I have to be a different kind of in the afternoon
OB BECKETT is mulling over what his specialist subject. The comedian – who has hosted a fair few pub quizzes in his time – has landed his first proper quiz show gig in the form of BBC One’s brand-new daytime offering, Head Hunters.
“My subjects would be football, boxing or the Kinder brand,” muses the Celebs Go Dating narrator. “I’m a big Kinder eater... Buenos, little hippos, I’m all over that.
“It’s very niche, but if that comes up, who else you gonna have with the talent to answer it? No-one. Bobby Beckett is going to step up to the plate and hit the home run!”
Asking the question, “Can you put a price on knowledge?”, Head
Hunters will see three contestants – picked from a pool of 20 quizzers – vie to win the rolling jackpot at the end of each show.
They must answer a question from nine categories (anything from fashion to the Tudors) in just 90 seconds.
But this is where tactics come in, because once the topics are revealed, the Head Hunter has the decision to either go it alone or think two, three or four heads are better than one.
If it’s the latter, they can recruit quizzers from the talent pool by bidding for their services in cash.
“It’s a bit like Dragon’s Den,” quips Rob, 33, who’s also just embarked on a huge stand-up tour.
“There’s there’s a bit of negotiation and bidding, which is really good because it riles (the contestants] up – and then I stir the pot!”
“But it’s just a really good, fun quiz,” he follows. “It feels so familiar, so it doesn’t take long to get to know what’s going on, but you’re also watching something that’s a bit different.”
So what else has Rob got to tell us about the show and his forthcoming tour?
HOW DOES THE CASH PRIZE WORK?
THE contestants are recurring, so you really get to know them, and you want them to win or not win depending on who you like the most.
The money element evolves as the series goes on; when the pot gets bigger and no-one has won for a bit, it gets a bit tetchier because it’s not a couple of hundred quid, it’s a few thousand.
Plus we don’t film one episode a day – they don’t have 24 hours to calm down, they’re straight back in after a cuppa so any rivalry is still there.
THE CHANGING CATEGORIES
IT means one episode, one person might be a really key player or really important to a team, and then the next day they might not be if their specialist subject hasn’t come up.
So everyone gets their moment to shine.
But it’s not an intense quiz; it’s more about building a team to finish off the final round. So you could be the best quizzer ever, but you’re never going to answer the question right in nine different categories, it’s impossible.
DO YOU TAILOR YOUR COMEDY IN ANY WAY?
I LOVE being able to challenge myself to try and be funny in the afternoon, for a different type of audience.
Hopefully I’ve managed to nail it, but we’ll see.
I do a show on E4 that’s on at 10 o’clock at night so you can say what you want, and then doing this you can still be as funny, you’ve just got to do it in a slightly different way.
I think it improves you as a comedian. I’m still being me, just a slightly different version of me.
DO YOU GET PRE-SHOW NERVES?
WRITING the show is the hardest bit because it’s really difficult getting it all together.
But when you’re confident with it, there’s no better feeling in the world.
The only time you get a bit nervous is if you’re a bit tired, unwell, or if something has happened that you’ve got to put to the back of your mind.
Ultimately, it’s what I love doing most and I’m excited, more than nervous, to show everyone what I’ve been doing.
YOU ARE TOURING A NEW STAND-UP SHOW WALLOP
IT’S MY favourite thing to do. I started off doing stand-up and it’s something I will always do, no matter what. They’ll have to wheel me on to stage when I’m about 90 in the old people’s home.
I’m excited because I’ve got it together; I’ve put all the hard work in, and I’ve done all the graft.
I couldn’t have worked any harder on this tour, I couldn’t have made it any better.
WHERE DOES YOUR MATERIAL COME FROM?
IT’S just life – whatever funny stuff I’ve thought of or what has happened to me. I just talk and when someone laughs I remember it and say it again, and it builds from there.
For me, walking out on stage is the easiest part of the day because all I’ve got to do is make people laugh. I don’t have to worry about kids, a house, or all the boring stuff that drives you mad.
I’ve only got to do one thing and it’s the thing that, luckily for me, I’m best at.
WHY DO YOU STEER CLEAR OF POLITICS IN YOUR STAND-UP?
THAT’S the only thing I do; in my new stand-up tour, I don’t mention politics or Brexit or Trump at all.
I’ve not got the answer – it would be a worry if I had – so there’s no point me wasting time trying to think of one.
I’ll just be funny and distract you for half an hour or whatever, that’s my job.
I’m a clown. A comedian shouldn’t have the answers, they should distract you.
AND NOW YOU ARE GOING TO BE TAKING IT INTERNATIONAL...
I’VE done gigs in Germany and Austria and Australia before, but only little one-offs. But hopefully I’ll do the UK and then be off to Australia, and I’d love to do Scandinavia and then eventually America one day.
Not yet, but when I feel like I’ve done all I can in the UK.
I’ll do Madison Square Garden – imagine that?
A little oik from south east London performing in Madison Square.