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Summer Heights High: Chris Lilley interview
Yahoo! TV UK | October 16, 2008

Summer Heights High, which is out now on DVD, became a cult hit in the UK earlier this year after BBC3 screened the Australian comedy series. Chris Lilley, who created the show and plays the three lead characters, tells us about his inspiration, how it feels to get acclaim for being so convincing as a schoolgirl and why he's been exchanging emails with Bananarama...

What made you decide to do Summer Heights High?
I'd done a previous series on Australian TV called We Can Be Heroes about five nominees for Australian Of The Year which was a cult success so the network really wanted me to do something else. I suggested that I brought back the character Mr G who'd been in my stand-up and sketch shows. Then I thought if I'm doing Mr G I'd love to do a show about a school so I started to research it by hanging around in schools and chatting to lots of people.

Were any of the characters based on individuals or was it a mix of people you had spoken to?
I guess it was a mix. It was definitely not one person. I would think about the kind of characters that were funny and that would work and that I would be excited about playing. I'd then track down those types to talk to them and to make sure it was accurate.

Why did you decide to play all the key roles yourself?
When I pitched We Can Be Heroes to the network I said 'this is the plan, I'm going to play all these characters' and then when I did my first ever interview for the show, the journalist said 'this is really arrogant that you think you can pull off this show, that you think that you're good enough'. I'd never even thought about that and I was so shocked that she had that opinion. I'd written it and I love playing characters so it seemed natural that I would do it. It wasn't a show-off thing. It's become the style that I like to work in and it's become part of the joke. You know it's the same guy and it's a big feature of the show.

How does it feel to get praise for being so convincing as a schoolgirl? Is it a bit weird?
(Laughing) Yes, it is definitely weird. But that is the idea. I like comedy that is natural and real and when there's that confusion when you are watching it. What's real and what's staged here? It's pretty complimentary if people are saying that but yes, weird. The first time I played Ja'mie was in We Can Be Heroes and I'd written for her but I didn't really rehearse her. I didn't sit in front of a mirror practicing her. We had our first day of shooting and Ja'mie just came alive in this scene sitting on her bed. I was just completely in shock at the end of the day - 'what is this hideous girl?'

What would you do if you had a daughter who turned out to be like Ja'mie?
(Laughing) I would be very worried. That occured to me afterwards - if I had a daughter she'd probably look like Ja'mie. But hopefully I'd be a good enough father to not let that kind of personality come out in my child. She needs a good talking to that girl!

A lot of the humour in the show is quite near-the-knuckle and un-PC. Was there anything that you weren't allowed to include in the script?
I was given a lot of freedom with the network so I had to be my own censor. In We Can Be Heroes there were definitely things where they stepped in and said 'you can't do that' and they were very sensitive about some Aboriginal issues. I drew the line myself where there were things in the edit where I felt I'd gone too far. When we are shooting I tend to push it to the point and then I like to go a little bit further because then I can choose how far to push things in the edit.

What has the reaction been like from the viewers?
It went crazy. I still haven't come to terms with it. It really struck a chord with a big mainstream audience. I did shopping centre signings and there were people chasing me and riots. It was unbelievable. I'm not a jump up and down 'look at me, I'm famous' person. I'm just making a weird show and wearing wigs. It's very bizarre. Jonah's language really took off among children - especially 'puck you' and the 'dick-tation' graffiti tag was also springing up everywhere. Even in London it's been spotted in a tube station!

Both Summer Heights High and We Can Be Heroes had quite dark endings - was that something you set out to do?
I like endings to be a bit surprising but also I wanted to stick to the idea that it was a real documentary about people. I thought the big fun happy ending was too corny and wasn't real. Ja'mie has a happy ending - she doesn't really change throughout the series. She's still a nasty bitch and is fake as she drives off in the car. Mr G thinks he has a happy ending but he kind of twists it round to make it seem that it's all ok. Jonah has the most tragic ending though he maintains his character by getting back at everyone by spray-painting all over the school.

Will you be doing any more Summer Heights High?
I haven't decided yet. I think one day yes. But I'm not sure if it will be the next thing I do. I'm really excited about new characters and new formats and just trying things out. I think to repeat myself wouldn't be a good use of my time so I'm aiming towards doing something original and new. I loved doing Summer Heights High so much that I'd hate to think I'd never do it again. But I really haven't decided. Anything could happen.

Any plans to do Mr G The Musical for real on the stage?
It's been suggested and there was a rumour that it was really going to happen. In the first episode Mr G talks about his previous musical Tsunanarama which is about the tsunami and based on the music of Bananarama. When the show was being cleared for the US the network asked us to contact Bananarama to find out if they were ok about it. We contacted their management and got a letter back saying not only are they ok about it but they loved the show. They asked for a Tsunanarama T-shirt and said they'd heard there was a rumour that there was going to be a live production of Mr G: The Musical and they wanted to be a part of it!

Summer Heights High and We Can Be Heroes are both available to buy on DVD now

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