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Writing ComedyDateline: 14th March, 1999 When I first came across the new TV Comedy College link a week or two back, I was most intrigued. The idea of an email-based distance learning project for writing TV comedy was off-the-wall enough for me to investigate further. Any venture such as this must stand or fall by the experience of the tutors, so this was where I started. The People I have to say that I was impressed. Between them the three tutors have written for almost every important British TV sitcom and comedian over the past three decades. Ian Davidson Ian has written for Barry Humphies (as Sir Les Patteron and Dame Edna), The Two Ronnies, Sorry (with Ronnie Corbett), 'Allo, 'Allo and The Brittas Empire. He has also been a member of the BBC Comedy Script Unit. Peter Robinson Peter has written for Harry Worth, Diana Dors, Wendy Craig, Frankie Howerd, Roy Kinnear, Richard Briers, Hannah Gordon, Marti Caine, Freddie Starr, Dudley Moore, Les Dennis, Kenneth Williams, Mike Reid, Ken Dodd and the Two Ronnies. Peter Vincent Peter has written 130 sitcom epsiodes, 72 of them for the BBC. He has been script editor and writer for the Two Ronnies, Dave Allen and Russ Abbott, and has written for Frankie Howerd, Stanley Baxter, Roy Hudd, Les Dawson, Bob Monkhouse, David Frost, Michael Parkinson, Derek Nimmo and Jack Dee. Those are pretty impressive pedigrees, but I have to admit that I was still a wee bit sceptical. Can comedy writing really be taught? Is it not something you're born with? So I spoke to Ian. A brief chat with Ian Davison I asked first how he got started in writing. I was an actor (at Second City in Chicago) and I sat around getting frustrated during the long waits for my next bit. Which is closely related to how most people start to write. I mean that they're frustrated by what they see on screen and think - I could effing do better than that. Of course, mostly they can't. But it's a good starting point because rage gives them energy - and there's things they can learn.Quite a number of things they can learn are there on the site: the techniques and basic approach required. Everyone thinks he's a comedian, but, to be honest, most are dreadful when they tell jokes. Suppose I am one of those people: does that mean I should give up the idea of writing comedy? Writers don't tell jokes. That's comedians. The only genuine writer-cum-comedians that I know are Barry Cryer and Barry Humphries. Generally speaking, writers aren't wildly successful social animals. They mumble and think of their best jokes later. So how can I tell if I've got the talent to be a comedy writer? You can tell you've got talent when other writers say "I wish I'd written that". This still hasn't happened to me. My readers are very much theatre-orientated. Is there sufficient similarity between TV and theatre writing for them to take an interest in what you have to offer? Television situation comedy is very like the theatre. (A trip to a recording will prove that to you). The main difference - as actors will tell you - is that every night is a first night and they're not entirely sure if they're acting for the cameras or the audience. So there we have it. If you're a writer, is the course for you? I really don't know, obviously. The only way to find out is to give it a try, and Ian and Co. have made that a bit easier (at least on the pocket!) than many such courses. You can have a sample single lesson for just under £30, so, for the majority of people, it's not going to break the bank to give it a go. Articles Indices: |
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