Stay at Home festival review – Mark Gatiss's dystopia flashbacks kick off comedy series

The Sherlock star joined Robin Ince and Josie Long’s daily online broadcast to self-isolated comedy fans – and the results were rallying‘Stay apart – and keep connecting,” is the mantra of Robin Ince’s new Stay at Home festival, a daily online broadcast to self-isolated comedy fans everywhere. Produced by the Cosmic Shambles Network, the show brings comedians, entertainers and scientists together (at a safe social distance), and hopes to raise donations for artists denied an income by the coronavirus outbreak. Its first episode proper, streamed this morning, is distinguished – as you’d expect from Ince – by recondite but infectiously enthusiastic chat, now and then interrupted by cookery and song. It’s not must-see viewing, but its good humour and jaundiced optimism are oddly rallying.Hosted by Ince and Josie Long, broadcasting from their houses, its star guest is Mark Gatiss, for whom Ince has canvassed audience questions. By accident or Ince’s design, they prompt nerdy discussions (which would work equally well as audio) about horror movies, Peter Cushing’s memoirs, or this week’s auction of the estate of Sixties TV icon Peter Wyngarde. Of 1970s dystopian drama, Gatiss observes that “we’ve been workshopping this [ie the coronavirus response] for donkey’s years … All TV was dystopian in the 70s, even Nationwide.” But that doesn’t mean Brits are well placed to weather a catastrophe. Talk of our blitz spirit is “clearly not true”, says the Sherlock man: “We are just a pack of savages.” Continue reading…
Via: Stay at Home festival review – Mark Gatiss's dystopia flashbacks kick off comedy series