Perspectives on MJ

 

When Michael Met Benny

By Lauren Morris, Radio Times

The 1992 meeting between comedian Benny Hill and pop star Michael Jackson is set to be dramatised in When Michael Met Benny, a podcast play penned by Doctor Who audio writer Jonathan Morris.

The podcast, which is being released on all platforms from 22nd February, stars Daniel Anthony (The Sarah Jane Adventures) as Thriller singer Jackson, who visited Hill (played here by Broadchurch's Phil Nice) while he recovered from a heart attack at the Brompton Hospital in February 1992.

When Michael Met Benny will tell the story of the celebrities' 30-minute conversation, during which they made plans for Jackson to star in a future season of The Benny Hill Show.

On writing the podcast, Morris – who has written several Doctor Who audio adventures for Big Finish – said: "I heard about this unlikely meeting about 10 years ago, and immediately thought, there’s a play in that! It could be the next Frost vs Nixon!

"And then I realised that if nobody else was going to write it, I should write it myself. It was just such an exciting idea I couldn’t let it go. What would two such different people find to talk about? What would they find they had in common?"

Meanwhile, Nice – whose acting credits include Doctor Who, Torchwood and Mr Bean – added: "The idea of playing Benny Hill was initially somewhat daunting, but the premise of the piece was both intriguing and fascinating - a dramatisation of an actual meeting between two legends.

"I was able, through Jonathan's writing, to get a more nuanced view of Benny as he approached his final days and found the whole project immensely satisfying and lots of fun."