Moray Hunter

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Moray Hunter (born October 1957) is a Scottish comedian, writer and performer. He starred in the Channel 4 sketch show, Absolutely . Alongside Jack Docherty, he played one half of the eccentric double-act, Don and George, in Absolutely and later in the spin-off series, Mr Don & Mr George . He also provided the voice for a shadow puppet in one of Aardman Animations' short films, Humdrum . He has written, produced and appeared in a variety of radio and television productions.

Contents

Early life

Moray Hunter was born in October 1957. [1] He was educated at George Watson's College in Edinburgh. He studied law at the University of Dundee then practised in Bathgate, West Lothian in Scotland. [2]

Comedy career

The Bodgers

Hunter began writing and performing with Jack Docherty as The Bodgers at the 1980 Edinburgh Fringe, along with Peter Baikie and Gordon Kennedy. [3] [4] [5] In 1984 the troupe were runners up for the Perrier Pick of the Fringe with their show The Bodgers: Arfington Arfington and in December they performed their act in the Tron Theatre in Glasgow. [5] [6] A radio series of four episodes was aired on BBC Radio 4 in 1985. [7] Their 1985 Fringe performance The Bodgers: Mr Hargreaves did it earned them a second Perrier Award nomination. [5] [8]

By December 1985, ITV had been announced that he would be appearing as part of a four person comedy segment on the Hogmanay television programme. [9] In September 1987, ITV's Terry Nesson show was showing some Scottish acts not seen on television before, alongside some more established acts. The showed was billed as having regular contributions from a couple of comedy acts, including Hunter and Docherty, at that time performing as Don and George. [10]

Sketch writing for established shows

Hunter got work writing for Chris Tarrant's Saturday Stayback show made by Central Television which aired in 1983. [11] He worked as a writer on Spitting Image series 1 and 2 which aired on the ITV network 1984-1985, [2] and series 4-7 which aired 1986-1988. [12] He was a writer for Alas Smith and Jones series 2-4 which aired 1985–1987 on BBC 2. [2] [13] The Lenny Henry Show , [14] He had writing credits on 16 episodes of Radio Active spanning series 3–5 which ran 1983-1985. [5] [15] He wrote material for episodes in the third series of the Radio Four comedy In One Ear in 1985. [16]

Absolutely

Hunter and Docherty formed the media production company Absolutely Productions in 1988. [17] Hunter, Docherty, Baikie and Kennedy were joined by Morwenna Banks and John Sparkes to make the sketch show Absolutely which broadcast on Channel 4 over four seasons from 1989 to 1993. [18] Hunter and Docherty wrote and starred in Mr Don and Mr George, a series based on two characters from the show that first aired on Channel 4 in 1993 and had six episodes. [19]

Hunter and Docherty were the voices of the two main characters in Humdrum, an animated comedy short film produced by Aardman Animations and released in 1998. [20] The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film and a BAFTA nomination in the same category. He had writing credits on the animated television series Meg and Mog which was adapted from books and first aired on CITV 2003–2004. [21]

Hunter and Docherty wrote a sitcom based in an advertising agency, The Creatives , which had two series that aired on BBC 2 1998-2000. [17] Hunter, Docherty and Kennedy all starred in the radio sitcom series Very Old Pretenders on BBC Radio Four in 2011. [22]

Absolutely revival

Twenty years after Absolutely had first been on television, [23] the team prepared for a one-off live show for Radio 4's Sketchorama in Òran Mór, Glasgow to be produced by The Comedy Unit. Docherty did not take part, citing prior work commitments. [23] The group enjoyed their comeback [24] [25] and the programme won Best Scripted Comedy with Audience in the 2014 Audio Drama Awards. [26] Three radio series of Absolutely followed 2015–2019. [27]

In December 2006, The Clan was to be broadcast by BBC Radio Scotland as a pilot. It was a comedy radio play that he wrote, commissioned by BBC Scotland and produced by Tern TV. [28]

Hunter and Docherty wrote the mockumentary series The Cup . After securing the rights, they adapted a Canadian series The Tournament which centred around a minor ice hockey. [29] The result was a six-part series based around an ambitious under-elevens football team, which aired on BBC2 in 2008. [30] Together with Gordon Kennedy, he produced two series of Secrets and Lattes a sitcom set in a middle-class Bruntsfield café which first was on BBC Radio Four in 2008. [31] [32]

He was a writer on Sorry, I've Got No Head , a children’s sketch show that aired on CBBC in 2009. [33] He was writer and producer of Freedom a comedy programme that first aired on BBC Two Scotland in December 2010. [34] [35]

His radio comedy Alone had four series on BBC Radio 4 between 2018–2022. [36] It was shortlisted for Best Scripted Comedy at the 2021 BBC Audio Drama Awards. [37]

He has appeared in episodes of various comedy programmes: Rab C Nesbitt , [38] Bob Servant , [39] Badults , [40] Still Game, [41] and Gary: Tank Commander . [42]

Drama

In 1998 Hunter appeared in John Byrne's version of the satirical play The Government Inspector at London's Almeida Theatre and then at Edinburgh King's Theatre. [43]

He appeared in the 2006 film The Flying Scotsman , a drama based on the life and career of Scottish amateur cyclist Graeme Obree. [44]

He appeared in the BBC's forensic crime drama Silent Witness. [45]

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References

  1. ↑ "Colin Scott Moray HUNTER". Companies House . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 Donald, Jean (7 March 1985). "Laughter – with legal aid". The Glasgow Herald . p. 7. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  3. ↑ Rudden, Liam (8 February 2022). "Edinburgh Scot Squad star Jack Docherty takes a trip down memory lane". The Scotsman . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  4. ↑ Hunter, Moray (3 August 2010). "A Fringe under your nose...The Bodgers!". theedinburghreporter.co.uk. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Pollock, David (2022). The Edinburgh festival: a biography. Edinburgh: Luath Press Limited. ISBN   9781804250129.
  6. ↑ Brennan, Mary (29 December 1984). "Tron Theatre, Glasgow. The Bodgers". The Glasgow Herald. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  7. ↑ "In Other Words.... The Bodgers". British Comedy Guide . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  8. ↑ O’Rourke, Donny (30 August 1985). "The Pleasance Theatre. Mr Hargreaves did it". The Glasgow Herald. p. 5. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  9. ↑ Young, Andrew (4 December 1985). "Macdonald tries to hedge his television bets over Hogmanay". The Glasgow Herald. p. 7. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  10. ↑ "Worth a look". The Glasgow Herald. 25 September 1987. p. 38. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  11. ↑ Wapshott, Tim (22 July 1994). "Look Who's talking: So who am I? Nobody knows: The comedian Jack Docherty describes the perils of not making a name for yourself". The Independent. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  12. ↑ "TV > Spitting Image > Key cast & crew credits". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  13. ↑ "TV > Alas Smith & Jones > Key cast & crew credits". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  14. ↑ "TV > The Lenny Henry Show (1984) > Cast & Crew > Full Credits". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  15. ↑ "Radio > Radio Active > Cast & Crew > Full Credits". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  16. ↑ "Radio > In One Ear". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  17. 1 2 "On the funny side of the street" . The Herald . Glasgow. 26 September 1998. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  18. ↑ Hemming, Sarah (23 May 1989). "C4 opens up the floodgates to Bodgerdom". The Glasgow Herald. p. 32. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  19. ↑ Dibdin, Thom (20 August 1993). "Reservoir Scots". The List . p. 96. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  20. ↑ "Moray Hunter". Absolutely Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2011.
  21. ↑ Meg and Mog: Meg and the Baby (Television production). TV-LD Productions. Retrieved 3 July 2024– via YouTube.
  22. ↑ "Programme Index > b014s4xg". BBC . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  23. 1 2 English, Paul (28 March 2013). "Cult Scots comedy Absolutely set to return for one-off special to mark 20th anniversary". Daily Record . Scotland. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  24. ↑ English, Paul (18 June 2013). "Video: TV return for cult Scots comedy Absolutely on the cards after reunion special". Daily Record. Scotland. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  25. ↑ "Sketchorama: Absolutely Special". BBC Radio 4 . 7 August 2013. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  26. ↑ "2014 Audio Drama Awards winners". BBC Radio . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  27. ↑ English, Paul (26 September 1998). "On the funny side of the street" . The Herald. Glasgow. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  28. ↑ Sheppard, Fergus (19 December 2006). "Scotland's answer to The Simpsons: they're horrible, but you'll like them". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 13 January 2007. Retrieved 19 October 2011.
  29. ↑ Keal, Graham (13 August 2008). "New show is dream come true for Scots comedy stars Jack Docherty and Moray Hunter". Daily Record. Scotland. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  30. ↑ Hanks, Robert (22 August 2008). "Last Night's TV: The Cup, BBC2. Comedy Lab: Kids School of Comedy, Channel 4". The Independent . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  31. ↑ Stephen, Phyllis (23 July 2015). "BBC Radio 4 – Secrets and Lattes – set in a Bruntsfield café" . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  32. ↑ "Programme Index > b0628bmg". BBC . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  33. ↑ "Programme Index > b00cch5t". BBC . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  34. ↑ "Freedom – TV show written by an Edinburgh lad!". theedinburghreporter.co.uk. 1 December 2010. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  35. ↑ "Programme Index > Freedom". BBC. 7 December 2010. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  36. ↑ "Moray Hunter interview". British Comedy Guide . 20 April 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  37. ↑ "The 2021 Shortlist". BBC Radio. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  38. ↑ "Programme Index > Rab C Nesbitt Series 10 Episode 3: Cuts". BBC . Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  39. ↑ "Programme Index > Bob Servant Series 2 Episode 3: Wedding". BBC. 15 December 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  40. ↑ "Programme Index > Badults Series 2 Episode 5: Holiday". BBC. 30 June 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  41. ↑ "Programme Index > Still Game Series 7 Episode 3: Job". BBC. 21 October 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  42. ↑ "Programme Index > Gary: Tank Commander Series 2 Episode 5: Climate Control". BBC. 31 January 2011. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  43. ↑ "The Slav Boys". The List. 23 January 1998. p. 65. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  44. ↑ Robinson, Matthew (2018). "'Make Do and Mend': Crafting a Scottish Underdog in The Flying Scotsman (2006)". Open Screens. 1 (1): 6. doi: 10.16995/os.7 .
  45. ↑ "TV highlights 16/01/2014". The Guardian. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
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