The Merrick & Rosso Show

Describe your TV show to the uninitiated.
Merrick: I can't be bothered to talk about the show.
Rosso: It's a half-hour studio-based comedy show filmed in front of a studio audience where we have sketches and we have a major studio guest who comes in for an interview and we always do some sort of prank or stunt with them.
M: We like to speak to people, not products, so we don't look for guests who are on the flog. Last season we had everyone from Ray Martin to Peter Helliar to Judith Lucy. And we've got a really good line-up for guests this year too. I can't tell you any of the names because we haven't asked any of them yet.
R: No, we've got Ed Phillips doing the show, Tommy Williams, David Wenham, Asher Keddie. Katy Perry is coming back and doing the show.
M: Oh she's on the flog. That kind of undermines what I just said.
R: We're going to do a parody song with her called 'I Kissed a Goat'.

The first episode of the news series featured a parody of Underbelly where you, Rosso, are basically just surrounded by tits.
R: No change there then.

But this show goes out at 8.30pm. Is that suitable family viewing?
M: It's the Comedy Channel, mate. You can do what you want.  
R: It repeats at 4.30pm, which I think is beautiful after school viewing, isn't it? Tits galore.

Was that just an excuse for you to hang around naked women?
R: No! Parody. Funny parody.

Are there any bits of your sketches that you have to leave on the cutting room floor because they are a little bit rude?
R: There's a conversation that's going on in the office at the moment about an idea for a sketch which is called 'Dildolextrics'. It's like Scalextrics, but there are cars that go around a track and they've got dildos on them. So we manufactured these cars with these dildos on them. They're pretty full-on. Anyway, the to and fro at the moment is whether or not it's too filthy for the show. We don't know.
M: It'll be fine.
R: Then we made the sketch called 'Ladette to Ladyboy' where Merrick plays a Thai madam who specialises in taking Australian bogan women and turning them into ladyboys. It was OK to say, "We take away your wagina and weplace it with a weenie."
M: That's right. That's absolutely fine.

The last series was the top rating one on the Comedy Channel and has just won you an Astra Award as the most popular male personalities on Foxtel. Is it more stressful given that you're executive producing as well as presenting it?
M: We're only producers in title. It just makes us look good but really, we don't have that much to do with it.
R: I only put it there so I fucking sound great in Media Week.

Are there any other kind of shows Merrick and Rosso are working up?
R: We've got a whole bunch of things.
M: We've got nothing.

Thanks guys.
M: That's it? You're not going to ask us any cool questions? Like where's the weirdest place you've ever done it?
R: The answer is: in the ass.

The Astra Award-winning Merrick & Rosso Show screens Thursdays 8.30pm on The Comedy Channel.

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