The Skewer debuts screen version
- 18 minute short film The Skewer: Three Twisted Years is now on BBC iPlayer
- The one-off special visual version of the award-winning satirical Radio 4 show revisits some of the key political and current affairs moments from the last three years
Radio 4's satirical comedy show The Skewer has launched an 18 minute animated short film to tie in with its tenth series.
Launched in 2019 by producer Jon Holmes, the format mashes together audio clips to produce a "freeform, dreamlike and curious" representation of current news events. Notably, the show has an 'open door' policy meaning anyone can submit ideas and material for consideration. Over 170 different writers have had their contributions aired on the show so far.
The new visual special is now on iPlayer under the title The Skewer: Three Twisted Years, with Adam Parry as the lead animator and lead sound design from Tony Churnside.
The BBC explains: "Commissioned by Radio 4 to celebrate the hit satire's 10th series and fresh from winning Best Comedy at the British Podcast Awards, (and Highly Commended as Podcast of The Year), and Best Comedy at the Radio Academy Awards three years running, The Skewer: Three Twisted Years revisits some of the key political and current affairs moments from the last three years with a unique visual interpretation of the show's critically acclaimed sharp, nightmarish style.
"The short film, directed by The Skewer creator Jon Holmes, combines visuals from digital artists and visual effects wizards with the twisted audioscapes that define the radio series."
Holmes says: "To divert the flow of The Skewer's satirical river of sound into the visual space is both an incredibly exciting transition to a new medium, and also an enormously pretentious thing to write down as a quote."
Julia McKenzie, Commissioning Editor for Comedy and Entertainment at BBC Radio 4, adds: "The Skewer is a deserved winner of a remarkable number of awards and has enjoyed a great deal of critical acclaim. As you'd expect, the visualisation is equally bold, distinctive and mesmerising. I can't wait for existing fans to take a look as well as a brand new audience discovering this highly creative and innovative podcast."
Watch Three Twisted Years on BBC iPlayer
Series 10 of The Skewer continues on Radio 4 on Wednesday night at 11:15pm. All episodes to date are available via BBC Sounds and as a podcast.