STILL GAME
THE RETURN OF THE CRAIGLANG MASSIVE
THE most famous and cantankerous pensioners in Scotland, Jack and Victor, are back on our screens this Friday after a nine-year absence, as the sit-com Still Game returns to the airwaves. All the main characters are present: Jack Jarvis and Victor McDade, played by Ford Kiernan and Greg Hemphill; Jane McCarry as Isa, the nosey neighbour; Gavin Mitchell as Boaby the barman; Paul Riley as Winston; and Mark Cox as Tam. Sanjeev Kohli, one of the show’s bestloved characters, shop-keeper Navid Harrid, is also back, and chatted exclusively to the Sunday Herald about its revival – which will be screened UK-wide on the BBC.
Kohli says that when he heard Still Game was returning he mainly felt “relief”.
“After the live show, it was the sensible next step,” he said.
In 2014, Still Game: Live at the Hydro attracted 210,000 fans to the Glasgow venue and sold £6 million in tickets. Kiernan and Hemphill were scheduled to perform only four shows in September, but the huge demand meant that the run was extended to 16, then 21.
Of the live show’s success, Kohli said: “If you get that number of people 21 times, the [return of Still Game] is a sure-fire thing. It felt right … it felt natural”.
Asked why the show is still so popular, Kohli said: “People really do relate to the characters. People that age are always in their lives.”
The series has only grown in popularity outside Scotland since it was given a Netflix release.
Kohli is full of admiration for the show’s creators, Kiernan and Hemphill: “They are very clever, nuanced, sophisticated writers and performers,” he said. He also praised their “liquorice-black humour” and the widespread appeal of the show’s themes. “Elements of the show are Scottish … but a lot of things are very universal,” he said.
The read-through for the new series took place in June of this year at the BBC’s Pacific Quay HQ. Filming began in July at Dumbarton Studios, but also took place in and around Glasgow. In August, fans got very excited by a tweet from Kiernan: “Thanx Glasgow for the massive generosity in letting us film Still Game, see you in October!”
According to Kohli, there is “no reason” why the new series shouldn’t be as popular as the original. He got the impression that, as the series was ending, a lot of people in the north of England got “a big stake in the show”. “It’s nice to hear people without Scottish accents are enjoying the show,” he said HE is also keen to see what viewers in the south of England think of Still Game, as they may not have heard of it before. He urges them to “give it a chance”. The fact the show has a “very nice slot” is another reason why Kohli thinks that the new series could achieve mainstream success.
For the new series the theme tune has also been revamped, with fresh orchestration arranged by composer Ben Foster. The theme was recorded by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, and is a reworking of the Frank Chacksfield song, Cuban Boy.
The original run of shows aired between 2002 and 2007, and was first shown on BBC One Scotland. After the first three series’ success, it moved to BBC Two’s Comedy Zone and was broadcast UK-wide, achieving better viewing figures than both The Catherine Tate Show and Steve Coogan’s Saxondale.
Paul Riley and Jane McCarry won Scotland Baftas for their performances in 2006 and 2007 respectively. In addition, the show won the Best Broadcast Award at the 2004 Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Awards.
After the final series ended, Jack and Victor made an appearance in a sketch for Children in Need in 2014 that saw the two men visiting the set of River City, with a cameo role for Still Game director Michael Hines.
Shortly afterwards, for Hogmanay 2014, the cast popped up again in the documentary, Still Game: The Story So Far, which featured interviews with celebrity guest stars and fans, along with some favourite moments. Still Game is not the first show in which Jack and Victor appeared. Nor is Chewin’ the Fat, Kiernan and Hemphill’s 1999 sketch show. In fact, the characters were written for a stage play in 1997, in which Jack, Victor and Winston get trapped in Victor’s flat, due to a faulty lift. The pair made their TV debut in a 1998 tongue-in-cheek documentary about Scottish pop music, called Och Around the Clock, in which the two are shown watching pop performers on TV in Victor’s flat.
The fact Jack and Victor are still going strong after nearly 20 years is testament to the work of Hemphill, Kiernan, Kohli and the rest.