Going to a recording of I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue

I’M SORRY I HAVEN’T  A CLUE – SERIES 57 RECORDING

Warwick Arts Centre, Sunday 6^th May 2012

One evening, when I was a runner, I had just dropped an actor at New Street Station and was heading back to unit base. Stopped at some traffic lights just outside the station, I was slightly taken aback to see Barry Cryer crossing in front of me.  The I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue stage tour was being staged at The Alexandra Theatre, it turned out. I decided then that the next time the team were in the area for a recording, I would try and get a ticket.

Six years later, and at last the opportunity presented itself, with the team due to visit the Warwick Arts Centre to record two episodes for the new series (broadcast on Radio 4 on the next two Mondays). I snapped up a ticket (well, I say snapped, whereas I mean called relentlessly unable to get through on the phone, and kept refreshing the website). Two hours later I had successfully ordered one, to much excitement. (Excitement level: 7)

So it was that on the evening of Sunday May 6^th, 2012, I found myself on the Campus of Warwick University, situated, ever so helpfully, in Coventry. A fact that didn’t go unmentioned within the show! Tremendously excited, I waited outside as the throngs grew, and just before half past seven the doors open and we all moved through. (Excitement level: 8) Expecting to be directed to a seat at the back (Excitement level: 9), I was most surprised, and delighted, to be pointed to the front row, not 20 yards from where the teams would be sitting!! (Excitement level: off the scale.) This was the best £10.25 I had ever spent.

I attempted to guess who the fourth member of the panel might be, and plumped for Tony Hawks – this was, after all, part of the Stratford literary festival. It turned out I was right as he was present, but as a late cover for the ill Graeme Garden. The official guest was Jeremy Hardy, who joined Tim Brooke-Taylor. To begin with the producer Jon Naismith came on to say hello, warm the audience up with some bad jokes and generally get us in the mood. Then he introduced the teams and the host Jack Dee and we were off. (Colin Sell joined at his tranditional introductory point where Dee compares him to something particularly useless.)

I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue records two episodes in each sitting, so we were treated to two hours of puns, wit and, from Hardy in particular, a certain amount of rudeness! I won’t go in to too much detail, but around seven rounds were recorded for each show, for which clearly it is edited down to a perfect 28 minutes of comedy (so half the material remains unheard.) Barry Cryer was his usual self and Hawks played off him well – an excellent combination, even if it did remove the possibility of some Hamish and Dougal action. There was a particularly juicy Lionel Blair euphemism to start the round Sound Charades, which was the highlight of the night! All told, this proved that even though this is Series 57 of I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue, it is still going as strong as ever, four years after the death of original host, the legendary Humphrey Lyttleton. Long may it continue!

 I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue. BBC Radio 4, Monday 25^th June and Monday 2^nd July at 1830.