Stephen Fry's Live From The Lighthouse - Alan Partridge interviews Simon Pegg and Noel Gallagher

Stills
Clips
Share On:
Info
Cast & Crew
Extras
Buy Now

Stephen Fry's "Live From the Lighthouse"

Stephen Fry’s Live From the Lighthouse” was the third and most spectacular fund-raising special by Pozzitive, following on from Filth! in 1994 and The Big Snog a year later in 1995.

Taking over Channel 4 for an entire evening of live television, the core of the show was a comedy and music variety show hosted by Stephen Fry and Mel & Sue (Mel Giedroyc & Sue Perkins) from the London Lighthouse, one of the first AIDS hospices and centre for information, therapy and all-round wonderfulness. The show had a live donations line, including a room full of celebrities ready to take your call, and raised money for the Terence Higgins Trust, which distributed it to a number of AIDS/HIV charities.

As well as the main show, the evening featured a number of specially-commissioned programmes, including “A Ribbon Runs Through It” - a Rock & Roll Years-style history of the spread of HIV/AIDS and a 60m programme from September Films, following on from their previous series of films, “Hollywood Vice”, “Hollywood AIDS”, about the shattering effect the disease has had on the Entertainment capital of the World.

Other highlights included “Heroes On Heroes” - where stars talked about a particular person who had been affected by AIDS and had meant so much to them - there was Michael Palin talking about Denholm Elliot, Wayne Sleep on Rudolf Nureyev and Boy George on Tony De Vit. The show also featured four short films on true-life people who’s lives had been affected by HIV/AIDS. These were profoundly moving, and the donation phone lines were gratifyingly active moments after each film went off the air.

Lowlights included the OB Truck going down with about half an hour before we went on air. Someone both noble and majestic crawled underneath it with a big spanner and some batteries, and all was well by the time Channel 4 Presentation and Continuity handed over to us at 9.00pm

The comedy and music featured many great stars - do have a look at the Cast & Credits list - but highlights included Alan Partridge interviewing Noel Gallagher (“Coward, Edmunds, Gordon and now Gallagher, what is it about Noels throughout history that has captured the public’s imagination?”), the first and only televisual meeting between those two sex gods Tony Ferrino and Ali G, and a remarkably filthy Mel Smith & Griff Rhys Jones Head To head sketch that had even the Channel 4 lawyers frantically checking the rulebook backstage...

Oh, and Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie performing The Hedge Sketch. Live. Bloody hell.

The show also featured a hilarious film of Stephen Fry interviewing Armistead Maupin (“Tales Of the City”) including a moment when they both sat on the gravestone of an old friend of Maupin’s who had succumbed to AIDS. Stephen: “Oh - would he mind us sitting on him?” Maupin: “Not if I remember him correctly...”

Stephen Fry's "Live From the Lighthouse"

"Stephen Fry's "Live From The Lighthouse""

First TX: 28/11/1998 21.00-24.15 Channel 4

Hosted byStephen Fry
with Mel & SueMelanie Giedroyc
Sue Perkins
 
and starring
Ali GSacha Baron-Cohen
Antoine De Caunes
Julian Clary
Steve Coogan
 
Stella StreetPhil Cornwell
&John Sessions
 
Harry Enfield
Noel Gallagher
Boy George
Hugh Laurie
Armistead Maupin
Graham Norton
Michael Palin
Simon Pegg
Dr Barry Peters
All Saints
Wayne Sleep
 
Mel & Griff Talking HeadsMel Smith
Griff Rhys Jones
 
Celebrity Phonelines -
Max Beesley
Luisa Bradshaw-White
Melvyn Bragg
Adam Buxton
Joe Cornish
Alan Davies
Angus Deayton
E17
Les Ferdinand
Terry Gilliam
David Ginola
Sean Hughes
Liz Hurley
Samantha Janus
Ulrika Jonsson
Mark Lamarr
Simon Le Bon
Yasmin Le Bon
Matt Lucas
Lulu
Meg Matthews
Martine McCutcheon
Tim McInnerny
Paul Nicholls
Neil Pearson
Anne Robinson
Colin Salmon
Imelda Staunton
Mark Thomas
Ramon Tikaram
Stephen Tompkinson
Gianluca Vialli
 
VT Pleas -
Victoria Wood
Jerry Springer
Elton John
 
Script AssociatesIan Brown
James Hendrie
Steve Punt
 
Additional material byDavid Tyler
Jeremy Salsby
 
Alan PartridgePeter Baynham
Armando Iannucci
Steve Coogan
 
Mark Burton
John O'Farrell
Geoffrey Perkins
Richard Preddy
Gary Howe
 

Music
Pete Baikie & Mat Clarke
Steve Brown

Graphics
Liquid Television Graphics


Armistead Maupin Film

Cameraman
Jon Shenk
Sound
Mark Becker


A Ribbon Runs Through It
Producer
Robin Keam

Assistant. Producer
Stephanie Dennis

Music Clearances
Jane Bridgeman

Executive Producer
Geoff Posner & David Tyler


Hollywood AIDS
Producer
Nicola Waddell

Executive Producer
David Green


Special Films

Cameras
Mark Charlton
Jeremy Huson
John Kedwell
Steve Gray

Sound
Donna Baily
Matt Lygo
Adam Scarfield
James Thompson

Researcher

Akum Uwahemu

Director

Rupert Edwards


Videotape Editors

Steve Andrews
Mykola Pawluk

Sound Dubbing
Nigel Woods

OB Facilities
BBC Resources

Engineering Managers
John King
Jon Mason

PA Sound
Brittania Row

Phone Facilities
BSS
Steven Peek at British Telecom

Garden Structure
Unusual Rigging

Prop Master
Peter Hallam

Prop Buyer
Antonia Softley

Art Director
Jo Day

Costume Designer
Kerry Ann Hirst

Make Up Designer
Lisa Cavalli-Green

Production Team
Sarah Kershaw
Billie Watley

Stage Manager
Angie Hill

Floor Manager
Mike Morgan

Assistant Floor Managers
Sophie Haysom
Nicky Hodges
Mark Vella

Production Coordinator
Melanie Parker

Production Assistants
Silvana Job
Jo Newey

Researcher
Roz Edwards

Vision Mixer
Roz Storey

Senior Cameraman
Dave Box

Sound Supervisor
Tim Davies

Lighting Director
Martin Kempton

Production Designer
John McHugh

Assistant Producer
Karen Ferguson

Production Manager
Dawn Watts

 
Directed byGeoff Posner
 
Produced byGeoff Posner
Jeremy Salsby
David Tyler

Stephen Fry's "Live From the Lighthouse"

Sadly, very little remains of the glory of that night, although the Alan Partridge/Simon Pegg/Noel Gallagher interview can usually be found on YouTube...

Read up on everything Stephen Fry here -

... and here's lovely Mel & Sue's lovely page -

Watch an older version of Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry doing "The Hedge Sketch" -

And the whole point of the show was to raise money for AIDS/HIV charities. So, if you fancy it, here's a link to The Terrence Higgins Trust. Nuff said.


Take it further ...

Clips playlist

Other shows in TELEVISION ...