He has sold out Wembley Arena, written bestselling novels and had two number one singles but it was a singalong at a football match which David Baddiel said was his proudest moment.
The comedian was in conversation at De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) as part of the Cultural Exchanges festival, which showcases guests and speakers from the creative arts.
Of course, as Baddiel points out, it was no ordinary sing-song – it was more than 70,000 fans yelling out lyrics he had helped write to spur on England in a crucial group stage match against Scotland at Euro 1996.
The 51-year-old said: “Me and Frank Skinner were at that game and it was at a time when everyone was basically writing England off.
“But then something happened: Gary McAllister missed a penalty, Gazza scored and the sun came out. And then the DJ – don’t know who he was but I owe him big time – put Three Lions on and the crowd started singing it, as one, immediately. They knew all the words.
“We hadn’t realised how big it was. And you’re standing there, hearing this and it’s huge. My manager turned to me and said ‘David, even if you go on and win an Oscar it won’t be as big as this’.”
It was a big moment in a career not short of them and on Friday night, an audience at DMU’s Clephan building were treated to a Q&A, hosted by Dr Jean Williams, professor of Sports History and Culture, where Baddiel talked through his success and his latest role as a popular children’s author.
RELATED NEWS
BBC Five Live's John Murray talks about the best commentary he ever recorded
Master storyteller Willy Russell brings down house at DMU
Mr Burton and Mushy deliver a masterclass at DMU
He spoke about choosing to go to the University of Cambridge just to get into its legendary Footlights comedy troupe – only to discover the public’s tastes had changed.
He said: “Right around then, Ben Elton and the alternative comedy movement started and suddenly coming from Cambridge was the worst thing for a comedian. You’d try and book a gig and say, proudly, that you were in the Footlights and the phone would be slammed down on you. We were like the enemy.”
He found success however, teaming up with Rob Newman, Hugh Dennis and Steve Punt for the Mary Whitehouse Experience. This led to a UK tour culminating in the first sell-out comedy show at Wembley Arena.
From there he started working with Frank Skinner, creating the popular Fantasy Footbal League and Baddiel and Skinner Unplanned TV shows, before starting a new phase of his career, writing novels for adults, a screenplay – The Infidel – and, most recently, a series of children’s books.
He said: “I was initially inspired to write the first children’s book, The Parent Agency, after my son Ezra asked me why, if Harry Potter hated the Dursleys so much, he didn’t just run away.
“It got me thinking about what it would be like to be able to choose your parents and that was the story. I usually know if I’ve got a good story, it’s quite instinctive.
“I think the key when writing for children is not to write ‘for children’. They are smart, smarter than you think – they grew up on the Simpsons, they’re sharper and wittier than me. All I do is cut out the swearing and don’t talk about sex, that’s the only difference – the rest is as complex and involved as any of my adult fiction.”
Posted on Monday 7 March 2016