Heavy Weight
30/03/2010 15:22:47
If you detect a new weightiness to my already substantial prose it is not, I fear, due to any leap in my writerly prowess. The answer is rather more simple I’m afraid. Four weeks of filming in some of the best restaurants in the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales has left me 8lbs heavier. 8lbs!!! A whole baby. This new delivery of fat has been deposited almost exclusively to my belly, or as I call it, the meat packing district. This means that friends react to the news with disbelief until they see that I’m only sitting comfortably thanks to loosening my belt and undoing my trousers. Indeed, as I write this I’m wearing my hiking trousers, the only ones that make me feel like I’m not playing the lead in The Last Days Of Elvis. I’m now back to the gym and eating less (the filming necessitated eating each meal THREE times to accommodate different camera angles etc) than I was so, hopefully I’ll soon be back to my old lithe and sexy self.
We were filming The Trip, a new series for BBC2 directed by Michael Winterbottom in which Steve Coogan and I play loose versions of ourselves touring around The Lakes and reviewing restaurants. I’ve not laughed so much in ages. I think it goes out in the summer, I’ll let you know when I know. When I say “loose versions of ourselves” I don’t mean us with no morals, I mean us but slightly different. Some times not different at all. Well, me that is, I can’t speak for him …
The above photograph is the view from my room at the Holbeck Ghyll Hotel, Ambleside where we stayed and ate a great deal.
On other matters, we’re about to start recording a new series of Would I Lie To You? for BBC1 out at Pinewood. As a boy I would fantasise that I might one day make movie after movie at the legendary Pinewood, home of the famous 007 sound stage. Well, to date I’ve worked there three times. The first was to film a series of commercials for Toffee Crisp, it would have been around ‘89 – ‘90 and my friend Steve Speirs (Krod Mandoon, Extras etc) and I played two idiots who ate Toffee Crisps. We were hugely excited. I still have a photo somewhere of me stood outside the dressing room door pointing at my name. Alas it wasn’t to be. For reasons that are still unclear, the adverts never saw the light of day.
My next shot at Pinewood immortality was my “stare really hard and you still might miss it” role in First Knight. This was on TV recently and many Tweeted to say how amused they had been to spot me lurking in the middle distance behind Richard Gere. Most of my bits were shot in a field near Tring but there was one scene, Guinevere’s courtyard that was filmed at Pinewood. All the disenfranchised villagers (of whom I was one) walk to Guinevere’s to ask for help after their village has been burned down by Ben Cross. I hasten to add that Ben was playing a role, he was in no way implicated in the arson on a personal level. Well, we arrive and the leader of our pack, who recently played a corrupt prison officer in Red Riding pleads for her assistance. If you can spot me in this scene you deserve a medal. I managed to place myself well out of view of the camera. This was a time before I’d come to realise the truth in the saying, “If you can’t see the camera, the camera can’t see you”.
So, Would I Lie To You? has turned out to be by far my most enjoyable spell at Pinewood. I’m very much looking forward to spending time with David and Lee and we’ve already got some excellent guests booked. Two more things, The Rob Brydon Show goes into production soon. If you were one of the people that came to the pilot, thanks for laughing enough to get it commissioned. The series will be like the pilot but a bit different, we’re just starting work on it now. There was a bit of press about it last week when it was announced, my quote being “I’ve never been this excited”. My original quote for the press release was considered a bit too odd, it was, “This Press release is an accurate reflection of the situation as it stands”. I still prefer it.
Lastly, to everyone who asks when I’m doing more stand up, I’ll be doing small warm up spots for the RBS (my show, not the bank) around June, I’ll probably Tweet about them. I’m also doing two proper gigs in Wales this year which I’m hugely close to announcing once all the details are sorted. Be sure to follow me on Twitter as that’s where I’ll probably mention it first.
Bye for now …