Mario runs out of funniness in the long run

It probably seemed like a good idea at the time but the end result has been something of an embarrassment. What works on radio very often does not click when it is brought onto the small screen and such was the situation for a much publicised series which began last week. 

There is no doubt that Mario Rosenstock has a legion of followers for his morning radio show sketch but his attempts to transcribe that to television have failed miserably and on the basis of the first episode, there are really no redeeming features.

To say it isn’t ghastly is not reflective of how bad it actually is. The longer The Mario Rosenstock Show went on, the more embarrassing it became because it was evident that his sketches are not for television and can never be made for television.

He is a wonderful mimic and nothing will ever take away from that. He occupies a regular five-minute slot on Today FM each morning and, the odd occasion I get to listen to it, it is quite funny and occasionally hilarious.

But when this is suddenly required to occupy a half hour slot, then it is a completely new ball game and one that doesn’t work at all. The main difference is that he now has to come up with a plot for each of the characters that he portrays in the TV series.

When he does his stint on radio, Rosenstock can do Roy Keane, Michael D, Miriam O’Callaghan, Louis Walsh, Daniel O’Donnell and Enda Kenny to perfection and does a great send up of Michael Flatley. It is very funny at times and has a huge following.

However, when it comes to developing these characters for more lengthy sketches for a half hour programme, it does not have the same impact and is completely unfunny. In order for these to work, they need sharp scripts that can produce humorous content on an ongoing basis but unfortunately this was not the case.

There was a sketch involving Miriam O’Callaghan interviewing someone that was really cringe inducing. The Michael Flatley sketch just went on too long and ended up being boring while the first show rounded off with an eviction scene that was so bad, it was ridiculous.

It was as if the programme makers had already run out of ideas.

It reminded me of the time that Pat Kenny took over presenting The Late Late Show. Kenny proved to be the worst host ever for the simple reason that he was robotic in front of the cameras, he had to force himself to laugh when he had a funny guest on and couldn’t interact with the audience – both in the studio or at home.

And yet he continued to present a very enjoyable and popular current affairs programme on radio – when it came to light entertainment, he just couldn’t hack it. He was the ultimate bore and it was not surprising that he decided to pack it in. Then he was replaced by Ryan Tubridy whom I cannot suffer on radio or on television.

For more, read this week's Connacht Sentinel.