The Lee Mack Show (BBC Radio 2, 2005-2007)
This is a radio comedy show that was actually on BBC Radio 2. Do you remember when there used to be comedy on BBC Radio 2? Or indeed anything vaguely interesting at all? Well that might be harsh, but the comedy slot is missed. Lee Mack is the fast-talking comedian who at this point was still best-known for appearing in The Sketch Show, his successes including Not Going Out and Would I Lie To You were yet to come.
The Lee Mack Show was a combination of stand-up, sketches, and music. And put it this way, he probably wouldn’t be trying out any of his 18-rated material on this one. In every edition his regulars were fellow comic Angela McHale and Steve Brown, who did the music (and is probably best-known for being Alan Partridge’s band leader). He has also done the music for every other TV show (the other half was done by Philip Pope).
Every week there would be some special guests, who were one comedian and one singer. Most of these who took part found fame in the 80s, including Tony Hadley, Midge Ure, and Suggs. They would get to perform a hit or two, and they might even get the chance to take part in a sketch themselves. There were plenty of laughs, hopefully there were plenty of people on standby to sew anyone back together whose sides had split or something.
There were two series of The Lee Mack Show, including some specials, and these have been repeated on BBC7/BBC Radio 4 Extra. But there is another thing that is notable about this one. For a few years, my mum attended a lot of recordings of various radio shows, and that includes a few editions of the second series of this one. That meant that she got to see some singing stars in person including Martin “The Look Of Love” Fry.
And another one was Melanie “Sporty Spice”, who it turns out really can sing live. But out of all the shows, as good as they were, and as nice as it was to be the company of famous people, this was my mum’s favourite. This was because she said that Mack was something of what you could call a grinder, with a relentless amount of silly jokes until you can’t help but laugh along. So that really is a triumph.
ADAM'S NOSTALGIC MEMORIES 