BBC

One of the perks of being this far south is that we're pretty close to a lot of things, London included. So trips that would have been a couple of flights become a much simpler car drive and tube journey away, especially if we're provided with free accommodation as Jay's sister was kind enough to do. We were able to make the most of this last weekend with a visit to the BBC to watch a new show called Fast and Loose. It's being made by the same people as Whose Line is it Anyway and Mock the Week, is hosted by Hugh Dennis and features comedians doing improv in a variety of different situations.

I've been on the mailing list for Have I Got News for You and Mock the Week audiences for a couple of years - they're always fully booked within a few minutes of the tickets coming out - so when I got the invite to apply for tickets to this show (sent because I guess they think it'll appeal to the same people) I had a go but was rather skeptical about being successful. Hence I was a little excited when I got sent some tickets - on top of which they're free and given our new location it was realistic that that we could manage.

So, last Saturday we spent a nice morning catching up with one of my old friends from Mintlaw Academy, Blake, who is one of the tallest bus enthusiasts you'll ever meet. We then trekked into London and joined the queue at BBC TV Centre. There was a security check at the door - naturally I was the one setting off the alarms and getting frisked - then we made it into the foyer for a quick eat before being ushered into the studio.

The filming lasted from a little after 7pm until just before 10 for what I guess will be a half hour show but there was plenty going on. There were loads of good jokes and routines, and there was an absolutely genius scene filmed from above that had me cracking up completely. Of course there was all the between-filming stuff too, including Hugh's legendary dinosaur walking. It was absolutely superb, I'm looking forward to seeing the full series on from January. Ours was the last one in the series but we may feature in the audiences for other ones as they mix them up a bit to get the right shots so look out for us - we're right in the middle about five rows back :)

I didn't think to get a picture of us at the studios, so instead here is Ming Tea performing BBC:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_OuBhx-jB8