Interview: Michael Warren the Pot Luck legend

In Season 2 Episode 13 of The Late Show, the golden tonsils of Michael Warren were broadcast to Australia’s ears during the Pot Luck toilet break segment, where amusing acts from the 1987 talent TV series are shown to much of our amusement – especially Bernard King’s harsh but fair remarks.

in this episode, Warren performed the Elvis Presley tune Don’t Cry Daddy. It was until after the performance ended, King put him on notice when he quizzed Warren on his talents, in which Warren infamously responded saying he’ll “be a Legend” and “be a millionaire by the time he’s 30”.

That was in 1987. Fast forward to 2022, and the Champagne Comedy Podcast caught up with Warren – or his stage name Lucky Jackson –  to reflect on performing on Pot Luck, as well as appearing on The Late Show, and if he’s a millionaire 30 years later.

Check out Warren / Jackson’s music library at mai-songsmusic.com.

Interview: Schutz attempts Pot Luck

In Season 2 Episode 10 of The Late Show, the magical talents of Darren Schutz were on display during the Pot Luck toilet break segment, where amusing acts from the 1987 talent TV series are shown to much of our amusement – especially Bernard King’s harsh but fair remarks.

in this episode, the then 15 year old contestant performed two magic tricks: one with silks, and another one with a die disappearing visibly and invisibly. The fun part was the not-so-subtle ‘click’ noise when the die slid to the other side of the compartment.

The Champagne Comedy Podcast caught up with Darren to reflect on performing on Pot Luck, as well as magically appearing on The Late Show, and what he’s been up to nearly 30 years later.

He’s come a long way since, and you can book Darren for business or private functions. Visit Darren Schutz Magic for more.

The Banal of The Panel

From the Champagne Comedy archives:

Step back to the year 2000. We’re on the borderline of our tax system switching over to the GST.  The Working Dog team are riding high on the decade of achievements they’ve produced, such as The Late Show, Frontline, Funky Squad, A River Somewhere, The Castle and the upcoming The Dish and All Aussie Adventures. Their current project – a late night chat show The Panel is a ratings winner.

Only satire magazine MAD knows how to pull punches. In issue 377, which came out at the change-over of June 30 / July 1 2000 where the financial year triggered the GST Australia-wide, Artist Warren Taylor and Writer D.J. Williams lampoon Tom Gleisner, Glenn Robbins, Rob Sitch, Kate Langbroek and Santo Cilauro on a two-page spread.

and here’s a screen grab of a random episode (really!!), which scarily is close to their clothing design…

When Kenny L met Tommy G

Regular reader and The Late Show fan Kenny Lu has shared a recent meeting with Working Dog cast Tom Gleisner at Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect), in which Gleisner himself is co-founder of Learning For Life – a centre which helps children with autism reach their full potential.

Dear The Late Show team,

Yes Tom Gleisner came to the talk and it was quite good and it was a good experience I have ever had and it was good there was a talk at Aspect about his life and I do like The Late Show so much.

I experienced the talk very well and Tom Gleisner did do a talk at Aspect and I really like it then.

The photos was posted on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter for you to see.

I enjoyed the talk the talk was good and I experienced it it was great.

Tom Gleisner poses with fan Kenny Lu

Thank you for sharing, Kenny!

Jason Stephens joins the Champagne Comedy Podcast!

Actual Late Show cast member Jason Stephens joined the Champagne Comedy podcast and gave us the lowdown on:

  • His early days writing sketch comedy
  • How each episode was conceived
  • Jason’s favourite sketches

Check out the video version below, or subscribe to the podcast!

Gabriel Gâté: “I’ve got very fond memories – it was fun to do”

By the time Saturday July 3, 1993  came around for Australian television audiences, The Late Show had finally found its feet with their second season.

Already four episodes in, the ‘Champagne sketch Comedy’ routine was about to be cemented as an iconic moment in TV comedy history, Piffy The Bellringer gained traction and was invited into the studio for for Episode 5 after his appearance in the Pot Luck toilet break, and the Musical Closings were getting more clever and a ‘must watch’ as Mick Molloy was constantly misunderstanding Tony Martin‘s requests to get certain musicians in to perform their signature tunes.

in Season 2 Episode 5, Frente’s hit tune Accidently Kelly Street was still running fresh in the minds of Australians, and after a hilarious parody in Season 1 Episode 20 in 1992. So, Tony puts in a request for Mick to get Frente on board, but Mick ‘accidently’ gets What’s Cooking? TV chef and personality Gabriel Gâté instead – with his natural French accent.

Speaking on Episode 25 on the Champagne Comedy Podcast, Gâté chats about his connection with the D-Generation / Working Dog team, as well as his preparation for the routine, which he absolutely loved doing. Here’s an excerpt of the 6 minute chat:

To hear the full interview, listen to Episode 25 of the Champagne Comedy Podcast – a fan podcast made by fans, for the fans.

This episode also features Remi Broadway – aka Piffy The Bellringer – as special guest reviewer.

Spotify | iTunes | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | iHeartRadio TuneIn  | Amazon

This podcast has no direct association with the Working Dog team, the ABC, and Co.

A big thank you to Gabriel Gâté for the chat. You can follow him on instagram here.

Arnold: “I think we did get their ‘best joke’ in their series of parodies”

On Saturday 26th June 1993, a week after their appearance on Hey Hey It’s Saturday (coincidentally), the Australian folk-rock band Things Of Stone And Wood were about to be lampooned for their ARIA Top 10 hit Happy Birthday Helen, where lead singer Greg Arnold and band members strutted around Melbourne.

The nearly accurate portrayal by Rob Sitch and fellow D-Generation members based the parody of the song and music clip by highlighting landmarks of the original video clip, and mocking the fact that every spot was a ‘Melbourne Cliche’.

On episode 24 of the Champagne Comedy Podcast, Arnold himself sat down for a chat from Geneva (far from Melbourne) to talk in depth about the history of Happy Birthday Helen, as well as his thoughts of the parody that is on par to be their second biggest single they ever made… an extract of the chat is below:

To hear the full interview, listen to Episode 24 of the Champagne Comedy Podcast – a fan podcast made by fans, for the fans.

Spotify | iTunes | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | iHeartRadio TuneIn

This podcast has no direct association with the Working Dog team, the ABC, and Co.

A big thank you to Greg Arnold for the chat.

Socials: Facebook.

Champagne Comedy Podcast – The Interviews

Have you subscribed to our podcast yet? Click here for more.

New Show: The Cheap Seats

While Working Dog have your attention on Monday nights with the news quiz show Have You Been Paying Attention?, they request your ongoing attention with a new show.

Starting Tuesday July 20 at 9pm, The Cheap Seats will be a companion piece for your entertainment.

Melanie Blackwell and Tim McDonald

Hosted by Have You Been Paying Attention? regulars Melanie Bracewell (ex-New Zealand) and Tim McDonald (ex-Jobseeker), The Cheap Seats takes a comic look back at the week that was.

Major news stories, not-so-major news stories, stories involving cats, entertainment, sport and viral videos, it’s a Reader’s Digest of world events for a generation who simply don’t want to read.

If it was broadcast, released, published, viewed, shared, clicked on, or simply trending for 30-seconds, then it’s likely to be a part of The Cheap Seats.

So get set to experience a new view of the world… from The Cheap Seats.

 

The Cheap Seats – Premiering 9pm Tuesday July 20, 2021.

The Cheap Seats on Twitter.

Anderson: “It’s a Badge – you’ve got to have that sort of thing”

Saturday June 5, 1993 marked the return of The Late Show on ABC TV. The D-Generation were fresh from nearly an entire year of rest, along a makeover of the show. A new cast member Judith Lucy, a new brighter set, and new sketches.

One of these new sketches was Charlie The Wonderdog, starring four children known collectively as “The Pissweak Kids”.  Starring Tom Gleisner’s dog Charlie, veteran actor Charles (Bud) Tingwell, the concept was so pissweakery – think the hallmarks of Skippy but on a budget and with intentional bad acting. The Pissweak Kids would get into or discover debacles, with Charlie coming to save the day.

The oldest Pissweak Kid, Justin Anderson, spoke with the Champagne Comedy podcast team to talk about being part of the show and what was involved in filming the popular series. Here’s a tiny snippet from Episode 21 of the podcast where Season 2 Episode 1 of The Late Show was discussed:

To hear the full interview, as well as a chat with TV Historian Andrew Mercado about the synopsis of the Paradise Beach sketch, listen to Episode 21 of the Champagne Comedy Podcast – a fan podcast made by fans, for the fans.

Full podcast episode:


Spotify | iTunes | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | iHeartRadio TuneIn

This podcast has no direct association with the Working Dog team, the ABC, and Co.

If you want to read the 2012 interview with Justin and brother Nic, read here.