Graham Norton names his biggest chat show celeb disasters

Across 32 seasons of his A-list chat show, Graham Norton has encountered the good, the bad and the very drunk. Now he’s naming names.

Australians should prepare to see a lot more of Graham Norton in the coming months.

The Irish comedian, author and TV host’s A-list talk show returns to screens for an incredible 32nd season later this month – followed by his new foray into being a game show host, on a newly-rebooted Wheel of Fortune, in December.

And in March, Norton will mark an unlikely milestone: Over 40 years into his career, he’ll embark on his first-ever Australian tour, taking his An Evening With Graham Norton show around the country.

With that tour announced today, the ever-charming Norton spoke to news.com.au about celeb guest disasters, Australia’s wavering Eurovision fortunes and why he feels bad about giving Miriam Margolyes a late-life career boost.

Norton says it’s good to plan his guests, but more often it’s a case of “Who the hell are we going to have?”

Graham, you’ve just announced your first-ever Australian stand-up tour for 2025. Firstly, the obvious question: What’s taken so long?

It’s for all sorts of boring reasons. When I used to do a longer season of the chat show, by the time the show was over, it was winter in Australia so I didn’t want to come. But I’ve now got this live show that I’ve been touring in the UK, about my life and showing old clips of me, old clips of the show, and telling stories about favourite guests.

Chemistry seems to play such an important role in making the show sing. Is booking guests as simple as ‘these people have a movie or album to promote,’ or is there a bit more planning to get the mix right?

On a good week, there’s more planning, but often planning is a luxury we don’t have. Often it’s just: Who the hell are we going to have? And then you just chuck them on and go, good luck everyone. And because we’ve been doing it for so long, there are certain stars where you get to know what will work with them. You know, there might be an older actress and you realise, oh, she’ll like a young actor, or an American who will really like a British comic.

Veteran actress June Brown and Lady Gaga became instant friends on the show.

Has the mix ever been way off, with guests you could tell just didn’t get on with each other?

It happens fairly often, where you just know they’re never going to meet each other again. But you’d be surprised at the number of times I’ll wake up on a Friday – because we tape it on a Thursday night – and I’ll see a picture in the paper of the guests of the show all leaving some restaurant where they’ve all gone off for dinner. I mean, you’ll notice I’m not there. But they do gel because they’ve been through something weird together and worked as a team … on a good night.

Are there a lot of nerves from the guests? It’s a different skill, being a great chat show guest than it is to be a great actor or singer.

I’m always quite forgiving of people who are bad guests because it’s nobody’s job. If you’re able to sit on the couch and string a funny story together, that really is a bonus – it isn’t part of your job description. So I think we’re lucky the number of people we get who can do it.

But nerves are an odd thing. I remember we had Daryl Hannah on once [in 2002]. And Daryl – I don’t understand this – but weirdly, she can do a play, but she’s terrified of a studio audience. I guess being herself in front of a studio audience makes her terrified. I think they tried to make her do David Letterman once, and she walked out and fainted.

Daryl Hannah: Great actress … terrible chat show guest. Picture: Charley Gallay/Getty

Norton with guests Lily Allen, Dominic Cooper and the ever-dependable Miriam Margolyes.

So, she did our show, and bless her, she wasn’t a great guest. But what I loved was, because she got through it, afterwards she was high as a kite. She really felt like she’d done an amazing thing. And I was thrilled for her that she had gotten through it. It was still a very poor show.

So you won’t have her back …

But I’m glad she faced her demons, yeah.

Does adding alcohol into the mix make things harder to manage? I’m sure there are celebs who have a drink or two to settle the nerves, but any more than that and suddenly you’ve got a very different show on your hands.

It’s true. A lot of people think we try to get our guests drunk and we really don’t. There is a drink waiting for them out there if they want it, but the most you can really have is two or three drinks, tops. If you want to be drunk – and clearly some people do – you’ve got to arrive pre-liquored.

Drunk guests have Norton “trying to get to the finish line.”

Mickey Rourke arrived pre-loaded.

I remember Mickey Rourke [was a guest]. I just happened to be standing there when he got out of the car, and he was holding a bottle of Jack Daniels, which is already worrying. But then we noticed the bottle of Jack Daniels was half-empty. It soon became very clear where that Jack Daniels had gone. Those nights are quite hard work where you’re just trying to keep it together and get to the finishing line.

One particular guest who should perhaps pay you royalties is Miriam Margolyes. Her frequent, hilarious appearances have made her more in demand than ever.

It has given her this weird third act, having been a really exceptional actress. And that’s the thing that I feel bad about for Miriam. She doesn’t care, by the way – she’s delighted with this third act. But I feel bad because I feel like now she’s just a kind of a comedy turn, whereas she is a brilliant actor. And I feel bad that she’s not famous for that, because it’s like people have forgotten she was ever in anything. She’s a wonderful actor, but now she’s just, ‘I’m the woman who tells terrible stories on your show’.

One amazingly awkward moment came in 2012 when you presented Madonna with these incredible handcrafted dolls of herself made by two diehard fans in the audience. They got the most Madonna reaction ever: Barely concealed disdain.

Just thrilled.

If there’s one thing Madonna loathes more than hydrangeas …

You know, I saw them after the show and said, ‘Oh, I’m sorry she was a bit rude about the dolls.’ But they couldn’t have been happier. Their diva had behaved in exactly the way they wanted her to!

You are going to be the host of Australian Wheel of Fortune, airing on Ten in December. You’ve also been hosting the UK version – are there differences between the Aussie and the British contestants?

The Aussie contestants, I would say, flew by the seat of their pants more.

With some of the British ones, I think there’s some Wheel of Fortune app you can download to play it at home and get really, really good at the puzzles. So some of the British people were taking it super seriously. The Australians were like, ‘Let’s spin the wheel, see what happens’. So the atmosphere was quite different. You know, the Australians were still winning big amounts of money, but they seemed … less bothered about it.

Have you been a game show host before in your career?

Let’s just say no. It’s more straightforward to say no. I mean, I have done pilots of game shows before. And doing a new format is hellish because there’s always a moment in the pilot episode where you’re playing the game … You’ve rehearsed it so many times, you’ve done it in the office so many times, but there’s always one moment when you’re in the studio with the audience and the real-life contestants when everyone suddenly realises: ‘Oh, that’s why this game won’t work. There’s a fatal flaw in it.’

And so when they offered me Wheel of Fortune, I thought, well, there’s no fatal flaw. This is the granddaddy of game shows.

You’re a longtime Eurovision presenter. Australia’s fortunes in the competition slipped dramatically this year when we failed to qualify for the grand final. Do you think we can turn it around?

Norton (far left) with the other hosts onstage at Eurovision 2023. Picture: Paul ELLIS / AFP

You can. The thing is, Australia has watched it, you’ve always loved it, and then there was this mad moment when you got to be part of it. There was a little honeymoon period, but now you’re living the life the rest of us live. You’re experiencing Eurovision as most people do, and it’s tough, it’s really tough.

It’s not enough to send a good song and a good performer: It’s got to be great staging, it’s got to tell a story, it’s got to be in the right bit of the running order, the other songs need to elevate your song. So many variables. But you can win it! It is possible. So keep the faith, Australia.

Any time we have a bad year, I’m convinced the organisers are going to remember Australia is not actually a European country and boot us out for good.

Look, if you’re paying your entry fee, I’m sure you’re safe.

The Graham Norton Show season 32 premieres on 10 and 10 Play on Sunday October 20 at 8.30pm. Wheel of Fortune will air on 10 and 10 Play in December.

An Evening with Graham Norton Australian tour dates 2025:

Sunday 9th March – Adelaide Convention Centre – Adelaide

Tuesday 11th March – Riverside Theatre – Perth

Friday 14th March – Brisbane Convention and Entertainment Centre

Sunday 16th March – Hamer Hall, Arts Centre – Melbourne

Thursday 20th March – Opera House – Sydney

Tickets to the general public go on sale at 11am (local time) on Friday 11 October. Visit tegdainty.com for more.

Originally published as Graham Norton names his biggest chat show celeb disasters