The Matt Lucas Awards: The Pilot
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Now this is something we hope you're going to like. Matt Lucas has got a new series for ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ One. A few weeks ago they made the pilot at TV Centre.
We asked Matt what the show was all about and here's what he told us...
Matt Lucas says: "THE MATT LUCAS AWARDS came about after I’d be hosting a show on Radio 2 called AND THE WINNER IS... It’s meant to be the antidote to all the awards ceremonies that you see on TV.ÌýRather than give Best Actor or Best Book, this show presents the awards other shows ignore – so it might be Smuggest Nation Of People or Worst Song By An Otherwise Reputable Artist.
We have three guests on the show, who each present their nomination and I have to decide what will win. The prize on offer is a Lucas Award – which is basically a fat Oscar.
And that’s about it, really. But it’s more of a chat show than a panel show - there’s no desks, the audience are seated around us, we have a house band and I often break into song, and whilst people are arguing why their nominations should win, there’s no real actual competition. It’s actually the opposite – the guests compliment each other.
Although we know the categories and nominations beforehand, we don’t know the reasons why the guests have chosen their nominations, which means the show is very spontaneous.
There was a sense of anarchy in the pilot, especially when Ruby Wax took Jack Whitehall’s phone and ran around the room threatening to ring up Anthony Costa from Blue. It’s a long story – you’ll have to watch the pilot to find out."
So there you go. As we said, there's a lot still to be sorted but as soon as we hear anymore - we'll share it with you. Enjoy it, and do let us know what you think...
Comment number 1.
At 15th Jun 2011, tom donald wrote:I think this is pretty good... I'm more of a fan of the guests than the host, but he did a good job, oozing competence.
I liked the ironic use of chatshow/quiz conventions, although it was soft irony.
The laughter sounded utterly fake, which is a shame, why not trust a natural sound?
Personally, I'd rather have a non-personality name for the show, much more room for it to evolve that way.
Very promising!
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Comment number 2.
At 15th Jun 2011, John P wrote:Matt Lucas as a host naturally generates warmth and generosity. I like the format of the show with the house band and the award ceremony. However my fear for it is; that actual award criteria's such as the most pointless talent of the guests or the worst song by a reputable artist is rather week. But in the same context the Tracy Goodwin clip was funny. I also liked the two songs which Matt sung to introduce the show and end the show. I would watch more of Matt in this type of show. Keep up the good work.
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Comment number 3.
At 15th Jun 2011, John P wrote:I forgot to mention Jack Whitehall’s take and impersonation of 'The only Way is Essex' made me laugh out load.
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Comment number 4.
At 23rd Jun 2011, NeerVaja1 wrote:i think for comedy its a big change at the moment, i saw this pilot the other day online and i was laughing my socks off, its called ''PAPADUMS'' , its pilot episode about a young brit asian male runninga nightclub with his cousin from India! for an independent company , you have to give credit!
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Comment number 5.
At 28th Nov 2011, omar_squash wrote:I was at the inaugural show last night, which on balance was mediocre. Whilst Matt Lucas has an acceptable degree of talent to be a host, one has to question the wisdom of selecting such z-list, mind-numbingly boring and witless guests such as Chris Tarrant and Esther Rantzen. The show's saving grace was the mercurial and effortlessly brilliant musings of Mr Johnny Vegas. At times it was painful to witness the obvious gulf in ability between Mr Vegas on one end of the sofa and the other guests. This is a classic example where the ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ has had the ingredients but spoiled the recipe with completely the wrong mixture and serving temperature. Why not have both Lucas and Vegas be co-hosts on a late night no-holds barred take down of celebrities, culture, politicians, events etc where the guests get a proper mauling or awarded for past indiscretions? just a thought. Come on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ..stop churning out the same old mediocre claptrap and give us some edgy, seat of the pants electric wit from talent already in your stable
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Comment number 6.
At 29th Nov 2011, Jill wrote:I so agree with omar_squash and so well-written. All Esther was worried about was keeping her knees together so as not to reveal her knickers! Every so often she would make a banal remark and, when not speaking, put on a cheesy grin. Chris Tarrant's contribution was minimal. He was like a little schoolboy messing about on the sofa, giggling away when his stick-on moustache kept falling off. As to Johnny Vegas, he was great. Matt couldn't shut him up, but his remarks were witty and off the cuff. He had to do a retake and Matt and Johnny were in fits of laughter, but it was all genuine. Johnny was obviously thoroughly enjoying the show and making a positive contribution to it, whereas Esther and Chris were only there for the money. As for Trinny and Susanna, if you'd blinked, you'd have missed them - well, that probably would have been a good thing! BTW Johnny was the only guest who came outside after the recording and stood for a good 10 mins having photos taken with members of the audience. What a nice bloke. Quite frankly I enjoyed the show, but probably wouldn't watch it on the TV but for being a member of the audience.
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