Comedy duo score YouTube hit with 70s show (From Richmond and Twickenham Times)

Croydon's Jonny Awsum talks about inspiration for Born in the 70s show

9:20am Saturday 23rd October 2010 in Comedy

Jonny Awsum and Russell Gold are back on the sofa of nostalgia taking an affectionate look back at songs, shows and games familiar to all those born in the 70s.

Kate Suttle talks to Jonny about the inspiration for the show, which has gained thousands of followers on YouTube.

You’ve released the second series of Born In The 70s, tell us about the show

We’ve upped the budget for this series – we’re now up to £10 a show, but that does include £5.75 for a pizza on filming nights.

But despite the low budget, we have managed to pull off some real coups, such as persuading rock star Frank Turner (fresh from supporting Green Day at Wembley) to take on electronic memory game Simon.

Amid much new tomfoolery are some old favourites like Go Russ Go, in which Russ sets out to prove he’d have been great at an old TV challenge. Episode one sees him setting out to emulate Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks as a good old-fashioned English wrestler.

How did you come up with the idea for the show?

Originally we talked about it being a radio idea, but then we thought of all the extra nostalgia we could pack in if people could watch old clips. We tried an episode and had such a good response that we kept on going.

How long does it take you to make the five-minutes episodes. Is there a lot of planning?

Filming the links on the sofa takes an evening. The things we cut to take a lot longer. For example the wrestling in the new episode took quite a bit of planning and half a day’s filming, yet it only lasts a minute in the show. I love it though, it was the funniest thing ever watching Russ in the ring with a great big wrestler.

Are most of the items you use from childhood memories or have you discovered new things through research?

We have an unwritten rule that Russ and I have to remember the items we are covering - that way we hope most people out there will too.

Is it something you would one day like to take off YouTube and get on to television?

It would be great if it went to TV but it's not something we set out to do. If it happened it would be an amazing bonus - like getting a gold run on Blockbusters.

How did you meet Russell?

Through a mutual friend. He made me laugh immediately, so I suggested we work together.

When and why did you move to Croydon and whereabouts?

I moved to Croydon six months ago and live close to Surrey Street market.

How are you finding living in the borough and where do you like to go?

I love it, the people are genuine and a good laugh - the banter on Surrey Street market is brilliant. I work a lot in the evenings either hosting or doing stand-up so I have yet to fully experience the nightlife, but sometimes I get to see it in full swing when I get back from a gig. It's like Ibiza sometimes - people out on the street partying.

Is Awsum your real name? If not, what is?

No it's not my real surname, but my real surname is a closely guarded secret!

If you missed the first series or to see Russ take on professional wrestler Big Ben, catch the show at borninthe70s.co.uk