Alan Partridge has not only put Norfolk on the map, he serves as a cautionary tale for all local radio DJs, says BBC Norfolk Radio breakfast presenter Chris Goreham
Whenever I tell someone I work for BBC Radio Norfolk, I know it's only a matter of time before they mention Alan Partridge. It doesn't bother me, though: I've been a fan of his for years. I've never really felt the character was poking fun at local radio or at Norfolk. In fact, round here Alan's seen as a bit of a mascot. We even had the first showing of Alpha Papa in Norwich. Hundreds of people turned out for it, myself included.
Much as I love Alan, though, I had my doubts about whether he could sustain a feature film – especially one in which he becomes an unlikely hero. So I was pleasantly surprised. The film is really funny, and they've done their research: they filmed quite a bit of it in Norfolk and namecheck a lot of local places, from a Norwich police station to Cromer pier. I can't imagine all those references would mean much to viewers elsewhere, but they got laughs here. If anything, rather than making fun of Norwich, Alan's put the city on the map – there's even a new walking tour of the city centre, picking out some of the landmarks from the film.
If the film makes any serious point at all about radio, it's about local independent stations losing their identity – a growing trend. Alan's station, North Norfolk Digital, is being taken over by a conglomerate. For years, big companies have been buying up local commercial stations and syndicating content, so you get much less truly local programming. Thankfully, the BBC has been fiercely protective of its local radio – for the majority of the day, we broadcast only to Norfolk.
Aspects of Alan do ring true: I'm sure we can all think of media personalities with similarly large egos, and some of his cliched catchphrases (like "the pedestrianisation of Norwich city centre") sound scarily familiar. But a lot of what Alan says on air is pretty extreme. He's a kind of cautionary tale: I can't be the only local radio presenter to watch him and think: "There but for the grace of God go I."
• Chris Goreham at Breakfast is on BBC Radio Norfolk from 6.30-9am, Monday to Friday. Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa is out now. Reported by guardian.co.uk 1 day ago.
Whenever I tell someone I work for BBC Radio Norfolk, I know it's only a matter of time before they mention Alan Partridge. It doesn't bother me, though: I've been a fan of his for years. I've never really felt the character was poking fun at local radio or at Norfolk. In fact, round here Alan's seen as a bit of a mascot. We even had the first showing of Alpha Papa in Norwich. Hundreds of people turned out for it, myself included.
Much as I love Alan, though, I had my doubts about whether he could sustain a feature film – especially one in which he becomes an unlikely hero. So I was pleasantly surprised. The film is really funny, and they've done their research: they filmed quite a bit of it in Norfolk and namecheck a lot of local places, from a Norwich police station to Cromer pier. I can't imagine all those references would mean much to viewers elsewhere, but they got laughs here. If anything, rather than making fun of Norwich, Alan's put the city on the map – there's even a new walking tour of the city centre, picking out some of the landmarks from the film.
If the film makes any serious point at all about radio, it's about local independent stations losing their identity – a growing trend. Alan's station, North Norfolk Digital, is being taken over by a conglomerate. For years, big companies have been buying up local commercial stations and syndicating content, so you get much less truly local programming. Thankfully, the BBC has been fiercely protective of its local radio – for the majority of the day, we broadcast only to Norfolk.
Aspects of Alan do ring true: I'm sure we can all think of media personalities with similarly large egos, and some of his cliched catchphrases (like "the pedestrianisation of Norwich city centre") sound scarily familiar. But a lot of what Alan says on air is pretty extreme. He's a kind of cautionary tale: I can't be the only local radio presenter to watch him and think: "There but for the grace of God go I."
• Chris Goreham at Breakfast is on BBC Radio Norfolk from 6.30-9am, Monday to Friday. Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa is out now. Reported by guardian.co.uk 1 day ago.