Jonathan Pie: the spoof newsreader’s rants are utterly exhausting

Jonathan Pie

There has long been a place in popular culture for a fictional journalist figure, deployed to prick the pomposity of both the profession itself and also wider society. The towering example of the genre is, forever, Alan Partridge, but recently Jonathan Pie, the creation of comedian Tom Walker, has been determined to give Steve Coogan’s creation a run for his money. Last year’s hit Radio 4 series Call Jonathan Pie garnered him a wider audience and a 41-date UK tour, which culminates in – and unfortunately comes unstuck with – a two-week stint in the West End.

Pie’s core schtick is bracingly effective: he is a misanthropic senior deputy Westminster correspondent (‘“a meaningless title”) for the BBC, perpetually exasperated at the whims of his employer and the folly of the political elite. It is safe to say Pie’s own liberal politics will not see him joining the Conservative Party any time soon. The conceit of the radio series was slick and simple: unexpectedly given his own late-night phone-in show, he finds himself plunged into the world of serial ranters and, after a shaky start, takes to it enthusiastically. Yet in this live outing, which lifts myriad lines from the series, the overarching structure is far less secure, leaving the fast-talking Pie flapping and flailing.

After a too-brief opening nod to Pie’s hopes for an invitation to join this year’s Strictly line-up as the token middle-aged man, he launches into the charity campaign he is supposedly fronting to inspire teenage boys, the dubiously titled “Get your votes out for the lads!” This is a weak idea and is soon jettisoned for an all-out rant-athon about the government, with a subsection of scorn reserved for the Royal family. Audience laughter started to dry up as Pie pounded on, pummelling the current crop of Tory politicians to a verbal pulp with an unstoppable tirade. The sheer relentlessness of it was, quite simply, exhausting, although Walker’s unflagging delivery must be acknowledged.

If only Pie had interacted with other characters to break the monotonous anger (his description of Liz Truss is eye-poppingly unprintable). In the radio series, the interjections from his weary producer were a neat counterbalance, in addition to the continual surprise factor of each new caller. There was also some crafty shading-in of details about his troubled private life, but all such subtlety is missing here. Only in the final section was there a change of pace, as Pie punctured his own self-righteous moral stance. “We all have a price”, he says. “It’s not always as easy as heroes and villains.” I very much doubt that Pie’s putative audience of young lads would have stuck around to hear this conclusion. As for us, we are left to hope that Walker will refine Pie for future outings, as it would be a considerable pity if this fine comedy creation were left to wither ignominiously.

Until April 27; (jonathanpie.com)

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