Rowland Rivron: The Young Ones, The Comic Strip & Soho

Rowland Rivron: The Young Ones, The Comic Strip & Soho

Rowland Rivron was there at the birth of alternative comedy, sharing stages and dressing rooms with Rik Mayall, French & Saunders, Alexei Sayle and The Comic Strip. In this episode he reveals what Soho was really like during the wild 1980s and 1990s, from The Young Ones to the Groucho Club and beyond. Episode Summary / Bullet Points In this episode of Martin Deeson Unloaded, Martin sits down with comedian, actor, writer, musician and broadcaster Rowland Rivron. Long before alternative comedy became mainstream, Rowland was part of the scene that transformed British entertainment. From living with Rik Mayall while The Young Ones was being written to performing alongside French & Saunders, Alexei Sayle and The Comic Strip, he found himself at the centre of one of the most influential cultural movements of modern Britain. The conversation also explores the legendary excesses of Soho, the Groucho Club, television in the Channel 4 golden era, life on the road with Jools Holland, and the infamous Loaded magazine Christmas stunt that left children convinced Father Christmas had been killed. Topics include: * Rik Mayall and the creation of The Young Ones * The Comic Strip and the birth of alternative comedy * Working alongside French & Saunders * Alexei Sayle and the early comedy circuit * Jonathan Ross and Channel 4’s golden era * Jools Holland and life as a touring musician * The infamous Loaded magazine drunken Santa stunt * Wild nights at the Groucho Club * What Soho was really like in the 1980s and 1990s * Why comedy, music and television were changing Britain Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/martin-deeson-unloaded/id1885169674 [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/martin-deeson-unloaded/id1885169674]Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded [https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded]X: https://x.com/martindeeson [https://x.com/martindeeson]Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/martindeeson/ [https://www.instagram.com/martindeeson/]Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@martindeeson [https://www.tiktok.com/@martindeeson]Website: https://www.unloadedpodcast.com/ [https://www.unloadedpodcast.com/]

James Brown: Loaded, Chaos and the 90s

James Brown changed British culture when he launched Loaded magazine in the 1990s - and changed Martin Deeson’s life along with it. In this hilarious, emotional and frequently chaotic reunion, the founder of Loaded sits down with his former star writer for the first time in years to talk about magazine wars, addiction, creativity, grief, comedy, the Beastie Boys, Keanu Reeves, Irvine Welsh, Hunter S. Thompson journalism and the wild rise - and fall - of 90s culture. This episode is part reunion, part argument, part therapy session. Martin and James interrupt each other constantly, disagree repeatedly, laugh hysterically and revisit the stories behind one of the most influential magazines Britain ever produced. Topics include: * The real origin story of Loaded magazine  * Why the 1990s felt radically different from the 1980s  * The explosion of comedy, music, rave culture and laddism  * James Brown’s years at the NME before Loaded  * Discovering writers, bands and cultural movements  * Hanging out with the Beastie Boys and Keanu Reeves  * Why Loaded connected with ordinary young men  * Addiction in 90s media  * The emotional toll behind the chaos  * The infamous GQ champagne bottle incident  * Howard Marks, Damien Hirst, Vic Reeves and Hunter S. Thompson  * Why James eventually got sober  * The strange legacy of Loaded today  Plus: * Stephen Fry airport chaos  * Cannes Film Festival disasters  * Nuclear war paranoia in the 1980s  * Stringfellows stories  * Terrence Stamp telling Martin to go away  * Why James thinks Martin was the funniest travelling companion imaginable  An unusually loose, funny and emotional conversation between two old comrades who helped define a decade - and somehow survived it. Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/martin-deeson-unloaded/id1885169674 [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/martin-deeson-unloaded/id1885169674]Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded [https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded]X: https://x.com/martindeeson [https://x.com/martindeeson]Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/martindeeson/ [https://www.instagram.com/martindeeson/]Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@martindeeson [https://www.tiktok.com/@martindeeson]Website: https://www.unloadedpodcast.com/ [https://www.unloadedpodcast.com/]

Keith Allen: Gazza, Prison, Groucho Club Chaos & Vindaloo

Keith Allen joins Martin Deeson for a wild, funny and surprisingly moving conversation about punk, prison, Gazza, The Comic Strip, alternative comedy, World In Motion, the madness of 90s Britain and what it really felt like to live through the cultural explosion of Channel 4, rave culture and Cool Britannia. From opening for The Clash and Dexys Midnight Runners to smashing up a members club, going to prison, writing World In Motion with New Order and accidentally giving Rik Mayall a criminal record – this is Keith Allen at his absolute, outrageous best. In this episode of Martin Deeson Unloaded: * Keith reveals the chaotic true story behind World In Motion * Gazza “rapped but you couldn’t understand him” * The birth of alternative comedy and The Comic Strip * What Channel 4 was REALLY like in the 1980s * Squatting in London during the punk years * Going to prison after smashing up the Groucho Club * Opening for Dexys and The Clash * Working with Rik Mayall, Alexei Sayle and Ken Campbell * The Hacienda, Tony Wilson and the Manchester explosion * Fat Les, football culture and 90s Britain * Why Keith believes institutions can be “fun” * Growing older, fatherhood and staying creatively alive Plus: Stephen Fry, Damian Hirst, Alex James, Irvine Welsh, Derek Jarman, Michael Barrymore, Robbie Coltrane, New Order, Trainspotting, Twin Town and much more. Youtube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded] Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/martin-deeson-unloaded/id1885169674 X: https://x.com/martindeeson Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/martindeeson/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@martindeeson Website: https://www.unloadedpodcast.com/

Jenny Eclair: The Original 90s Ladette Looks Back

When people talk about 90s ladettes, they usually think of Sara Cox, Denise Van Outen or Zoe Ball. But before them came Jenny Eclair: PVC-clad, vodka in one hand and fag in the other. Before Jenny Eclair became a beloved comedy veteran, novelist, podcaster, artist and national treasure, she was one of the defining women of the 1990s: loud, filthy, funny, fearless, and right there at the start of the ladette era. In this episode, she joins Martin Deeson to look back at when she was guest editor of Loaded, on winning the Perrier Award, on fame, hangovers, reinvention and the complicated legacy of a decade that was enormous fun – until it wasn’t. Jenny Eclair is one of Britain’s most distinctive comic voices: the first woman to win the Perrier Award, star of Grumpy Old Women, author of novels and memoirs, podcaster, performer, and one of the few people who can talk about shame, sex, ageing, ambition. dog castration adverts and blow jobs in the same breath. In this funny, filthy, sharp and surprisingly revealing conversation, Martin and Jenny revisit the 1990s from the inside: the Loaded years, the ladette label, the pressure to be outrageous, and the emotional bill that went with it. In this episode: * Jenny remembers winning the Perrier Award – and why the morning after was anything but glamorous. * Martin and Jenny revisit her infamous guest-edit of Loaded magazine, including the bondage photo shoot in which she trussed him up like a chicken. * They discuss the original ladette era, why the word was both powerful and a millstone, and how much of it was performance. * Jenny reflects on being clever, funny, reckless, ambitious and sometimes deeply uncomfortable in the persona she had created. * Martin and Jenny talk about the Loaded live tour, lad culture, the BBC documentary, and where the magazine’s legacy became more complicated. * Jenny explains how she moved from PVC trousers and filthy stage persona to novels, Radio 4 monologues, Grumpy Old Women, podcasting and later-life reinvention. * They discuss ageing, family, work ethic, addiction, anxiety, writing, performance, and whether it is ever too late to do your best work. This is a conversation about the 90s as they really felt from the inside: hilarious, excessive, clever, frightening, liberating, embarrassing and unforgettable. Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded [https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded] Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/martin-deeson-unloaded/id1885169674X: https://x.com/martindeesonInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/martindeeson/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@martindeeson Website: https://www.unloadedpodcast.com/ Jenny Eclair official website for tour dates, books, podcasts and more: https://jennyeclair.com/ Jenny Eclair — Older & Wider Podcast Jenny’s podcast with Judith Holder. https://jennyeclair.com/podcast Jokes, Jokes, Jokes: My Very Funny MemoirJenny’s memoir, which is heavily referenced in the episode available on amazon

Brandon Block: From Ibiza Chaos to Recovery

He was the wildest man in 90s club culture - and by his own admission, probably would’ve “won the World Cup of caning. "I realised I was more scared of living without drugs than I was of dying with them.” In this raw, funny and unexpectedly moving conversation, Martin Deeson sits down with legendary DJ Brandon Block - the man synonymous with Ibiza, excess, and one of the most extreme lifestyles of the 1990s. But this isn’t just a chance to tell war stories. It’s a deep dive into addiction, recovery, dopamine, modern anxiety - and what happens when the party stops. * How Brandon went from Ibiza icon to 28 grams of cocaine a day * The moment he realised: “I can’t live like this anymore” * Why addiction isn’t about substances — it’s about behaviour and dopamine * The truth about anxiety: “It won’t kill you — but it will test you” * The power of empathy — and how it shaped both his DJ career and his recovery work * Why Gen X might be uniquely struggling in the modern world Ibiza, spirituality, and the strange magic of that era Follow Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/martin-deeson-unloaded/id1885169674 [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/martin-deeson-unloaded/id1885169674] Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded [https://www.youtube.com/@MartinDeesonUnloaded] X: https://x.com/martindeeson [https://x.com/martindeeson] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/martindeeson/ [https://www.instagram.com/martindeeson/] Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@martindeeson [https://www.tiktok.com/@martindeeson] Website: https://www.unloadedpodcast.com/ [https://www.unloadedpodcast.com/]