Hello. I hope you are well (and that really means something these days!).
Here’s just a breakdown of what I’ve been up to and where you can find me during this frenzy of pestilence.
Sophie Willan and Sean McCloughlin discuss their sets with me, Jon and Ros on one of our internet comedy shows: part of XS Malarkey’s incentive to boost morale in time of plague.
XS Malarkey has got very creative in these trying times, and this virus hasn’t stopped us putting on our regular Tuesday shows. We’ve been doing our gigs on Twitch, with our fine array of comics adapting their skills to a new medium (which combines living rooms and cyberspace with just a dash of invention and a soupçon of desperation). So far we’ve had Robin Ince, Josie Long, James Acaster, Nish Kumar, Mark Watson, Tom Allen, Jordan Brookes, Randy, Rob Rouse and many more. They’ve been great, and the audience have really got involved. We’re also raiding our archives and playing past performances from classic Malarkey nights on Sundays at 8pm – Tez Ilyas, Sophie Willan, Laura Lexx and Sean McLoughlin have submitted to this process, joining us to forensically dissect their sets, their jokes and their comedy lives for us. Both gigs are free but rely on donations. Find our channel here. The shows remain available for 14 days after broadcast.
I will continue presenting The 7th Dimension on Radio 4 Extra but will be a little bit automated. There are some great shows though, so make sure you continue to tune in at 6pm and midnight.
The documentary The Doctor Who Cookbook – Revisited which I present has been nominated for a Royal Television Society Award (Best Factual Entertainment and Features) which is rather delightful. My next documentary – Whose Doctor Who Revisited – is on the newly available Season 14 Blu-ray box set: it might just be my favourite so far. Doctor Who Magazine described it as “a fascinating and heartwarming feature”.
Reuniting producer Tony Cash with three of the children featured in his 1977 Whose Doctor Who documentary. Since filming with us in November Tony has sadly died.
Because we are in lockdown, I (alongside my other half, Cherylee Houston off of Corrie) have done a stupid video which is a sort of sequel to the above. In it we do a bit of cooking… Have a look here and here.
The actor David Collings who died in March
I have a new regular page in Doctor Who Magazine called Space Time Visualiser – this issue lets you know what’s been going on with your favourite Who stars under lockdown. There’s also a tribute I have put together for David Collings, that fine actor who appeared in three Doctor Who stories.
I have also been on obituary duties at the Herald this month – one for David Collings and one for Hamish Wilson.
I recorded a Radio 4 Play, Not For Turning, before lockdown – it will be broadcast in September and is written by Tim Dawson who wrote the sitcom Coming of Age. I also had a great time recording a genre audiobook recently – details when I’m allowed to share them. I’m very proud of it though.