‘I THOUGHT MIRANDA WOULD JUST FIZZLE AWAY!’
No chance of that, Ms Hart – not with a new celebration of the comedy classic on our screens over the holidays
This year marks a full decade since the clumsy comedian came galloping onto our screens with her polarising sitcom, so to mark the milestone, the Beeb is giving us a one-off shindig dedicated solely to Miranda. Filmed live at The London Palladium, My Such Fun Celebration sees Ms Hart reunite with the cast to look back over the series, with a few dance numbers and surprises thrown into the mix. Here, the lady herself reveals what’s in store…
What can you tell us about this show?
Every part of the series was celebrated and I felt genuinely overwhelmed by the loving response. Miranda was a show that harked back to traditional musical hall style comedy as well as being a contemporary sitcom, so filming it at The London Palladium meant I packed it with sketches, dance numbers and guests.
Can you tell us about said guests?
I can tell you that my tiny elf of a friend Stevie was there by my side, as Sarah Hadland often is in real life. Whether my on-screen husband Tom Ellis managed to make it over from LA I couldn’t possibly tell you. He’s been busy filming Lucifer, but maybe he sent a message, maybe he teleported himself – I couldn’t possibly say.
How did it feel reuniting with the cast?
Oh it’s sheer delight! But rehearsing comedy is actually incredibly pressured, technical and difficult so we put work at the front in rehearsals and the larks mainly happen outside of it.
When you first started writing the sitcom, did you think it would be so successful?
No! I remembered 10 years ago I wandered around Hammersmith as the first episode was being aired, thinking, “What shall I do for a job now? Will it be weird going back to office work if people recognise me? I feel sorry for my friends in comedy who will have to try and be polite about the show,” because I thought it would just fizzle away. It was a gamble – it will always be my greatest joy and my greatest surprise.
What’s your fave Miranda moment?
I don’t think I could pick one. The Miranda and Gary romance generally, the falling in the grave stunt, the surprise of Gary Barlow appearing, and I loved us all being around the dinner table during the Dinner Party episode when I was trying to impress my future father-in-law!
Could we see more Miranda in the future?
This Such Fun Celebration felt like it could go both ways. It could be the goodbye forever
– so for that reason I really hope people watch it and enjoy it – or it could be a springboard to some specials. I’m torn – part of me wants to see Gary and Miranda’s married life, part of me wonders whether the story was told and as Miranda gets older it’s a very different kind of show. So the answer remains – I don’t know!
But I do know that I am incredibly grateful for the legacy it’s created.
Miranda: My Such Fun Celebration, New Year’s Day, 5.45pm, BBC1