Nb. Skerratt Media isn’t making the new series of Sooty and Sweep! But Skerratt Media Captain Alex, (myself), is on board as co-writer.
My perception of myself is that I am incredibly cynical, occasionally timid, negative, take life far too seriously, and I’m a chronic worrier. I was painting this dour image to my friend Jason last week, who responded with, “How can that be true if you write a kids’ comedy?”
The answer is, I don’t know.
Since October 2010, Richard Cadell, Wink Taylor and myself have met up every month or so to sit down and bang out plot synopses and write scripts. This involves sitting in the same room eating pizza and wedges from 9am til 11pm doing nothing but make up jokes. It’s a kind of group therapy that I would highly recommend, (especially as it involves unlimited tea and coffee.)
The funny, and sad, thing about me is that I will sit there listening, for a long time, while Richard and Wink rush around the room laughing and gesturing at me like true pros. I’ll have a face like thunder, frowning and nodding, occasionally going “Hmmmmm,” and then I’ll say, with the most deadpan expression possible, “The surfboard should fall on Richard’s head. That would be hilarious.” *frown*During this time, I’ll be crying with laughter in my head, because I find the idea a funny one, but very rarely does it translate into outward laughter. I can explain mathematically, with a flip-chart and pointer, why a joke is so rib-ticklingly hysterical, without so much as a curved lip. This must make me incredibly difficult to work with and to understand, but I hope those guys know that those intensive hours have been some of the best and most memorable of my life.
