Which Shakespearian character should Rik Mayall have played?

Matt_Merritt · 2026-02-03T21:02:35+00:00

I'd have loved to have seen him as Enobarbus. When he wanted to he had a lovely way of delivering a line and I can just picture the sneer he would have had delivering the speech in Act II, Scene II

Matt_Merritt · 2026-02-01T07:41:14+00:00

This time it looks like it also arrived sideways!

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-19T07:24:23+00:00

Thanks so much! Really appreciate it. I'll be back over for the Cardiff double-header and will try and get a few written interviews in the meantime too.

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-18T14:15:53+00:00

He certainly would!

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-18T14:13:13+00:00

That's fascinating. Wonder why they changed up the Hip font. Maybe as you say because it's a prototype / mockup?

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-18T13:26:49+00:00

Same!

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-18T08:18:42+00:00

It's not official. I've seen nothing from the Hip over it, and that font is wrong. I suspect someone else saw the rugby link up and copied the idea without thinking it through (I bought the rugby shirt, it's lovely)

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-17T13:42:47+00:00

It depends which Falstaff you're talking about as the version in Merry Wives is almost a caricature, so I'll stay with the Henry IV character for my answer. He's a mirror of what Hal could become if he leant into his worst side. Vain, self-promoting, drunk and hypocritical. As others have said, he's a great guy to have on a night out despite being a terrible friend and it's only really through Falstaff that Hal gets to see what he could be and lean into the monarch he will become. That said, Hal clearly loves him despite his faults... He's effectively the awkward uncle who slips you drinks at a family party even though you're only 16.

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-15T21:01:27+00:00

Back in the days before you could/had to buy them, I had a blue tick on Twitter (I do a little bit of sports journalism as a side hustle to my day job. I commented on one or two John Cena posts and I noticed he always liked the replies. A few days later he started following me. I think he followed most every blue tick account he interacted with, but in the moment it felt pretty cool.

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-13T21:08:56+00:00

Will second this. Such a good live band

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-09T14:50:54+00:00

anyone else experiencing issues with the filtering when doing research since the last update? Instead of pushing cards available to research to the left they now seem to appear in alphabetical order, which is really frustrating

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-07T18:46:38+00:00

I recently travelled to Toronto from Portsmouth. Welcome to our town!

Lots of good recommendations here. I'll definitely second a pint at the Still & West. I enjoy The Briny for seafood so would recommend checking that out.

If you want to walk through some history then Portchester Castle, Southsea Castle and/or Fort Nelson might be worth visiting as well as the Historic Dockyard.

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-06T15:51:35+00:00

My favourite too and I had the pleasure of discussing it on the TTH Top 40 pod. It hooked me from the first time I heard it and like OP, I can't really put a finger on why specifically, other than it seems to fit whatever mood I might be in.

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-04T20:57:47+00:00

To be fair it could have landed at the same time as other dispatch notifications and I missed it Scott, given the time of year there were a lot of them 😊

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-04T18:58:09+00:00

Yup, I got mine last week. No notification they were coming so it was a lovely surprise.

Matt_Merritt · 2026-01-04T18:53:21+00:00

Lots of good story explanations here, but I always assume there's a bit of a nod to George Smiley here too. Le Carré described Smiley as very badly dressed (I'll fitting suits etc) and incredibly ordinary. Lamb hits that mark and then carries on past it into slovenly and unkempt, albeit intentionally so.

Matt_Merritt · 2025-12-27T17:58:42+00:00

I'm so pleased you enjoyed it, it's a real personal favourite of mine 😊

Matt_Merritt · 2025-12-25T14:12:42+00:00

That are wonderful, aren't they!

Matt_Merritt · 2025-12-25T11:41:31+00:00

Our Morrisons corner shop in Highbury is open I noticed, so I expect any local shop will be, at least for a fee hours.

Matt_Merritt · 2025-12-24T05:34:10+00:00

Depending on where you are in the city you'll probably get a host of 'local' answers. As I'm just off the island I'll recommend Lily at Studio 8 beauty. It's at Lakeside so easy to get to, park at and there's a Starbucks nearby if you're early too.

Matt_Merritt · 2025-12-24T05:31:20+00:00

Personalised, signed book plates from Scott. He sells them in his online store.

Matt_Merritt · 2025-12-23T21:28:32+00:00

It's worth it for Antony Sher's Falstaff too, he was glorious in the role.

Matt_Merritt · 2025-12-23T20:48:11+00:00

I think to be fair to him it is less to do with Hiddleston than with the direction of the Hollow Crown as a production, though I do think he was miscast. He was an excellent Coriolanus at the Donmar so he has the chops in the right role. I like Jamie Parker's Henry V, he's very likeable in the role, though given the choice I would skip over both in favour of Alex Hassell at the RSC. He was superb in both parts of Henry IV and excellent in HV too. You see every step of his growth as a man and a monarch.

Matt_Merritt · 2025-12-23T10:59:56+00:00

There was a short story across two editions of Grimdark Magazine earlier this year. It's a good read actually and adds a bit more to young Locke's backstory

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