Armchair tales
Hamish Blake and Andy Lee had so much fun with ratings-winner ner True Story that they’re returning for a second season. They tell ll DANIELLE MCGRANE why the format works so well and how season ason two’s tales will go even further.
The premise for True Story with Hamish & Andy was simple: ask real people to tell their most outrageous stories and get actors to re-enact them for the audience at home.
It was a brilliantly simple format that worked, drawing in nearly two million viewers every night, so the team have returned and managed to find even more outrageous tales.
“We had over 8000 story submissions so clearly people have a lot to get off their chest,” Lee said.
“People had seen season one and said, ‘I’ve got a story better than that’. That’s what we loved about the Australian spirit and also about season one and season two – the fact that people were reaching out and enjoying what these stories became. “
The pair of TV and radio presenters originally dreamt up the idea for the show while they were at the pub observing what happened when people were chatting.
“When we were in the pub we would see our friends jump in when someone was trying to tell a story and ask a question that might send them in a different direction and we love seeing people laugh along, so that’s where the idea for True Story came from,” Lee said.
“We think this show is just as much about story-listening as it is about telling.”
Before launching into season two, they took time to reflect on the show’s first outing and what they loved about it.
“Sometimes you can’t even remember the story in its essence versus what was created because an actor comes along and does a tremendous job. Like John Leary last year and Sammie’s story, the one about the pregnancy and the needles – the performance was so strong you start to remember that as be- ing a very positive e and fun story, even though hough it’s been through a lot of different processes sses to get there,” Lee said. d.
“And then Stubby’s by’s story about him as an impressionable young man at a surf lifesaving contest – that was definitely our favourite in the room, which became evident because a lot of the episode was Hamish laughing and not being able to speak.”
The pair have a theory that they believe somehow helps the storytellers rehash these events for TV.
“What we have discovered is that with almost half of the stories, people have given them a good 15-20 year window. One fellow in particular actually submitted his story under a different name because he promised his mum that he would never ever mention this story again,” Blake said.
It also explains why a lot of the stories are set in the ’80s or ’90s, which often works in their favour.
“I think it adds to the comedy because when you think about the most embarrassing or funniest stories that stay with you, very rarely did they happen this year,” Blake said.
“It’s because you only begin to realise a story is good if it stood the test of time and you realise 20 years later you’re still telling it, then it’s funny.
“We often tell kids in year 10 and 11, ‘Just know that all the stuff that’s happening now that you’re embarrassed about, they’ll actu- ally become the best stories of your life because we’re still telling stories about what happened to us in high school’.
“You don’t realise it, but you’re actually building up your archive of all your great anecdotes and I think you do need a bit of time for water to go under the bridge and to realise, ‘There’s a reason I’m still telling that story, because it’s quite funny’.”
There’s enough variety to make season two of the show completely different to season one.
“Some stories are horrify- ing, but they have enough laughs for us to allow them on the show,” Lee said.
“It’s also down to the people in the chair – the fact that they can make light of these terrible situations is what we found great and remarkable in season two. There are more twists this season and complete stories with a start, a middle and an end, rather than just a series of unfortunate events. Most of them tie up quite nicely like mini films.”