The Southport-born comedian shared a ‘sheer coincidence’ as he addressed the crowd at the Royal Court Theatre
Aiva Tambourini, 22 from Norris Green with comedian Lee Mack, 57 from Southport(Image: BBC/James Stack Photography)
Lee Mack shared a “sheer coincidence” as he addressed a young actress in the crowd during his performance in Liverpool. The Southport-born comedian took to the Royal Court stage to talk about his sitcom, Not Going Out, as part of the BBC Comedy Festival last week. Lee is the talent behind Britain’s longest-running comedy sitcom currently on air, which is celebrating its 20th year on our screens.
In a hilarious chat with previous head of comedy at the BBC, Shane Allen, the 57-year-old reflected on the early beginnings of Not Going Out and how it became the incredibly successful show we all know and love today.
As he celebrates 20 years of creating, writing and starring in the show, Lee shared the writing process with the audience, and how he has periodically reinvented it to keep it fresh over two decades.
Lee felt at “home” as he addressed the crowd at the Royal Court on Thursday. He spoke about his experience performing in Liverpool over the years, and how he’ll never venture further out of the city to his hometown to do a stand-up gig.
He said: “Liverpool is where people from my hometown will come and see me, because I won’t do my hometown because it’s too intimidating. I’ve never done a gig in Southport.”
Lee Mack on stage at the Royal Court Theatre for the BBC Comedy Festival in Liverpool(Image: BBC/James Stack Photography)
Speaking about the longevity of Not Going Out, he said: “I think it’s always been important to the BBC to have a studio sitcom, and there’s been less and less people making them which has been quite handy.”
The hit comedy show, which also stars Sally Bretton, is celebrating its 20th year on TV. The BBC will mark the major milestone with a special documentary celebrating 20 years of Not Going Out.
The anniversary documentary will take viewers through the funniest moments from the last two decades, featuring classic clips, exclusive archive material and never‑before‑seen outtakes.
Lee spoke about the special episode, as he took the opportunity to reflect on a funny “coincidence” as he gave a shout-out to 22-year-old actress Aiva Tambourini, from Norris Green.
He told the crowd at the Royal Court Theatre on Thursday: “This is the 20th year of Not Going Out, so we’ve written an episode called ’20th’ and it’s all about us having a 20th birthday party in our house.
“We got loads of 20-year-old, up-and-coming actors, and about three or four of them have got big roles, and one of them by sheer coincidence, is here tonight.
“[During filming] I asked them if they are a full time actor, and they said: ‘No I’m not actually I also work at a theatre’ and it turns out that they work here [Royal Court], and she’s working today, and she’s called Aiva Tambourini. Aiva if you’re here will you give us a Scouse scream.”
Lee showed the audience a short clip of Aiva, who stars in the anniversary episode, which is set to be released later this year.
Aiva, 22 from Norris Green stars in the 20th anniversary episode of Not Going Out(Image: Aiva Tambourini)
He added: “Aiva was brilliant in this episode, and this is what I love about the BBC getting out there and finding people from all parts of Britain rather than very London-centric and getting them on BBC One, because they are the future of comedy.
“Aiva, who is not a full-time actor, was brilliant. You’ll be able to tell which one she is because she sounds like a Scouser.”
In a recent interview with the ECHO, Aiva, 22, from Norris Green, reflected on her experience working with Lee on the special anniversary episode of Not Going Out.
She said: “It was my first job out of drama school and I was super nervous going into it. But as soon as I stepped into the room, Lee was so funny and down-to-earth. It helped that he’s from Southport, so we had a little connection immediately.”
The actress works both as a teaching assistant and at the Royal Court, but she hopes to pursue acting full-time.
Aiva is proud to be a representative for Liverpool on-screen, telling the ECHO: “Lee said my character was originally written as a Londoner, but he saw my audition tape and said I’m as ‘Scouse as they come’, so he decided to cast me.
“It was the complete opposite of what he’d envisioned for the character, but he cast me because of who I am and where I come from.”
The 22-year-old was completely blown away when Lee spoke about her during the BBC Comedy Festival last week. She told the ECHO: “I was just watching it and enjoying his talk, but I completely blacked out when he showed the video of me on-screen to a packed-out theatre.
“I’ve worked at the Royal Court since I was 17 so it was just mad that I was shown on the screen.” She added: “I’ll always thank Lee for giving me the opportunity, he’s just boss.”