I HATE NEWSJACK Page 2

I've only been listening since Angela has been host (except for a few back-episodes I checked out). Nothing against her, I think she's a good host and a great comedian in general - she makes some of the blokes on Mock the Week look amateur. But I really don't care for her NewsJack monologues either.

The #metoo soliloquy last season took up nearly a third of the show, for crying out loud.

I've never really properly submitted a serious attempt at a sketch so I can't speak about that side of things, but I likes me one-liners and have been gobsmacked at some of the basic derivative obvious one-liners that have somehow survived the filter.

I'm not saying mine have necessarily been any better, I've definitely sent some stinkers, but some of the tat that gets through is enough to make me weep.

A mild criticism, of the audience really, on the first episode. Too much applause on the early jokes. Nothing wrong with that when they're outstanding jokes. But they were fairly standard ones.
Good otherwise though.

This is a thread I can get behind.

NJ used to be great, but so much of it is given over to axe grinding instead of jokes. I've submitted to several series (given up this time around), on occasion to all episodes, and got zero back.

I don't believe it's because the material isn't good enough. Some of it wasn't great; some I would be proud of today.

I was actually beginning to think it was just me who didn't like the show. I particularly cannot take to Angela Barnes. She's okay on MTW, but the competition there is pretty tired whenever Milton isn't on, so...

Having read some of the other comments here, I'm relieved to learn others feel the same. Nothing we can do about it, of course, except perhaps wait for a new host/producer?

The original post here is nonsense. I have a friend in their writers room. I've got a joke on once in four seasons, and it was before she joined. Since she joined, I've got nothing on. Oh, and the joke they accepted WAS the best joke I've written for them.

Why is this post even in the Opportunities section?
Is it because there's no Bitter Gripes section?

Blimey, there's some egos running amok on here isn't there?

I've had a few bits accepted for NJ, I don't know anyone in the writers room. I'm not a professional or semi-pro comedian. I'm just some berk who writes topical gags for a bit of fun.

Maybe there is some nepotism involved, but that's the same in every open submission show. Anyone submit to News Revue? Check out their running orders, about a third of the show is written by the director, musical director and cast. Every single week.

FWIW, I think Newsjack's quality varies wildly and is almost entirely dependent on who is editing that particular week. This week there were three gags on exactly the same subject - the church taking on Wonga's loan book. That's just sloppy editing. By the third one you're thinking "this again?".

We can talk through a problems and it becomes an opportunity!

Sorry, I became Californian for a moment.

The biggest problem with News Jack is that it's insufferably inoffensive and so f**king woke it hurts.

But I guess that's the problem nowadays with all of the BBC's comedy output.

(I'm not a bitter, spurned contributor by the way. I last submitted jokes a few seasons ago and had three accepted.)

Since I am a remaining liberal autistic I'd have thought I was pretty woke? Why am I getting rejected?

Quote: Paul Wimsett @ 14th January 2019, 2:58 PM

Since I am a remaining liberal autistic I'd have thought I was pretty woke? Why am I getting rejected?

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I have no idea. Maybe your material isn't sufficiently inflected with identity politics. Maybe you need to write more jokes about being a liberal autistic remainer.

I nearly had a spoof Little Eva song accepted (Locomotion). Was told they'd see how it worked in a run-through, but it didn't work. I'm sure it was quite happy to remain in the folder I made for all the other spoof songs I wrote. I can't even remember how I changed it, or what it was about. Probably on an external drive marked 'Stuff', 'Stuff 2', Stuff 3', or 'Stuff 426' etc. I'm so organized, it hurts.

Also tried a few one-liners and sketches, but nothing came of them, so I just stopped submitting and carried on writing other 'stuff' instead.

For some people it's probably one of the first opportunities they get to submit to people who might actually put their material 'out there'. But, if your 'stuff' is constantly being rejected and it makes you feel sad, stop doing it. If you love what you write, keep writing it. Don't be sad.

Now I can't stop thinking about that spoof song and wondering what I wrote. Nope, it's gone. But I do remember writing one about Deborah Meaden to the tune of 'Always a Woman to Me'. Why? No idea...it just felt right at the time, I guess.

Have you ever sent anything to the Canal Theatre Cafe?

I don't think so. It doesn't ring any bells. I was picked to read out a funny story I wrote at a small event in Covent Gardens once. I'm enjoying origami atm.

Quote: Chappers @ 5th February 2019, 10:39 PM

Have you ever sent anything to the Canal Theatre Cafe?

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A health inspector?

Sorry.

I think the trouble with Newsjack is not just it's woke but also you can't establish yourself on it. You get accepted one week and rejected the next.

Quote: Paul Wimsett @ 6th February 2019, 2:37 PM

A health inspector?

Sorry.

I think the trouble with Newsjack is not just it's woke but also you can't establish yourself on it. You get accepted one week and rejected the next.

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The same as the Canal Theatre Cafe. It has to be funny to be accepted. Just because you've written one funny thing it doesn't mean that everything you write after that is funny.

Quote: Old Lady Leg @ 5th February 2019, 11:15 PM

I don't think so. It doesn't ring any bells. I was picked to read out a funny story I wrote at a small event in Covent Gardens once. I'm enjoying origami atm.

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Try to get on their mailing list.

https://www.newsrevue.com/