Rob Beckett - A Class Act: Life as a Working-Class Man in a Middle-Class World

HarperCollinsPublishers

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

www.harpercollins.co.uk

HarperCollinsPublishers

1st Floor, Watermarque Building, Ringsend Road

Dublin 4, Ireland

First published by HarperCollinsPublishers 2021

FIRST EDITION

Rob Beckett 2021

Cover design by James Empringham HarperCollinsPublishers 2021

Cover photograph Ray Burmiston 2021

Picture-section images courtesy of the author, except where indicated

Emilia Fox interview from alibi.uktv.co.uk

A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library

Rob Beckett asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

While every effort has been made to trace the owners of copyright material reproduced herein and secure permissions, the publishers would like to apologise for any omissions and will be pleased to incorporate missing acknowledgements in any future edition of this book.

Find out about HarperCollins and the environment at

www.harpercollins.co.uk/green

Source ISBN: 9780008468187

Ebook Edition October 2021 ISBN: 9780008468194

Version: 2021-09-13

Things I did before I started writing this chapter

NOTHING I AM ACTUALLY REALLY ENJOYING WRITING IT; I DIDNT THINK THAT WOULD HAPPEN

I think ignorance is bliss would best sum up my early career in comedy. I didnt even know BBC Radio 4 existed until I was asked to be on it as a guest on a comedy panel show, and even then I thought it was one of the new BBC digital stations that launched in 2002, like Radio 6 Music and Radio 1Xtra. For some of my peers in the comedy industry it was a massive deal. The pressure on them to perform was huge, as all of their family were at home listening. I didnt even bother telling anyone I was on it. No one I knew would care or know what I was talking about. I was oblivious that Radio 4 was this hugely important part of British comedy. But the truth is that it isnt really an important part of British comedy for a big portion of the country. Of course it is loved across the UK and has produced some amazing shows over the years, but mainly for a middle- and upper-class audience. I have never been in the pub and had someone say to me, I listened to a great radio comedy the other day. But then maybe Im in the minority and people are having these conversations. Ive just never been a part of it, so for me in that bubble it feels alien.

I used to feel a bit embarrassed about it at times. When I went on The Chris Evans Breakfast Show on Radio 2 to do some promotion for my tour, I had to prerecord something for the show in a separate studio before I went live on air. I plonked myself down in a chair in front of the mic and the producer said, Oooh, this must be exciting you get to sit in Ken Bruces chair. Now, at that point I had no fucking idea who Ken Bruce was. For some reason I thought he might have been an actor from Neighbours. Ken Bruce just sounds like an Australian. So I politely said, My mum and dad are going to be so excited.

For a few years this was my stock response when I needed to be excited about something that I was clueless about. Mainly because I had heard posh boys say this kind of thing. The reality was that my mum would be totally nonplussed about her son sitting in Ken Bruces chair. This is not a dig at Ken Bruce, who is a wonderful man and a broadcasting legend. I had the pleasure of appearing on his show, and it was great fun and he couldnt have been nicer.

One thing that surprised me about the Radio 2 Breakfast Show was that at one point, straight after the news and traffic, there was a religious bit. Normally a Christian gives a quick shout out to God, local community and forgiveness. I didnt know this was going to happen, and religion always scares me. Im not religious at all not because Im against it, I just dont know anything about it or where to start. Religion is like veganism. Its probably the right thing to do but theres a lot of faff involved. I live in a house with three women, which has its challenges, so the last thing I need is the Big Man upstairs telling me what to do on top of my family.

I didnt know that when the religious bit of the show started, it was essentially banter off time for the guests on the show. So as the Christian person (is that the right label? He could have been a vicar but he was in casual clothes, like it was dress-down Friday) began to talk, I started chipping in, having a laugh like I was on Mock the Week. Stuff like, All right, captain sensible. Calm down, mate, were trying to have a laugh and listen to Deacon Blue. Its 7 a.m., why are we chatting about sins and forgiveness? My morning coffee hasnt kicked in yet. As soon as I said it I knew Id misjudged this bit of banter live on air to six million people. I got a death stare from the producer but out of the corner of my eye I could see the other guest on the show laughing to himself. It was one of my heroes, Liam Gallagher. So what started as one of the worst moments of my career immediately switched into a highlight. I could honestly say, My mum and dad are going to be so excited, and mean it.

Its such a strange feeling to be in a world you know nothing about and constantly have to pretend you do so you can fit in. Its a constant blag, which I think is why working-class people in the media suffer from imposter syndrome. Sometimes the truth of it is that being able to make people laugh thrusts you into a world you know nothing about and know no one in it. The same way being able to sing, dance and act enables you to jump a few levels without the need for networking or family ties. TV and radio is a huge industry created mostly by powerful middle-class white men, which is why some talented working-class acts can slip into the cruise-ship/holiday-camp circuit, as it feels like a safer and more comfortable environment.

It must be even harder for black and Asian acts to try to fit into that white middle-class world, which is why I think the urban live comedy circuit is of such a high quality and there isnt enough diversity on screen. Its a daunting prospect to enter such a strange and alien world when the live comedy circuit is well paid and the crowd love and adore you. It must be so difficult to try to push into the mainstream media when someone so different to you is trying to produce you and mould you into what they think is representative of your race or culture.

I remember the first time I did Mock the Week, which in the past has been known as a tough and intimidating TV panel show. On the circuit you would be told it was impossible to get a joke in and the panel didnt welcome new comedians with open arms. Mainly because when Mock the Week first started there werent many TV opportunities for comedians, so anyone who was a regular on the show did not want to lose their spot, as being a regular meant you could start to tour the UK and move on from the club circuit. Competition on the show was fierce, especially during the Frankie Boyle and Russell Howard era, in part to do with their boisterous and confident delivery, but mainly due to the fact that they are both really funny and its hard to compete with people who are so talented.