Just A Minute blog

A blog on the BBC radio programme Just A Minute

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Location: Wellington, New Zealand

July 14, 2007

JAM News

some bits of news that might interest you

* the panel at the recording in Hastings last week was Paul Merton, Gyles Brandreth, Jenny Eclair and Julian Clary. A very good team. Great to have Jenny back - a two year absence is far too long. Gyles and Julian are always great to hear again.

* the next recording is at Broadcasting House in London on July 26th. As always - if you're going or have any details about it, please let me know.

* the first recording of the season - we'll hear one of the shows on Monday - was recorded in a giant tent amongst steady rain and.... mud! The team was Paul, Pam Ayres, Maureen Lipman and Dara O'Briain, with Marcus Brigstocke replacing Dara for the second recording.

* a recording at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival is confirmed for August 14th - but it's already sold out!

* I hear that celebrations for the 40th anniversary - it's in December - may be muted as it's about the same tme as Radio Four's 40th! There are suggestions it may not even be as big as the 35th anniversary show...

* And two long-time JAM stars have asked me to mention their shows. So I will.

JAM star (and former producer) Chris Neill is doing stand-up at the Camden Fringe this year.... here's what he sent me...

Chris Neill - Bearded Wonder

For my shiny new show I find myself thrilled to be avoiding the money-sapping bitch-fest known as Edinburgh in August, and instead am a little giddy to be making a temporary home in the tie-dyed, syringe-strewn, old suede jacket-wearing capital of Britain that is Camden.

In this too-hot-to-handle, just-out-of the-oven, brand new sixty minutes (or a bit under if I can’t find a way of making my routine about opera work), I shall throw myself at a variety of topics (genealogy, surrealism in suburbia, my desire to make passionate love to every beautiful girl in England* to name but three), wrestle them to the ground, and have them begging for mercy. That, or I might tell some jokes about offal and jam.

* One of these is a lie.

Venue: Etcetera Theatre, Oxford Arms, Camden High Street

Time: 21.00 (22.00) 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 August

All tickets £7.50 Ticket booking 020 7482 4857 or www.camdenfringe.org


And Nicholas Parsons is taking his one-man show, "How Pleasant To Know Mr Lear" to the Ealing Comedy Festival on September 1.




Just a thought - neither of the first two recordings were graced by the presence of Sir Clement Freud. He has only missed one summer season recording in four years before this year. Let's hope he is well - he is in his mid 80s but it would be hard to imagine the show without him.

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

The panel of Paul, Gyles, Julian and Jenny sounds great. But Jenny Eclair has only been away for two seasons, so if I'm being a bit pedantic, she hasn't appeared for a year-and-a-half ;o)

Ahhh we're back in Radio Theatre in Broadcasting House after 5 years touring the theatres of London - the Drill Hall, the Mermaid, the Shaw etc.

It's always a pleasure to have Dara O'Briain on the show, and Marcus Brigstocke always gives good value. Pam Ayres I'm interested to hear whether or not she can finally win a game, and Maureen Lipman, well I haven't heard any of her shows yet but I'm informed they are very good, and she has provided great lines on Have I Got News For You, especially towards those media-whores Neil and Christine Hamilton.

Oooh Edinburgh Fringe! Wonder if another comic talent will be unearthed as a would-be regular, like Graham Norton, Ross Noble, Dara O'Briain, Rob Brydon or Marcus Brigstocke.

Don't worry, I'm sure Sir Clement Freud is fine and well, still swimming in the nude off the coast of Suffolk. He still takes time to visit his favourite racecourses and write a column for the Racing Post. So if he can get about to these places, I'm sure attending recordings of Just A Minute wouldn't be too much of a problem. Maybe he wants to enjoy more of his leisure time while he still can...

8:47 pm  
Blogger Dean said...

Pam has won a game - a TV edition in 1999 when she came first equal with Wendy Richard, in the distinguished company of "the great" Peter Jones and Linda Smith.

Sad to think only half that panel is still with us :(

10:26 am  

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