Genius. Or Not?

About six months ago, whilst checking Twitter, I spotted an update by the people behind the BBC Television series Genius asking for (if memory serves) ways to improve sports. Without giving away what my idea was, I tweeted back and left it with that – they re-tweeted me, I gained a few followers, everyone had a giggle and we all moved on.

Or so I thought.

In April, I was doing some prep work for the radio show I do on All FM (96.9FM or online, Mondays 1pm-2pm – shameless plugging) and I checked Twitter once again. Waiting for me was a direct message, telling me to email one of the people behind Genius because they liked my idea.

My first question was… “What was my idea?” It had been that long and that much of a throw-away joke that I had completely forgotten I’d sent it in.

Meg, the lady I was asked to email, sent me my original tweet back and I smiled, as I remembered my oddball thought process that had dreamt it up. I’m not going to write the idea, I wouldn’t want to spoil it for you.

Speaking of which, if you’re somebody who doesn’t want to know anything about the broadcast before it is actually broadcast, now is the time to stop reading because there are spoilers ahead.

The format of the show has changed completely. The first series, broadcast last year, involved four ideas being presented to Dave Gorman plus special guest. There would be five or so minutes of discussion and the idea would be declared genius or not genius and the person who had pitched it would be revolved off the stage through the relevant door. It was quite a camp idea.

The reason for this is because it was the format transferred directly from the radio show, which had run for three series before making the transition to telly.

But, on the radio, Dave Gorman could introduce the next potential genius and the next person to speak would clearly be the next person to pitch their idea. It didn’t matter where the previous contestant had gone.

This is a system that doesn’t work on television – you have to explain where the potential geniuses have come from and where they have gone. And the revolving platform took far too long.

The solution to this is to put the geniuses in the audience. That way, the people watching at home know where they are, where they have come from and where they have gone once they have pitched their idea.

The first series didn’t demonstrate many ideas – thousands of those sent in were discarded and just thirty or so were kept for the series. So, in order to get more ideas into the show, the producers have done away with the trophy and introduced various rounds – a speed round for one liners, a category round, various guessing games for the guests (there are two of them per show this time around) and more. When it comes down to it, it doesn’t actually matter if the idea is genius or not; it just matters that it’s funny.

So now there is a semi-circle of roughly 80 potential geniuses surround Dave Gorman and his two guests, with the audience further behind them. Three or four of these are equipped with a radio mic and will definitely feature in the show; the rest are invited to speak when they have something relevant to say – be it pitching their own idea or commenting on somebody else’s – with the aid of a boom mic.

And that brings me to my trip. I was asked to travel down to BBC Television Centre in London to the first recording of the new series. The guests were Chris Addison and Mel Giedroyc.

I will feature in that episode quite a bit, but I think it’s very unlikely I’ll actually say anything when it’s broadcast. The reason being that I was sitting in the genius audience directly behind the very first person to pitch his idea. And later I was sitting next to a fella who was picked out in a random sweep.

I did get to pitch my idea in the speed round at the end of the show, but I was featured for no more than three seconds. Chris Addison declared it genius, but I expect it will be cut…

…because I was asked to return to pitch the same idea in a later show in the series, to a more relevant guest.

Ironically, before I was asked back to the show, there was the possibility that my father could have been in the episode more than me. Part of the script demanded that Dave Gorman, on introducing the new format, explained that one section of the audience had no ideas and one section was filled with people who thought they were geniuses… And he asked my dad what his idea was, to which he had to reply: “I haven’t got one.”

Nine days after my original visit to Genius, I was back again and back in the audience. I wasn’t given a radio mic. again, but I was sure I was going to pitch my snooker related idea to one of the guests. That was because she was Hazel Irvine, the host of the BBC’s snooker coverage.

Oddly, they had decided to get Hazel Irvine to introduce the show like it was a sports broadcast and, sitting directly behind her during this introduction, was me – though I could read the autocue over her shoulder, so there’s a fair chance I may look a bit special. I couldn’t decide whether to look at her back while she was presenting or the autocue and, as such, straight down the barrel of the lens, so I did a bit of both.

This time, however, I did get the chance to chat with Hazel Irvine, Russell Howard and Dave Gorman about my idea. After the opening ideas, all from people with first names for surnames, and a video idea that left everybody eating the most disgusting ice lollies I’ve ever seen, there was a category round, beginning with sport.

My hand shot into the air and I was first picked. There was some discussion, my blueprints were shown on the screen and one of them got a fairly decent laugh, and I was, once again, declared genius by both the guests.

I also got another decent laugh and a round of applause for a one liner when I commented on somebody else’s idea. So, fingers crossed, I should be quite involved in the broadcast – which will be doubly delightful because both evenings were terrific fun.

Oh – and, for the second recording, my shirt wasn’t suitable for the broadcast and a lovely lady from the costume department had to get me a replacement. I didn’t say anything at the time, but I recognised her from the DVD extras documentaries on my Red Dwarf collection. The lady who sorted out my shirt worked on one of my favourite ever TV shows.

This next series of Genius will be much better than the previous series. All I have to do now is hope that my bits are deemed funny enough to survive the edit.

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~ by David Mooney on June 4, 2010.