Corden takes ‘Late Late Show’ across the pond
Sooner or later, James Corden was bound to take his show home with him ... “home” being England.
That’s about to happen for three nights, as CBS’ “The Late Late Show With James Corden” originates from London from Tuesday through Thursday at 12:37 a.m. Being taped at Central Hall Westminster — which offers a view of the Thames River — the episodes will showcase Great Britain through the prism of the Emmy- and Tonywinning host’s comedic sensibility, with relevant guests (who were yet to be confirmed at this writing) pitching in.
“It takes massive organization, which I’m very thrilled I don’t have to be part of,” the amiable Corden said of taking “The Late Late Show” on the international road. “It’s a logistical nightmare, because when you build these shows, you build them to be in one place. It’s difficult enough moving a show down the road to another studio in America, but moving an American show as far as you can get in one plane journey is not only difficult, but apparently expensive.”
Luckily, Corden has an additional network backing his trek: Sky, which runs his program in the United Kingdom. “The truth is, this wouldn’t be able to happen without that involvement,” Corden confirmed, “just with the cost and logistics. I feel very fortunate that I have an affiliation with two broadcasters who are open enough creatively to collaborate on such a thing.”
Though Corden staged one of the most popular editions of his “Carpool Karaoke” in London — with music superstar Adele, which has been a massive view-getter on YouTube — he maintains such a segment isn’t planned for his trip back. Don’t be surprised if it ultimately happens, though, being a “Late Late Show” staple (and having recently yielded its second annual CBS prime-time special).
As for the course of each hour otherwise, “We have a studio here that seats about 200 people,” said Corden, “and there, we’re going to be doing it in an unconventional theater that holds something like 1,000 people. And quite incredibly, the company there that handles tickets for television shows had a million requests for this ... which is slightly terrifying, really. I can’t quite get my head around it.”
Still, Corden realized his talk-show popularity hasn’t come only from America, thanks in sizable part to internet viewing.
“The show plays in 155 countries, so to take it to my hometown feels like a very organic thing to do.”
And while he’ll enjoy seeing his parents while there, he admitted that’s not such a rare thing these days.
“I’ve got to be honest, I see more of them now than I ever did at home,” Corden said. “They’re always here! With the age that they are, or the age that my wife’s parents are, the prospect of coming to the sunshine of Los Angeles is far too appealing. We have an opendoor policy, and we’re never short of guests.”