Recreating classic sitcom performances: an interview with Kevin McNally

Hewett, RJ

Abstract

Actor Kevin McNally has had the unusual experience of recreating the performances of not one but two famous comedy actors, having played Tony Hancock on radio in The Missing Hancocks (BBC Radio 4, 2014-20) and on television for the Lost Sitcoms entry 'Hancock's Half Hour: The New Neighbour' (BBC, 2016), in addition to essaying Arthur Lowe's Captain Mainwaring in Dad's Army: The Lost Episodes (Gold, 2019). Speaking to the author on 18 May 2021, he discussed the challenges not only of playing a character made famous by another performer, but of making his performance faithful to the original without it becoming, to use the actor's own words, a ‘slavish imitation'.

Citation

Hewett, R. (2021). Recreating classic sitcom performances: an interview with Kevin McNally. Journal of British Cinema and Television, 19(1), 87-105. https://doi.org/10.3366/jbctv.2022.0605

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 3, 2021
• Online Publication Date: Dec 1, 2021
• Publication Date: Dec 1, 2021
• Deposit Date: Jan 23, 2023
• Journal: Journal of British Cinema and Television
• Print ISSN: 1743-4521
• Electronic ISSN: 1755-1714
• Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
• Volume: 19
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 87-105
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3366/jbctv.2022.0605
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.3366/jbctv.2022.0605