character.
Also joining Sarah in the show was Ruth Bratt, who played self-qualified counsellor Marion. ‘Although I have A levels in French, German and Media Studies, and an NVQ in life, I still thought it best to bring in a proper expert,’ Sarah told the audience by way of introduction. ‘Someone who has written essays on “feelings”…’
Bratt’s Marion was a very clever caricature of the classic self-help guru – one who is only really interested in hearing herself talk. Using a huge number of superfluous similes and pointless analogies to summarise their guests’ problems, she came across as unwittingly condescending – and most of her words of encouragement were actually just thinly veiled snobbishness. ‘Should you feel that you deserve another bite of the relationship cherry,’ she told one bereaved ‘guest’, ‘then might I suggest that you first you plant the seed – the seed of yourself. At the moment you are a dry, harsh soil with bits of grit in it. Why don’t you water yourself with hobbies and pastimes? Soon you will be worth spending time with.’
The show was a huge success and was immediately commissioned for a second series. For Sarah’s fans it was great to see her fronting her own show, instead of simply guesting on somebody else’s. It was great timing too. After hearing so much about this new comedian, the British public must have been gagging for a larger showcase of her work to be aired. They were well satisfied with what Sarah delivered.
Critics were equally impressed. ‘It rather reminded me of Mrs Merton at times, but that’s no bad thing,’ said Jane Anderson in the Radio Times. ‘The scripted “problems” are tightly written with jokes fired at high velocity, but it’s her instant responses to members of the audience who dare to pipe up that prove her worth as a razor-sharp-witted woman.’
After her divorce and subsequent counseling sessions, it’s interesting to note that Sarah was obviously still fascinated by the concept of laughter as therapy. And as many of the issues divulged on the show were relationship–related, you could be forgiven for thinking she was still somewhat preoccupied with the demise of her marriage.
‘I haven’t always been so clever,’ she said, after introducing the first show. ‘I have been known to eat a pound and a half of mint imperials while trudging my way through My Guy Monthly wondering where “the one” is. I’ve also sat on a friend’s living room floor with a bottle of £1.49 wine and cried and shouted until it was time for Vienetta…’
Making light of serious issues is just one of the weapons in Sarah’s comedy arsenal. But it is one that she employs to great effect, and it made Sarah Millican’s Support Group – her first big solo venture – a very popular radio show.
Another reason that it proved so successful, was the channel it was aired on. BBC Radio 4 is the second most popular British radio station in the country (after Radio 2), and over 10 million people regularly tune in to enjoy its diverse and thought-provoking content. It has a strong reputation for showcasing comic talent, including both experimental and alternative comedy – and a huge number of our most successful comedians and comedy shows first aired on the station.
In 1964 – when Radio 4 was called the BBC Home Service – the station was responsible for broadcasting the classic improvisational comedy show, I’m Sorry, I’ll Read That Again. Originating from the Cambridge University Footlights revue Cambridge Circus, it soon developed a devoted youth following, with its attendees describing its live recordings as being more like rock concerts that comedy shows.
And it was no wonder – because it had a cast who would go on to become rock stars of the comedy world. Cast members Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Gardner and Bill Oddie went on to become The Goodies, while co-writer John Cleese’s journey from Radio 4 took him to Monty Python and far beyond. In hindsight, the programme clearly shows Monty Python’s roots, as Graham Chapman and Eric Idle also contributed regularly to its script.
Its influence on the comedy genre in general was huge. Much more improvised and fast-paced than anything that had been heard on the radio before, it helped listeners to prepare for a new brand of modern comedy that was heading for their television screens – exemplified by At Last The 1948 Show, Spike Milligan’s Q series, and Monty Python’s Flying Circus, to name but a few.
It also led to the 1972 spin-off radio series I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue, which outlived it by decades, and is still broadcast on Radio 4 to this day. Currently hosted by Jack Dee, Tim Brooke-Taylor still stars in the show.
The world was first introduced to the character of hapless Englishman Arthur Dent on the station in 1978 – an intergalactic traveler whose friend, Ford Prefect, wrote for The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Later adapted into the best-selling book, Hitchhikers began as a science-fiction comedy radio series, which came into existence after Douglas Adams was asked to pitch a radio sitcom to the station in February 1977. Adams said in an interview that when he discovered the producers wanted a sci-fi theme, he ‘fell off [his] chair, because it was what I’d been fighting for all these years’.
It was certainly innovative in its content, but it was also the first radio comedy programme to be produced in stereo, and was unique in its use of music and sound effects, winning a number of awards.
In 1988, Radio 4 became the first home of the classic improvisation show Whose Line Is It Anyway, which featured a young Clive Anderson as host and John Sessions and Stephen Fry as regular guests. Created by Dan Patterson and Mark Leveson, the radio series consisted of six episodes, and had such wide appeal that it was instantly snapped up by Channel 4 to be made into the hugely successful television show version.
In more recent times, the station also launched the career of Steve Coogan, when it first broadcast the current affairs parody show On the Hour in 1991. Written by a host of talented comedians, including Chris Morris, Richard Herring and Armando Iannucci, it starred Morris as an overzealous and self-important news anchor, accompanied by a regular cast that included Patrick Marber, Doon Mackichan, David Schneider, Coogan and the fabulous female comic Rebecca Front.
Frequently surreal and highly satirical, the spoof show perfectly demonstrated Radio 4’s attitude to alternative and often groundbreaking comedy. The nonsensical content – ‘Borrowed dog finds Scotland’, and ‘Where now for man raised by puffins?’, for example – was delivered in the same serious manner as real news presenters, as it was Morris’s intention to show how the public would believe anything if it was delivered to them with a straight-face. It fooled many listeners, who sometimes rang in to complain about how the anchor was treating his guests.
It was as part of On the Hour that Coogan first portrayed the insecure and narcissistic buffoon, Alan Partridge. A socially awkward and deeply insensitive character, Partridge was such a hit on the show that Radio 4 commissioned the six part series Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge, which was picked up by BBC 2 for a television series in 1994. Partridge is now a celebrity in his own right…
Another slightly surreal offering from Radio 4 came in 1997, when the station offered a six-episode run to four young comedians who had just won their first Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Fringe – The League of Gentlemen. Mark Gatiss, Jeremy Dyson, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith duly penned On the Town with The League of Gentlemen for the station. A black comedy, often edging into the comedy horror genre, it quickly acquired a cult following, and the foursome were awarded a Sony Award for the radio series. They were launched into the mainstream when the series became a television show in 1999, and have been credited with the revival of the sketch show format in BBC comedy.
A forum for creativity and ingenuity, over its many decades of broadcasting, Radio 4 has championed the careers of so many of our best-loved comedians. It has consistently given the kind of opportunities for experimental performing that television is so much more hesitant at offering. As a result we have a thriving Bri
tish comedy scene – a scene that Sarah is now very much a part of.
CHAPTER 16
Panel Show Prowess
‘Usually you get to the end of those long-record panel shows and you’re thinking “Thank God I can take my massive knickers off!”’
Since Sarah had made the decision to become a stand-up comedian, each year that passed had brought her greater recognition. 2010 was no exception.
Between her new radio show, and the tireless work she was doing on scripting and shaping her new summer Fringe show, Sarah was also securing her position as ‘the guest to have’ on every panel show of note. Between her second and third Fringe runs, she appeared on a whopping 13 popular programmes – and unbeknown to Sarah, it would be excellent practice for her very own show, which would begin in 2011.
Less than a month after Edinburgh 2009, she joined Dara O’Briain as a panellist on his hit show Mock The Week, alongside Hugh Dennis, Frankie Boyle, Andy Parsons, Russell Howard and David Mitchell. When the audience heard Dara announce her name, they cheered.
In the first round, the guests had to guess what the question would be, for the answer, ‘175 billion’. Each guest gave a fairly safe answer and had a few laughs. But Sarah didn’t pull any punches, and sweetly said: ‘Is it, how many hairs you’d have to pull from Susan Boyle’s face to make her attractive?’
As the only female in an all-male line up, even the guys were shocked and their mouths fell open in surprise. Sarah just giggled as Dara shook his head and said: ‘Not even we would do such jokes…’ Sarah replied: ‘Well it’s like a part-time job keeping up with my beard…’ But following her shocking remark, the comedians took no time at all to lower themselves to her level and from then on the laughs came thick and fast.
In the stand-up improvisation round, Sarah stole the show. When the subject of relationships came up, she walked to the centre stage microphone and said: ‘I’ve been with my boyfriend now for a few years and it’s going really well. But we’ve started sort of spicing things up in the bedroom – we’ve recently tried dirty talk. Neither of us had done it before and we’re both a bit too nice and neither of us drink, so it was never going to go well. But we thought we’d give it a go and I said I’d start off… I didn’t really know what you’re supposed to say and I went, “Oh, erm, I’ve been a bad girl, I’m sorry about that”. And he said: “Apology accepted.”’
Sarah Millican--The Queen of Comedy Page 14