"Do you want to pass along your apologies for this terrible joke?"

It's been a fair while since I've listened to Radio 4's Chain Reaction but as ChrisH at Biased BBC said there were some funny things in it I thought I'd give it a go. 

I won't re-mount my 'left-wing Radio 4 comedians' hobby horse - despite the interview's political turn with interviewee Frankie Boyle discussing his hunger strike in support of Shaker Aamer, the Saudi last British resident in Guantanamo Bay, and (with interviewer Kevin Bishop's help) and his mockery of Alex Salmond and other pro-independence Scots. After all, it wouldn't be a Radio 4 6.30pm comedy programme if left-wing opinions weren't voiced and, to be honest, it was a very short (and funny) part of the show. So, no, I won't re-mount that hobby horse here. (Oh, I've just done so though, haven't I? Drat!)

Instead, I'll try my best to transcribe Frankie Boyle's account of why he doesn't miss stand-up comedy - as it's funny and I can sort of see his point:

When I got into comedy, when I started, it was kind of the sort of job you did because it didn't have any consequences...now everything you do seems to be observed, then said to other people who don't like it, and to me that's a strange thing.

I had a thing that was like, "Remember the guy who did the Speaking Clock?...the guy who did the Speaking Clock had just died that week now and hopefully died on the third stroke", and my agent got an e-mail from this journalist...She goes, "So and so did in fact die from a series of small strokes and I'm going to get in touch with his family. Do you want to pass along your apologies for this terrible joke?" and I'm thinking, "I've not told his family the joke. You're telling his family the joke!" 

And there's a concept that is called 'author by relocation', right. Now the idea is that if I screened a porn movie onto the wall of a local primary school they wouldn't go and arrest Ron Jeremy for it, right. Someone else's code they think {I think that's what Frankie said. Can't be sure though.} 

And for me that happens. You know, the papers are telling these jokes to the only people who won't laugh, who aren't at the front of...you know, that's terrible, to you it is, you know.