RNZ Interview: McPhail and Gadsby - David McPhail

In 1977, David McPhail, then a young producer with the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation, pitched an idea for a satirical comedy show to air on its second channel, South Pacific Television. The response from his superiors was that it was a terrible idea because New Zealanders do not have a sense of humour as they are staunch, sensible people who don't like laughing, and certainly don't like laughing at themselves. Luckily, he ignored that and went on to make A Week of It – which was followed by McPhail & Gadsby. David McPhail speaks with Jesse Mulligan.

This audio interview was recorded for RNZ National's NZ Screen History series, which aired in 2021 as part of Afternoons with Jesse Mulligan. The content is copyright to RNZ, and may not be reproduced from NZ On Screen.