A squee/taping report!
Hello! I'm sure you've all read these before, but I was at the taping of tonight's Report, and squeed so hard my throat is still sore. Not only that, but I sortofmaybe managed to be involved in the show itself (in an extremely oblique way), and, er...there was more squeeing on my part.
If you're interested, I've written about it. Badly! (No massive spoilers, except the small one that involved me.)
I was very lucky, and grateful, to get in - I was seventh in the standby line (having gone on a whim yesterday, not got in and resolved to try again) and managed to get in pretty comfortably. We were herded into the audience pen, barely able to move, and watched old back episodes of the Report until we were let in (including my favourite clip - of Stephen's silent The Word after the 2006 mid-term elections).
The first thing that struck me (asides from general squeaking and grinning all over my face that I was ACTUALLY THERE) was how small the studio really is; it's one room, everything very crammed together - but still glossy, shiny and lovely! I was right at the back but had a great view, and got talking to my fellow standbyers, who were absolutely lovely and very willing to put up with my incredibly annoying excitement.
The warm-up guy was great - Julian something? He had little riffs going all over the audience, including one with me when he asked if there was anyone who was visiting from overseas; asking why I hadn't hooked up with any of the counsellors on the summer camp I mentioned I'd been working at - "You're a woman! You don't even need to try!"
And then, STEPHEN WONDERFUL STEPHEN! I may have whooped myself hoarse. He took some fantastic questions from the audience; I can't remember the context, but he joked about showering with Jon Stewart, that George Bush was very nice to him...before the 2006 speech, had a complete geek-off with an audience member about Gandalf v. Dumbledore (for the record, Gandalf. "Dumbledore's just a school master!" He's so cute when he geeks!) He talked a little about Iraq and Kuwait, and how the temperature there made him feel like he was living inside the bus' tailpipe.
Then he came to me, and I asked whether The Report was ever coming back to UK telly (as it seems to have been unceremoniously dropped) - he replied that he didn't know, in the most adorably terrible British accent that had everyone laughing! He asked if Jon was on and he wasn't (which is true, unfortunately) and he jokingly said that he was depressed now. He also asked if FX, the channel that used to show the Report in the UK, was Murdoch-owned. I said I had no idea - does anyone know?
Anyway, he throws the microphone, gets prepped, dances, flicks wriststrong bands out to the audience (I didn't catch one - woe!), before doing his three lines and opening the show.
Then, as soon as the applause dies down, he starts,
"To start, a message to my viewers in England..."
Cue the entire audience losing it, looking at me, and me with my hand in my hands, laughing so hard I cried. He mentioned something I didn't catch, and that "you're dressed by your mothers!" I've been washing dishes for two months in the USA, a completely tiring job most of the time, but everything was worth it for that moment. Whether it'll make the show or not I don't know...but I hope so! (Not that anyone I know back in the UK watches it...)
Another thing that surprised me was how slick the show is, it just screams past, barely pausing. He's good, that Stephen bloke! There was one adorable moment when he fluffed Mahmoud Amadinejad's name and had to start again, telling us, "That's our show for tonight. I don't carry on after I make mistakes!"
His reaction to a prop he was using (you'll know what I'm talking about when you see it!) was brilliant, too - as soon as he cut to commercial he was in hysterics, he loved it! I bumped into one of the interns when I was walking back; I wasn't sure if he'd made it himself, or he'd just been given it, but he was taking it back with him, which I thought was sweet. And it was great to get a closer look at it!
Other details, um...the woman who inspired Boobquake was there! Stephen indulged in some rather lovely flirting with her. I wish I'd had the chance to talk to her. The show ended rather abruptly, I was quite surprised - I suppose, now that he's been doing it a long while, he can get through it and it all goes smoothly.
So, there we are! I'm sorry if that was garbled, stupidly undetailed and self-indulgent, but I desperately wanted to get my squee out to people who'll understand - I have exactly one friend in the UK who watches the show, so you'll all know what I'm blabbering on about!
ETA: Ooh, nearly forgot, Paul Dinello was there! I may have shrieked a tiny bit when Stephen pointed him out. He's a rather dashing fellow, isn't he?
If you're interested, I've written about it. Badly! (No massive spoilers, except the small one that involved me.)
I was very lucky, and grateful, to get in - I was seventh in the standby line (having gone on a whim yesterday, not got in and resolved to try again) and managed to get in pretty comfortably. We were herded into the audience pen, barely able to move, and watched old back episodes of the Report until we were let in (including my favourite clip - of Stephen's silent The Word after the 2006 mid-term elections).
The first thing that struck me (asides from general squeaking and grinning all over my face that I was ACTUALLY THERE) was how small the studio really is; it's one room, everything very crammed together - but still glossy, shiny and lovely! I was right at the back but had a great view, and got talking to my fellow standbyers, who were absolutely lovely and very willing to put up with my incredibly annoying excitement.
The warm-up guy was great - Julian something? He had little riffs going all over the audience, including one with me when he asked if there was anyone who was visiting from overseas; asking why I hadn't hooked up with any of the counsellors on the summer camp I mentioned I'd been working at - "You're a woman! You don't even need to try!"
And then, STEPHEN WONDERFUL STEPHEN! I may have whooped myself hoarse. He took some fantastic questions from the audience; I can't remember the context, but he joked about showering with Jon Stewart, that George Bush was very nice to him...before the 2006 speech, had a complete geek-off with an audience member about Gandalf v. Dumbledore (for the record, Gandalf. "Dumbledore's just a school master!" He's so cute when he geeks!) He talked a little about Iraq and Kuwait, and how the temperature there made him feel like he was living inside the bus' tailpipe.
Then he came to me, and I asked whether The Report was ever coming back to UK telly (as it seems to have been unceremoniously dropped) - he replied that he didn't know, in the most adorably terrible British accent that had everyone laughing! He asked if Jon was on and he wasn't (which is true, unfortunately) and he jokingly said that he was depressed now. He also asked if FX, the channel that used to show the Report in the UK, was Murdoch-owned. I said I had no idea - does anyone know?
Anyway, he throws the microphone, gets prepped, dances, flicks wriststrong bands out to the audience (I didn't catch one - woe!), before doing his three lines and opening the show.
Then, as soon as the applause dies down, he starts,
"To start, a message to my viewers in England..."
Cue the entire audience losing it, looking at me, and me with my hand in my hands, laughing so hard I cried. He mentioned something I didn't catch, and that "you're dressed by your mothers!" I've been washing dishes for two months in the USA, a completely tiring job most of the time, but everything was worth it for that moment. Whether it'll make the show or not I don't know...but I hope so! (Not that anyone I know back in the UK watches it...)
Another thing that surprised me was how slick the show is, it just screams past, barely pausing. He's good, that Stephen bloke! There was one adorable moment when he fluffed Mahmoud Amadinejad's name and had to start again, telling us, "That's our show for tonight. I don't carry on after I make mistakes!"
His reaction to a prop he was using (you'll know what I'm talking about when you see it!) was brilliant, too - as soon as he cut to commercial he was in hysterics, he loved it! I bumped into one of the interns when I was walking back; I wasn't sure if he'd made it himself, or he'd just been given it, but he was taking it back with him, which I thought was sweet. And it was great to get a closer look at it!
Other details, um...the woman who inspired Boobquake was there! Stephen indulged in some rather lovely flirting with her. I wish I'd had the chance to talk to her. The show ended rather abruptly, I was quite surprised - I suppose, now that he's been doing it a long while, he can get through it and it all goes smoothly.
So, there we are! I'm sorry if that was garbled, stupidly undetailed and self-indulgent, but I desperately wanted to get my squee out to people who'll understand - I have exactly one friend in the UK who watches the show, so you'll all know what I'm blabbering on about!
ETA: Ooh, nearly forgot, Paul Dinello was there! I may have shrieked a tiny bit when Stephen pointed him out. He's a rather dashing fellow, isn't he?