| Trying to write a piece about Graham Norton without adding the phrase "cheeky chappie" is a bit like having sex in a swing-bin. It can't be done. For someone voted Best Newcomer at the British Comedy Awards only four years ago, Graham Norton has come a long way. |
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Today, Norton is regarded as one of the UK's top television turns. His Bafta award-winning chat show, So Graham Norton, is one of Channel Four's highest-rated programmes, regularly attracting top-notch celebs such as Roger Moore, Jason Priestly, Naomi Campbell, Joan Collins, Grace Jones and, er, Judith Chalmers.
Born Graham Walker in 1963, Norton grew up in County Cork in Ireland. A university dropout, Norton travelled around the US before moving to London where he worked as a waiter and barman well into his late 20s. Having staged a one-man show at the Edinburgh Festival from 1992 to 1997, he began making a national name for himself when Charlie's Angels Go To Hell successfully transferred to London. After winning the Comedy Award, Norton landed himself the role of Father Noel in the hit television sit-com Father Ted. Hearing that Channel Four was after a chat show with an edge, Norton pitched for the gig and got it. Three series on, the show which he's described as "disposable, waiting-for-a-bus television" remains one of the most innovative and outrageous programmes on British TV. So successful is the show that the BBC has recently tried to entice Norton away from Channel Four. Despite being offered wads of dosh, Norton has decided to stay put, fearing that Auntie Beeb would insist that he tone down his act. Instead, Norton's just signed a two-year extension to his current contract - worth a reported £6 million - hand-cuffing him to the channel until 2004. Camp and cruel, the cheeky chappie (see I told you) insists he doesn't mean to upset people. "I don't want to be rude. Every comic wants to be liked. I'm no exception to that at all." |
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