The Graham Norton Show. Graham Norton. Credit: So Television, Christopher Baines
The Graham Norton Show

The Graham Norton Show

  • TV chat show
  • BBC One / BBC Two
  • 2007 - 2024
  • 494 episodes (31 series)

Comic chat show presented by Graham Norton. The biggest names in showbiz join the host on his sofa.

Episode menu

Series 11, Episode 1 - Matt Lucas, Michael Sheen, Ewan McGregor, Cate Blanchett

Cate Blanchett talks about an encounter with a dancing dog and a ghost; Ewan McGregor talks fly fishing; Michael Sheen reveals all about meeting the real Queen; while Matt Lucas says he is off to live in LA. With music from Keane.

Further details

Talking about her early career plans, Cate Blanchett reveals, "I did want to be a ballerina but hopefully I made the right choice. I was actually taught by a dog! The ballet teacher was too arthritic to move so we had a poodle called 'Pepe The Dancing Dog' who was a huge influence on my career and taught me everything I know! I was quite relieved to get to drama school with human beings teaching."

Cate reveals a spooky encounter as a student, "I stayed in a house where there had been a murder. I didn't know until someone gave me a tape of Australia's Most Wanted, which I watched in my bed - the re-enactment showed a man climb in through my window and strangle a woman in my bed. I was freaked out but I couldn't afford to move. I thought this is my chance to see a ghost because something so traumatic had happened. I didn't encounter anything until the day I left and as I shut the door I heard someone call 'Cate' and there was no one there except me."

Ewan McGregor talks about his early love of musicals, "I spent a lot of time as a kid pretending to be Elvis Presley and quite a lot of time pretending to be Olivia Newton John! Grease was just at the right time for me and my friend and I thought if we sat with our fingers crossed in class she might arrive... she might pop by Morrison's Academy in Crieff..."

Talking about meeting his wife on a set, he says, "I fell totally in love with her and I knew right then that I really wanted to be with her and, I knew I wanted to be with her in a different way to all the other many, many, many woman I had been with up until that point! And I wasn't wrong - I made the right choice." And on being married to a French woman he adds, "I understand a lot but after 17 years my French is still terrible. My kids speak French so whenever they want to talk about me, or slag me off they do it in French. I pretend I don't understand half of it and half of it I don't understand. It's not easy."

On learning to fly-fish for his new movie, Ewan says, "I learnt to do it but I'm not very good and I didn't catch any fish but Emily (Blunt) almost caught my dog Sid. She cast back and as she pushed forward there was a horrible yelp and there he was caught by the hook - luckily there was no blood as it was through his fur."

Ewan gives a fly-fishing demonstration, revealing he definitely has the knack.

Michael Sheen talks about receiving his OBE from The Queen, "It was weird driving into to Buckingham Palace. It was like déjà vu as we had recreated so much of it for the film (The Queen) that I felt quite at home. She asked me, 'What are you doing next?' and the truth was, I was doing Tron but didn't think that would go down well and she might not get it so I said 'Another film about Blair and his relationship with Clinton' and she got a little gleam in her eye and said, 'Oh, that must be awfully difficult.'"

Cate, talking about her own royal encounter, adds: "I was invited to lunch at Buckingham Palace and I couldn't work out why, but thought it was because I had played her ancestor, the other Elizabeth. I sat next Prince Philip who asked what I did and when I explained I was an actor he asked my advice on how to connect up his new DVD player. I tried to be of some use."

Matt Lucas joins the other guests for a chat about his new show The Matt Lucas Awards and confirms he is off to live in the US, "I'm moving there in July but I am keeping a place here so I am back and forth."

On appearing in the US movie hit Bridesmaids, he says, "I didn't know how successful the film would be. Here I am known for Little Britain and in the US I am known as the creepy dude from Bridesmaids."

Revealing life really does imitate art, he says, "I will be living with Rebel Wilson (his screen sister and house mate in Bridesmaids). We got on really well and we look really similar, it's kind of spookily so. We just hit it off and we want to write a film together."

Keane performs Silenced by the Night live in the studio before joining Graham for a chat.

Broadcast details

Date
Friday 13th April 2012
Time
10:35pm
Channel
BBC One
Length
45 minutes

Repeats

Show past repeats

Date Time Channel
Monday 16th April 2012 11:35pm BBC1

Cast & crew

Cast
Graham Norton Host / Presenter
Guest cast
Michael Sheen Guest
Matt Lucas Guest
Ewan McGregor Guest
Cate Blanchett Guest
Writing team
Rob Colley Writer
Dan Gaster Writer
Production team
Steve Smith Director
Jon Magnusson Series Producer
Mike Altman Producer
Pete Snell Producer
Alan Thorpe Producer
Graham Stuart Executive Producer
Perry Widdowson Editor
Chris Webster Production Designer
Jonathan Whitehead (as Trellis) Composer

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