“It’s happening now“
Don’t know exactly what the format will be here, but our French friend, Jérôme Soligny, has been in touch with details of a TV programme about to air on France 2.
Over to Jérôme…
Chevallier and Laspalès are a duet of humourists and one of the most popular acts on the French comic scene since 1981. They are also art connoisseurs and Philippe (Chevallier) is a respected photographer. Régis (Laspalès) is a great admirer of David Bowie and without being an expert he knows a lot about his work. I first met Régis in 2002, when my extended biography of David was reissued for the last time. I remember arriving at a signing session for the book in Paris and Régis was at the front of the line. We chatted a bit on that day and have become friends since then.
Chevallier and Laspalès invite us regularly to their shows and I send them my records and books. They played my town, Le Havre, earlier this year and they told me they will be the main guests of “Vivement Dimanche”, one of the biggest Sunday TV shows in France (on France 2) hosted by Michel Drucker, in March.
Being “main guest” means you can choose the other guests with Michel. They said they wanted to invite me to talk about “Writing On The Edge” (Editions de la Table Ronde), my book of articles, which had impressed them (!). Rather than being seated on the famous red couch during the show – where personalities and stars sit – and because I’m not a star (I do shine a bit but mostly for my wife and kids), I proposed to the production team of the show to take Régis on a quick tour of the exhibition David Bowie Is. They loved the idea and he was happy that my conferences at la Philharmonie had just been published in a small book (“David Bowie ouvre le chien” – Editions de la Table Ronde) so he could discover their content (Chevallier and Laspalès are currently on a French tour and rarely in Paris – They will be playing the Olympia on April 23,24,25,26).
So that’s what you’re going to see. I have nothing to do with the promotion of the David Bowie Is exhibition in Paris, but I’m quite proud that David, in a way, will be on the show this Sunday. Michel Drucker already invited David Bowie a few times through the years (everybody remembers his famous 1977 interview, see accompanying picture) and I’m sure he’ll be happy to mention the exhibition. Funnily enough, it’s not the first time I have an input regarding Chevallier and Laspalès at “Vivement Dimanche”. The last time they were “main guests”, a few years back, Régis phoned me asking if I thought David Bowie could come and sing on the TV show. I said I didn’t know and they should ask his record company. It didn’t happen so Régis asked if I could think of any replacement act. I proposed AIR as David Bowie likes them and Nicolas and Jean-Benoît did appear on the show.
So, don’t expect me to be on the red couch, where stars and idols belong. I’m just the white-haired dude who guides and talks to his friend in the exhibition. You know what ? That’s more than fine by me.
While you’re waiting, check out Michel Drucker interviewing Bowie in October 1977.