Shappi Talk
- Radio stand-up / chat show
- BBC Radio 4
- 2009 - 2010
- 8 episodes (2 series)
A Radio 4 comedy series in which Shappi Khorsandi explores what it is like being brought up in the UK within a non-British family. Stars Shaparak Khorsandi and Hils Barker.
Episode menu
Series 1, Episode 2 - Unconventional Parents
Further details
Shappi is joined by comedian John Gordillo, who shares his memories of growing up in a Spanish family with a very forceful father. Shappi also talks to Lenny Henry about his family. Plus a song from comedian Hils Barker.
Broadcast details
- Date
- Thursday 16th July 2009
- Time
- 6:30pm
- Channel
- BBC Radio 4
- Length
- 30 minutes
Cast & crew
| Shaparak Khorsandi (as Shappi Khorsandi) | Host / Presenter |
| Hils Barker | Self |
| John Gordillo | Guest |
| Lenny Henry | Self |
| Shaparak Khorsandi (as Shappi Khorsandi) | Writer |
| Hils Barker | Writer |
| Christian Reilly | Writer |
| Peyvand Khorsandi | Writer |
| Paul Russell | Producer |
Press
On Thursday (Radio 4, 6.30pm) the wonderful Shappi Khorsandi continued her excellent Shappi Talk, in which she discusses her own unconventional upbringing and gets other people along to talk about theirs. Last Thursday's programme was about parents. Khorsandi is Iranian and, she said, when she was growing up she wanted to become a doctor. "My parents pushed me into stand-up comedy. They said: 'Only Western whores become doctors.'" And so on in like vein.
Her father, as many know, was a satirist who got into the sort of trouble satirists get into in Iran. "The regime there robustly advocates free speech," Khorsandi said, "but there is no freedom after you've exercised it. He criticised the mullahs and things became a bit ... death-y."
The Khorsandis went into exile in Britain - "A fatwa is the closest thing an Iranian writer gets to a literary prize" - where, of course, Khorsandi has now become a glittering addition to the comedic firmament. And a published author. "I said to my Dad: 'I've written a book.' He said: 'Has anyone threatened to kill you?' And I said no and he said: 'Then it can't be very good.'" There are two more programmes. Try not to miss them.
Chris Campling, The Times, 22nd July 2009