Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Welcome to our second drink of Customer Survey. And not to toot our own horn, but here I go. Toot, toot, toot. This is a fantastic episode, lady.
It is. It really actually is. Yes.
Stephen Merchant joins us on the podcast. It's such a fun interview. He shares how we met Ricky Gervais and then how they came to co-create the UK version of The Office. And then we, of course, ask him all about directing this hilarious episode. And he shares the inspiration for that amazing butt-licker scene.
And when we asked you all what your favorite scene was from this episode, so many of you wrote in to say that it was the butt-licker scene. For example, Miranda Dee from Australia said, My favorite moment from this episode is the bit where Dwight, Michael, and Jim are in the conference room doing the mock phone call.
It is so hilarious seeing Michael and Dwight get so lost in the bit, especially because Michael is showing his love of improv.
Yes, and Arena E from Los Angeles says, Office ladies, I have been a listener since the beginning and I love everything about the show. Thank you, Arena. And she goes on to say, I finally decided to go back to the first drinks.
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Chapter 2: How did Stephen Merchant meet Ricky Gervais?
Is that a thing? of the show so I could submit all the questions I'm always thinking of when I listen. I have been waiting for this episode to get to second drink so I could tell you this. My husband and I find the line, butt liquor, our prices have never been lower, so funny. So you know how sometimes a dog will just decide. to lick their butt at the most inappropriate time.
Every time our dog does this, we say to him, Rusty, have your prices never been lower? Very confusing to anyone who doesn't get the reference, but hilarious to us every time. Love, love, love the podcast and your incredible camaraderie with one another.
Chapter 3: What inspired the butt-licker scene in Customer Survey?
Well, Rebecca L. from Maryland wrote in to say that, first of all, Rebecca also loved the scene, but Rebecca has a background catch. Rebecca said, "'Ladies, did you catch rain almost breaking in this scene?' I can see him start to laugh at eight minutes, 44 seconds in the original version. It is right after he has to yell that the prices have never been lower."
Lady, I went and rewatched it and I totally saw it.
Rain is so clearly about to laugh and he's trying to hide his smile. He sort of covers his mouth by like leaning onto his fist on the table.
Yes, he's doing the Mindy. That's the Mindy move. Yeah, yeah. Well, everyone, we pulled a clip of the moment where Rain almost breaks. We didn't play this in our first breakdown and it's just so hilarious. We thought we should hear it.
Chapter 4: What fan questions were shared about the episode?
Hello? Hello, this is Dwight Schrute from the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company. Wow, that's great, because I need paper. Excellent, then you are in luck, because we are having a limited time offer only on everything. Wow, this is my lucky day. Ask him his name. What is your name, sir? I am Bill Buttlicker.
Really? That's your real name? How dare you? My family built this country, by the way.
Be respectful, Dwight, please. Yes, Michael.
Could you hold on one second? That's my other line. What? No, but I... Hello?
Hello?
Yeah. No, I'm just on the phone with this stupid salesman. He's so dumb. Probably just going to keep him on the line forever and not buy anything. Okay.
It's up to you to change his mind.
Sorry. That was a family emergency.
Oh, no. What's wrong? You know what? That's private. Boundaries, Dwight. Come on. I'm sorry, Mr. Buttlicker. As I was saying, we're having a limited time. Speak up a little bit louder. I'm hard of hearing.
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Chapter 5: How did the cast feel about the customer survey results?
He said, listen, this was a radio station where we were both going to work. And he said, listen, I don't know anything about radio. I've sweet talked my way into this job. I don't know what I'm doing. And you seem to have had a little radio experience. If you do all the work, I'll make sure you have fun. And I, in need of a job, thought that sounds like a fair deal.
And so I joined the station with Ricky as essentially my boss. And true to his word, he did not know what he was doing.
Right.
But we managed to find a sort of working relationship. And after a little while, we were behind the scenes guys, but after a little while, they realized that our better asset was being on the radio. And once we went on the radio and we started talking and being kind of presenters, kind of like you guys, that was when I think we're all starting to make more sense.
And I think that was where our, if you like, our sense of humor and our relationship with each other and our rapport, I think that's where it really began to develop. sort of on the radio.
And then from then it was sort of, you know, it was plain sailing, really, you know, and we just, and so much of what we, our experience, so much of sort of getting to know someone that you end up working with in that way is I think just, as I'm sure you guys discovered, it's just finding all the things you have in common.
And I suppose the things you don't like, you know, and sort of deciding that these are the movies we like, these are the comedy we like, this is what we don't. And I think that so much of the initial sort of partnering was that, was finding that stuff, that common ground.
Oh, man, that is such a great story.
And also, I feel like something Angela and I have discovered in working together is like our strengths and weaknesses and how they and our differences in our in our work. We both have strong work ethics, but we work differently. What do you think were some of those things that made you and Ricky a good duo?
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Chapter 6: How does Jim and Pam's communication evolve in this episode?
Where did you guys meet? Was it the original Culver City set? Wasn't it? Stephen, do you remember?
I definitely think it was a season one.
Yeah, and we weren't on those sound stages yet, right? We were in an actual office building.
That's right. It was a real office above a real factory. Is that right? Or a real warehouse?
Above a real warehouse.
Yeah.
And didn't you guys, Stephen, when you filmed the BBC version, weren't you in an actual office building as well? Weren't they like people working on the other side of the wall?
That's absolutely true. Although bizarrely, we were within a studio complex, a small British TV studio, but we were not in the studio. We were in an actual office in the studio complex. And yes, as you say, there were people sort of who were kind of annoyed by the noise we were making and were trying to get on with a job of work.
And we were there kind of, you know, running around and making noise and doing funny dances and whatever else. So, yeah, so it was definitely very much a real office and it had all of the... the pros and cons of that, I suppose, that it was, it felt real and we wanted it to feel very lived in.
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Chapter 7: What unique challenges did the actors face with the Bluetooth earpieces?
And we wanted it to, we always wanted our version of The Office to feel like a documentary that had sort of been made and then everyone forgot about it. And it was just on a shelf somewhere at the BBC for like 10 years and someone dusted it off and was like, put this on TV. So we wanted the whole thing to feel tired. The Office should feel tired, the people, the clothes.
We always were very excited when the plants that they had on the set were slightly dying. Yeah. We liked that idea. It was that British approach. You reflect the weather by just making shows that are depressing. And that was what that office had. It had a slightly tired feel because it had been a real place. And it's somehow slightly harder to create that artificially when you build a set.
You're always striving for that. So it had that nice lived in quality, but obviously also restrictive to shoot in and a little bit difficult and not much elbow room. So it was pros and cons.
Right. Our camera guys have talked about that, where we filmed the original set in Culver City was an actual office, so no walls moved and you couldn't pop anything out. And that really just added to the authenticity. But that's where you guys met. You guys met for the pilot, maybe, Jen, or the table read?
I remember doing a reading for you guys. Gosh, I mean, and then I remember we ordered some food and had some lunch and just... Yes.
But I think you were maybe shooting by then. Were we? I think you were maybe shooting. I have a photo from that time, which feels like you're on the set and everybody's kind of I'm sure you're maybe working. And we were up and running by the time we actually visited. I felt like a lot of what we did initially was remote.
I know that Greg Daniels came and visited us in England and we sat with him for a couple of days and we sort of chewed the fat and tried to talk about how, you know, try to give him a better insight into why we had chosen certain things for the British version and how they might translate to America and what the versions are. what the equivalents would be in America.
And it was fascinating to me because there were things which we assumed would be the same all over the world. For instance, the idea of a group of people in an office going to a pub quiz is quite a traditional idea here. You'd go to a trivia night as a group. And I remember at the time, it felt like, Greg, that wasn't as familiar to Greg, the idea of kind of the trivia night or the quiz night.
And I guess maybe they are more common now, but I don't know that that was as, and it's interesting. It was when they did a version in France, it turns out that apparently on Friday night, um, at the end of the working day on a Friday, the champagne comes out in an office, you know, where I guess in France, I think champagne is just like water in France. It's just everywhere.
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Chapter 8: What was the significance of the wedding planning subplot?
There was, I believe, an Indian version. And I think there's a South American version, but I forget where exactly in South America. But it was frustrating because they would send us copies of these, but of course, none of them had subtitles. So it was just speaking in their local languages, and I have no idea whether it was good or bad.
Yeah.
It's got to just be so amazing, Stephen, when you take a moment and sit in that, that you went and grabbed a pint with this guy. And all these years later, this idea that the two of you had is everywhere. It's everywhere. It's got to be just... It's like COVID-19. Oh, no.
Yeah, no, it's... No, I know what you mean, but I think, yes, but I think also what's exciting about that, and I think particularly when you guys began your version, was that You know, we always were a fan of our show, but we could never watch it as an audience watches it because we were too immersed in it. We were there.
We'd written it and we were just too involved and we couldn't get any distance from it. Whereas I remember when they would send the seasons of your show, the episodes of your show, I could watch it like a fan. It was like... I was like, I'm just enjoying it as a fan and not as a creator in the same way. You know what I mean? It's very, very pleasurable.
It's like you get to design your ideal show and then go off and have talented people make it and send it to you. You know what I mean? It's like an amazing, you won a competition. You design a show and then talented people make it for many, many years.
One of my favorite experiences was after we filmed the pilot, I was in London and you and Ricky grabbed drinks with me at, is it called the Groucho Club?
That's right.
Yeah. Okay. And that was just so exciting. But then I was on the tube and I picked up what was like your version of TV Guide. And I looked in there and there was an article about how America was going to ruin the office. And there was a little picture of my face in a bubble comparing me to Lucy Davis.
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