Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1489656
maltatoday | SUNDAY •8 JANUARY 2023 9 INTERVIEW generation guy. So – apart from maybe a few references from his dad – he wasn't exposed to any of that stuff, at all... .. but then, he brings the Tic- Toc generation perspective to the mix. So it's not as though you NEED to be familiar with any specific influences, to enjoy the show. Another thing is that our target audience – which started out as the Sliema middle-aged/elderly audience; and picked up younger people along the way – are pre- cisely the sort of people who hark back to that era, anyway. They expect comedians to act like John Cleese on stage: and go 'berserk', at the tiniest of things… On that note: the Comedy Knights brand – with its (most- ly) British influences; and tailored for a such a specific audience – hints at a sort of cultural 'divide' in the local theatre scene: between com- edy for the English-speaking crowd; and then – separately – comedy for the much-vaster Maltese-speaking audience. First of all, do you agree with that (admittedly very generic) assessment? Well, yes. Up to a point it's in- evitable, really. There are always going to be 'different audiences'; not just when it comes to lan- guage, but also to age. For example: when Stand-up Comedy was first introduced in around 2011, or thereabouts… it was mostly for very small, young- ish audiences, in very small ven- ues – such as Muddy Waters in Balluta; or the Hard Rock Café in Paceville - and if it was mostly in English, it's because the people who first started it up were main- ly foreigners living in Malta; and their target audience included ex-pats, as well as English-speak- ing Maltese. But the audience grew, over the years. And so did the venues: with stand-up acts now even be- ing held at the Manoel Theatre… So there's an audience for all that; and there's also an audience for [Maltese-language] shows such as 'Zoo' (which became 'Bla Kondixxin'); and TV pro- grammes like 'Min Imissu', or 'Simpatici'… which - while not being my own kind of humour - I acknowledge as worthy additions to Maltese television comedy. And in a sense: I myself have straddled both worlds. This year, I took part in 'Il-Kbir Ghadu Gej' [the Freddie Portelli-based mu- sical]; and director Sean Buha- giar is very open to international comedy influences; but he also has a sensitivity towards Mal- tese comedy, as well. So 'Il-Kbir Ghadu Gej' was a mixture of both… and I acted with people from both 'worlds', so to speak. You also broadcast in Maltese on the radio… Yes, there's that too… Which, if you don't mind, brings me to a slightly more personal question. Which of those two worlds are you more comfort- able in? I myself, for instance, was brought up in an Eng- lish-speaking environment; with Maltese as a second lan- guage. Was it the same in your case? The other way round? And either way: how did you acclimatize to both worlds, so successfully? Let me put it this way: the first school I went to was St Joseph's in Sliema: where we were told, 'Don't speak Maltese; you have to speak in English'. For secondary school, I went to the Junior Ly- ceum in Hamrun… in 1984: the year of the [teachers'] strike. It was there that I learnt to speak fluent Maltese: to the point where, today, I feel it's almost as good as my English. But if my English is slightly better… it's mainly because of all those TV programmes we've been talk- ing about: all those comedians, whose speech-patterns I would impersonate, and try to imitate in daily life. That – more than family, or school – was what made English my 'first language'. Let's just say that I had a sheltered upbringing; and rather than play football out on the street, I would sit at home and watch a LOT of (mostly Brit- ish) TV. In any case: English was very important to me, when I start- ed working. I always wanted to work in radio; and out of all the job opportunities that suddenly opened up [with broadcasting pluralism in the 1990s] the one I applied for was at Frank Salt's Island Sound… specifically, be- cause it was going to broadcast in English. Eventually I started doing occa- sional plays in Maltese; and then – after spending some time in the UK, and returning in the early 2000s – the first job I was offered was as a radio presenter with Ra- dio 101. Which meant I had to go back behind a microphone: this time, presenting in Maltese… Was that a daunting prospect, at the time? It was a bit, at first. I was sort of 'thrown in at the deep end'; so I had to learn on the job, pret- ty damn quick. To give you an idea… on my early broadcasts, there would be gaps of dead-air lasting three or four seconds, while I'm sitting there thinking: 'X'inhi il-kelma ghal ____?' After a while, though, you get the hang of it; and today, I think I'm considered a fairly 'decent' Maltese-language radio present- er: even if I am sometimes told – when speaking Maltese to peo- ple, face to face - that my accent, or delivery, 'sounds exactly like on the radio'… … which I find sort of 'offensive' myself, to be honest. But never mind… Hang on, that's an interesting point you raised there. You mean to tell me that people actually expect you to sound different 'in real life', than on the radio? And on that subject: do you yourself see any differ- ence between your own natural state, and the persona (if any) you adopt while speaking on air? There IS a slight difference… but only a very slight one. You do have to structure words in a cer- tain way: for instance, you always have to try to end your sentences with a certain… 'oomph!', if you know what I mean. Or to some- how forge a link between what you're saying, and the next song, or interview, or whatever… .. and you also have to make sure, on the radio, that most of time – unless you're talking about the funeral of the Pope, of course – you're 'speaking with a smile'. There has to be an uplifting tone to your voice, at all times. But I tend to do that in my dai- ly life, anyway. I'm quite a jolly fellow, when all is said and done. So what you hear on the radio is… me, basically. Except that, on the radio, there's a slight 'calibration': my voice will be deeper, and my sentences a lot more structured… but I'm certainly not going to speak to you one way, to your face; then go on air, and suddenly start speaking completely differently. So it's not like the job of an ac- tor, then: you don't just 'slip in- to a role'… That's an interesting way of put- ting it. On that level… well, yes, I suppose. On certain programmes – like if it's a 'party set'; and I have to play the part of a 'cool DJ', that matches all the 'cool songs' I'll be playing… then perhaps I'll end up saying things I wouldn't normal- ly say, in everyday conversations. (Like: 'Feel the beat, man!' That sort of thing...) Other than that, however: no, it's still just me you're listening to. If I'm not feeling well, on a particular day… I'm going to just blurt it out, at some point dur- ing the show. And while I might phrase things differently, on air: I'm still not going to say any- thing into a microphone, that I wouldn't also say in real life. Having said all that: I want it to be put on record, that I'm al- so the happiest I've ever been, to now be working at Campus FM. As people know, I've worked on quite a number of stations in my time: Island Sound, Radio 101, Calypso, XFM… but moving to Campus FM - for me, at this stage in my life - was like 'finding my niche'. Not only is it wonderful to be working at University; but I've been given space to produce entertaining music programmes – which is what I'm probably best-known for – and also, to do 'discussion/interview shows' of my own. In short, I'm going to be 50 next year; and I think I've found this 'alignment' in my life, where I wake up in the morning… and actually look forward to going to work. And I just want you to put that on the record for me, if you don't mind…