Still got the first two episodes on tape. The opening sound montage (Mario Cuomo at the 1992 Democrat Convention bellowing "Because I love New York! Because I love the United States of America! Ladies and Gentlemen - the next President of the United States..." ARMANDO IANUCCHI - He's really nice!' followed by screaming fans and a news report about someone with a bag on their head) is totally spectacular. Other highlights include the Conservative Central Office remix of Prince's Sexy MF ("Yesterday's mashed potatoes"), Keith in the One FM Hoover, and the Coogan interview ("*if* you were listening"). I also seem to remember a fantastic 2 Unlimited remix in the second series. We want more!

I have both series (well, that's six shows) on tape. It is nearly all great.

About two years ago, I heard Armando being interviewed on Simon Mayo's Radio 1 show. Mayo took great delight in pointing out that Iannucci's DJing stint lasted just six programmes. But he is a fool. Obviously.

SOTCAA: Do you have all the shows? Let me know if you don't.

Other great things:

"House-Sharing" with Top Christian, Top Muslim and Top Jew (and the Maths Teacher).

"You've just won yourself some swans."

"Get your tractors off our lawns!!!"

The remix of Mariah Carey's Without You (almost as good as the 2 Unlimited one)

The way Iannucci announced timechecks over the "fuck"s on Radiohead's "Creep"

Twisted fan mail ("If you have any more, please send them to me, Lynn Parsons, BBC Radio 1...")

Good Supermodels sketch (Baynham is toweringly good in this)

other stuff either when I remember it, or dig the stuff out....

Can't quote it verbatim but what about the hate mail - "Armando, we have your dog even now an arrow of death is travelling towards its furry heart" "You must be crushed as a beetle is crushed..."

"let's play Hide and Seek On The Radio!"

"Mr Philip Dawson!" "Dawson*s*"

Seem to remember him doing a show not long after Kurt Cobain swallowed a bang. One caller seemed to get upset when he claimed the other show regulars couldn't appear as they'd all killed themselves. Am I remembering this or just confabulating?

I seem mto remember something about him playing a track off Nine Inch Nails' "The Downward Spiral", and then saying "the rest fot he album's [censored] though". By that, I was mightily impressed.

>Seem to remember him doing a show not long after Kurt Cobain swallowed a bang. One caller seemed to get upset when he claimed the other show regulars couldn't appear as they'd all killed themselves. Am I remembering this or just confabulating?

You are right - this was the last (compilation) show where it was only him and Peter Baynam (I think - Phillip Daughtersewns - or whatever). I think they had all turned guns on each other except one who had overdosed on maceroon. Iannucci asked people to ring in for councelling (sp?) and someone did at the end of the show on the presetence of asking for councelling and said 'Hi Armando, I think you're trying to get a cheap joke out of the death of Kurt Cobain' - at which point Armando starts laughing histerically - 'No, Armando, I'm serious...'

I have it on tape and may upload it at some point. Meanwhile (plug) I have other clips of that last show on my website - http://radiozone.come.to - and follow the Armando Iannucci link.

Never heard the '93 shows. But, from the second series, 'Religious Flat' is in a league of its own.

I remember a couple of great radio sketches of Ianucci's - one about a vast sewer pipe which piped the output of Radio 4 Long Wave out into the open sea, another about a 'pip' factory where the Greenwich pips had been lovingly hand made for decades - but I can't remember the title of the show. Can someone enlighten me?

Aha! That would be "Down Your Ear", a Radio 4 show from about 1993.

Thanks TJ. Don't suppose those shows are available on tape at all good retailers, are they?

For me, the oddest thing about Iannucci's 94 show was the fact that it ran for only four weeks and then had an immediate best of the week after- was this planned from the outset or was it axed?

I find it hard to believe Armando would really plan to do four shows and then immediately edit together a compilation for a fifth transmission.

Or maybe it's just because the Alan Davies show followed it the week after and I didn't like it as much.

Iannucci also did an excellent semi-spin off from 'Down Your Ear' for Arena's Radio Night on BBC2(1993). Very early TV work and totally unremarked upon.

>For me, the oddest thing about Iannucci's 94 show was the fact that it ran for only four weeks and then had an immediate best of the week after- was this planned from the outset or was it axed?

I think it was a 6-week slot, the fifth week of which was taken up by some live concert or other so it was only 5 weeks, the fifth being a fortnight after the fourth. As to whether it was axed, I remember Armando saying "We'll be back - sometime..."

>As to whether it was axed, I remember Armando saying "We'll be back - sometime..."

Yes, but what I was getting at was what I thought was the bizarre scheduling of a 'Best of' straight after the run had finished, with Armando introducing it along the lines of "we're finding the best bits of the past four shows... and playing them all again..."

To me it seemed unusually sloppy- funny though the compilation was, why not have the full cast there for example?

I did like the shows I just remember being surprised at the time at how quickly and oddly it came to an end, and this forum reminded me I never quite made sense of it.

>As to whether it was axed, I remember Armando saying "We'll be back - sometime..."

Yes, but what I was getting at was what I thought was the bizarre scheduling of a 'Best of' straight after the run had finished, with Armando introducing it along the lines of "we're finding the best bits of the past four shows... and playing them all again..."

To me it seemed unusually sloppy- funny though the compilation was, why not have the full cast there for example?

I did like the shows I just remember being surprised at the time at how quickly and oddly it came to an end, and this forum reminded me I never quite made sense of it.