The Graham Norton Effect
Encyclopedia
The Graham Norton Effect is a talk show
hosted by the Irish
comedian
Graham Norton
. The show aired on Comedy Central
. The show aired from June 24, 2004 to September 16, 2004.
The Graham Norton Effect can be considered a spin-off
to two previous shows hosted by Norton, including So Graham Norton
and V Graham Norton
. During the last part of Graham's Channel 4
contract, Graham decided to film a new show, NY Graham Norton, in New York. The Graham Norton Effect was filmed for Comedy Central later in the year. Since this show was specifically taped for an American audience, some of the games played in the show were previously played on NY Graham Norton or V Graham Norton. (For example, a game about the world's worst bathing suits which was played in the Alan Cumming episode was originally played during a V episode with Bo Derek, tying into her movie 10
.) Also, some of the guests, who were only on NY Graham Norton a couple of months previous, appear again on The Graham Norton Effect.
On occasion Norton would even go so far as to secretly produce a pre-selected audience member’s parents or lover to witness or take part in an embarrassing event without the audience member’s knowledge.
Unlike the American Comedy Central broadcasts, the episodes on the DVDs are more or less uncensored, apart for things on Graham's computer monitor that were pre-censored during taping. Language that was bleeped by Comedy Central is presented un-bleeped and the nudity is presented un-obscured. On the DVDs, however, none of the episodes contain their ending credit rolls. They simply end with the SO Television endboard after Graham signs off.
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
hosted by the Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
Graham Norton
Graham Norton
Graham William Walker, known by his stage name Graham Norton , is an Irish actor, comedian, television presenter and columnist...
. The show aired on Comedy Central
Comedy Central
Comedy Central is an American cable television and satellite television channel that carries comedy programming, both original and syndicated....
. The show aired from June 24, 2004 to September 16, 2004.
The Graham Norton Effect can be considered a spin-off
Spin-off (media)
In media, a spin-off is a radio program, television program, video game, or any narrative work, derived from one or more already existing works, that focuses, in particular, in more detail on one aspect of that original work...
to two previous shows hosted by Norton, including So Graham Norton
So Graham Norton
So Graham Norton is a British television programme, hosted by Irish personality Graham Norton. It ran from 3 July 1998 to 1 March 2002.-Theme:...
and V Graham Norton
V Graham Norton
V Graham Norton was an entertainment programme shown on Channel 4 in the UK starring Graham Norton, broadcast every weeknight as a successor to the weekly So Graham Norton. It aired from 6 May 2002 to 26 December 2003. It featured celebrities who chatted with Graham and became involved in studio...
. During the last part of Graham's Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
contract, Graham decided to film a new show, NY Graham Norton, in New York. The Graham Norton Effect was filmed for Comedy Central later in the year. Since this show was specifically taped for an American audience, some of the games played in the show were previously played on NY Graham Norton or V Graham Norton. (For example, a game about the world's worst bathing suits which was played in the Alan Cumming episode was originally played during a V episode with Bo Derek, tying into her movie 10
10 (film)
10 is a 1979 romantic comedy film directed by Blake Edwards and starring Bo Derek, Dudley Moore, and Julie Andrews. Considered a trend-setting film at the time, and one of the year's biggest box office hits, the film made superstars of Derek and Moore....
.) Also, some of the guests, who were only on NY Graham Norton a couple of months previous, appear again on The Graham Norton Effect.
List of celebrity guests
| Date | Episode Number | Guests |
|---|---|---|
| June 24, 2004 | 1 | Sandra Bernhard Sandra Bernhard Sandra Bernhard is an American comedian, singer, actress and author. She first gained attention in the late 1970s with her stand-up comedy in which she often bitterly critiques celebrity culture and political figures. Bernhard is number 97 on Comedy Central's list of the 100 greatest standups of... and Marlon Wayans Marlon Wayans Marlon L. Wayans is an American actor, model producer, comedian, writer, and director of movies, beginning with his role as a pedestrian in I'm Gonna Git You Sucka in 1988... |
| July 1, 2004 | 2 | Jennifer Tilly Jennifer Tilly Jennifer Tilly is an American actress and poker player. She is an Academy Award nominee, and a World Series of Poker Ladies' Event bracelet winner. She is the older sister of actress Meg Tilly.-Early life:... and Julie Delpy Julie Delpy Julie Delpy is a French-American actress, director, screenwriter, and singer-songwriter. She studied filmmaking at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and has directed, written, and acted in more than 30 films, including Europa Europa , The Voyager , Three Colors: White , Before Sunrise... |
| July 8, 2004 | 3 | Alan Cumming Alan Cumming Alan Cumming, OBE is a Scottish stage, television and film actor, singer, writer, director, producer and author. His roles have included the Emcee in Cabaret, Boris Grishenko in GoldenEye, Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler in X2: X-Men United, Mr. Elton in Emma, and Fegan Floop in the Spy Kids trilogy... and Paul Rudd Paul Rudd Paul Stephen Rudd is an American actor and screenwriter. He has primarily appeared in comedies, and is known for his roles in the films Clueless, Wet Hot American Summer, Anchorman, Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, Dinner for Schmucks, The Object of My... |
| July 15, 2004 | 4 | Macaulay Culkin Macaulay Culkin Macaulay Carson Culkin is an American actor. He became widely known for his portrayal of Kevin McCallister in Home Alone and Home Alone 2: Lost in New York. He is also known for his roles in Richie Rich, Uncle Buck, My Girl, The Pagemaster, and Party Monster... and RuPaul RuPaul RuPaul Andre Charles , best known as simply RuPaul, is an American actor, drag queen, model, author, and singer-songwriter, who first became widely known in the 1990s when he appeared in a wide variety of television programs, films, and musical albums. Previously, he was a fixture on the Atlanta... |
| July 22, 2004 | 5 | Sharon Stone Sharon Stone Sharon Vonne Stone is an American actress, film producer, and former fashion model. She achieved international recognition for her role in the erotic thriller Basic Instinct... and Mena Suvari Mena Suvari Mena Alexandra Suvari is an American actress, fashion designer, and model. Shortly after beginning her career as a model, she appeared in guest roles on 1990's television shows such as Boy Meets World and High Incident... |
| July 29, 2004 | 6 | Shannen Doherty Shannen Doherty Shannen Maria Doherty is an American actress, producer, author and television director, known for her work as Heather Duke in Heathers , as Brenda Walsh in Beverly Hills, 90210 and its spinoff series 90210, and as Prue Halliwell in Charmed .-Early life and career:Doherty was born in Memphis,... and Joan Rivers Joan Rivers Joan Rivers is an American comedian, television personality and actress. She is known for her brash manner; her loud, raspy voice with a heavy New York accent; and her numerous cosmetic surgeries... |
| August 5, 2004 | 7 | Seth Green Seth Green Seth Benjamin Green is an American actor, comedian, voice actor, and television producer. He is well known for his role as Daniel "Oz" Osbourne in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as Dr. Evil's son Scott in the Austin Powers series of comedy films, Mitch Miller in That '70s Show, and the voice of Chris... and Matthew Lillard Matthew Lillard Matthew Lyn Lillard is an American actor and producer. He is best known for his roles as Stu Macher in Scream, Stevo in SLC Punk , and Shaggy Rogers in the Scooby-Doo film series and the Animated reboot series.-Early life:Lillard was born in Lansing, Michigan, and grew up in Tustin, California... |
| August 12, 2004 | 8 | Anne Hathaway Anne Hathaway (actress) Anne Jacqueline Hathaway is an American actress. After several stage roles, she appeared in the 1999 television series Get Real. She played Mia Thermopolis in The Princess Diaries... and John Waters John Waters (filmmaker) John Samuel Waters, Jr. is an American filmmaker, actor, stand-up comedian, writer, journalist, visual artist, and art collector, who rose to fame in the early 1970s for his transgressive cult films... |
| August 19, 2004 | 9 | Edie Falco Edie Falco Edith "Edie" Falco is an American television, film and stage actress, known for her roles in Oz as Diane Wittlesey, as Carmela Soprano on the HBO series The Sopranos, and as the titular character on the Showtime series Nurse Jackie... and Carson Kressley Carson Kressley Carson Lee Kressley was the fashion expert on the American television program Queer Eye, where he was one of the show's "Fab Five" members. He is also the motivational host of the TV show How to Look Good Naked.-Biography:... |
| August 26, 2004 | 10 | Josh Hartnett Josh Hartnett Joshua Daniel "Josh" Hartnett is an American actor and aspiring producer. He first came to audiences' attention in 1997 as "Michael Fitzgerald" in the television series Cracker. He made his feature film debut in 1998, co-starring with Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later for Miramax... , Katie Holmes Katie Holmes Katherine Noelle "Katie" Holmes is an American actress who first achieved fame for her role as Joey Potter on The WB television teen drama Dawson's Creek from 1998 to 2003. Her movie roles have included the blockbuster Batman Begins along with art house films such as The Ice Storm and thrillers... , and Jon Voight Jon Voight Jonathan Vincent "Jon" Voight is an American actor. He has received an Academy Award, out of four nominations, and three Golden Globe Awards, out of nine nominations. Voight is the father of actress Angelina Jolie.... |
| September 2, 2004 | 11 | Toni Collette Toni Collette Antonia "Toni" Collette is an Australian actress and musician, known for her acting work on stage, television and film as well as a secondary career as the lead singer of the band Toni Collette & the Finish.... and Jason Bateman Jason Bateman Jason Kent Bateman is an American television and film actor. After appearing in several 1980s and 1990s sitcoms including It's Your Move, and The Hogan Family, Bateman came to prominence in the early 2000s for playing Michael Bluth on Arrested Development, for which he won a TV Land, a Golden... |
| September 9, 2004 | 12 | Chris Rock Chris Rock Christopher Julius "Chris" Rock III is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, television producer, film producer and director. He was voted in the US as the 5th greatest stand-up comedian of all time by Comedy Central... and Marilyn Manson Marilyn Manson Marilyn Manson may refer to:* Marilyn Manson , an American rock musician* Marilyn Manson , the American rock band led by the singer of the same name... |
| September 16, 2004 | 13 | LL Cool J LL Cool J James Todd Smith , better known as LL Cool J , is an American rapper, entrepreneur, and actor... and Cyndi Lauper Cyndi Lauper Cynthia Ann Stephanie "Cyndi" Lauper is an American singer, songwriter, actress and LGBT rights activist. She achieved success in the mid-1980s with the release of the album She's So Unusual and became the first female singer to have four top-five singles released from one album... |
List of games and events
The Graham Norton Effect, like all of Norton's shows, featured games and side attractions that often involved his guests. These side attractions usually relied on audience member participation. The guests would then take part in the event by guessing or choosing something based about the usually inane parameters Norton had defined about the game. For example, when playing "Guess the Partner," the guests would attempt to guess which two audience member participants were lovers based on physical features alone.On occasion Norton would even go so far as to secretly produce a pre-selected audience member’s parents or lover to witness or take part in an embarrassing event without the audience member’s knowledge.
- Episode 1: "Guess the Partner": Guests attempt to match lovers with their partners. "Barfly": Sandra Bernhard provides a remote voice for a life-size mannequin sitting at a neighborhood bar, to the confusion of other patrons.
- Episode 2: "Ass MakeoverMakeoverA makeover is a term applied to changing one's appearance, sometimes through cosmetics. Makeovers can range from something as simple as a new haircut, to the use of cosmetic surgery, to the extreme of the implantation of dental veneers, eye-color-changing contact lenses, and the use of...
": Audience members makeover their male partner's buttocks to resemble celebrities, such as Pamela Anderson, Michael Jackson and Bill Clinton. - Episode 3: Audience members model regrettable swimwear.
- Episode 4: "Find The Lady": Guests attempt to identify which silhouette of 4 audience members is a woman from a group including 3 men in drag; the least feminine is sent to the streets to proposition men using pickup lines fed by RuPaul. "Date JesusJesusJesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
": Norton sets up an audience member on a date with a Jesus impersonatorImpersonatorAn impersonator is someone who imitates or copies the behavior or actions of another. There are many reasons for someone to be an impersonator, some common ones being as follows:...
. "Lovers Line-up": Guests and audience members guess when participants last had sex by shouting “higher” or “lower.” - Episode 5: Sharon Stone is sung to by a fan over the phone. Audience members are called on tell suggestive pick-up lines to the episode's guests.
- Episode 6: Guests attempt to guess if a man is gay by the way he dances. "In the Dugout": Audience members and guests try to guess what baseBaseball metaphors for sexIn the culture of American adolescents, the game of baseball is often used as a euphemistic metaphor for the degree of sexual intimacy achieved in intimate encounters or relationships...
participants reached with other participants. "Candle-schticks": Audience members volunteer to make multi-colored candles molded from their male anatomy, which are placed on a cake and wheeled out by Joan Rivers. Graham interviews candle owners by name, asking "My god, what happened here?" - Episode 7: Audience members attempt to guess which disguised participant is their lover by how they perform with a sex dollSex dollA sex doll is a type of sex toy in the size and shape of a sexual partner for aid in masturbation....
. Jade Esteban EstradaJade Esteban EstradaJade Esteban Estrada is a successful Latin pop singer, comedian, choreographer, actor, political commentator, and human rights activist...
gets spanked by a dominatrix. - Episode 8: A sexual euphemism contest takes place.
- Episode 9: Audience members reveal lies they have told to their parents. Carson Kressley talks about the man he'd most like to makeover on Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.
- Episode 10: Graham holds a parodyParodyA parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of the Summer Olympic GamesSummer Olympic GamesThe Summer Olympic Games or the Games of the Olympiad are an international multi-sport event, occurring every four years, organized by the International Olympic Committee. Medals are awarded in each event, with gold medals for first place, silver for second and bronze for third, a tradition that...
in the streets. Graham gets an audience member to dress as an Adult Baby and puts his photo on the fetish site DailyDiapers.com - Episode 11: A George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
impersonator is on the show. Audience members are asked to campaign for something close to them with mostly insipid results. - Episode 12: Chris Rock gives Marilyn Manson marriage advice.
- Episode 13: Graham, perhaps in a mockery of Oprah WinfreyOprah WinfreyOprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
, makes audience member's dreams “come true” with less than perfect results.
DVD releases
The Graham Norton Effect was released in its entirety (i.e. complete episodes, not a compilation) across two 2-disc DVD boxsets in Australia on 5 April, 2005. The first set, titled 'Series 1/Part 1' contains the first seven episodes and the second, titled 'Series 1/Part 2' contains the final six. They were released on the Hopscotch Entertainment label.Unlike the American Comedy Central broadcasts, the episodes on the DVDs are more or less uncensored, apart for things on Graham's computer monitor that were pre-censored during taping. Language that was bleeped by Comedy Central is presented un-bleeped and the nudity is presented un-obscured. On the DVDs, however, none of the episodes contain their ending credit rolls. They simply end with the SO Television endboard after Graham signs off.
International Broadcasting
- UK: BBC ThreeBBC ThreeBBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
- Australia: The Comedy ChannelThe Comedy ChannelThe Comedy Channel is an Australian subscription television channel available on Foxtel, Austar and Optus Television.-History:...
- New Zealand: TV ONE
- Canada: OUTtvOUTtvOUTtv is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel that airs entertainment and lifestyle programming for LGBT audiences.OUTtv's licensee is OUTtv Network Inc. which is 55.9% owned by Shavick Entertainment, 24.94% owned by Pink Triangle Press, 15% owned by Peace Point Entertainment...
- Germany: TIMMTIMMTIMM is a German language free-to-air cable and satellite service from Germany targeting gay male audiences. It was first launched on November 1, 2008. It was also available over a live stream....