Simon Pegg - "I Remember...", Part One

The star of Mission: Impossible, Star Trek and the Cornetto Trilogy on discovering comedy while still and school and trying - and failing - to make it as a musician.

… Telling My First Joke
I was still at primary school when I said to my mum, “My friend’s dad’s a dentist.” “Does he practice?” she replied. “No, he doesn’t - he’s a real one.” Even now, I can vividly recall how I knew the joke would work better if I delivered it in a matter-of-fact, deadpan fashion. Not only that, but I remember how delighted I was when I realised the double meaning of ‘practice’. A comedy god was born that day - and I was still in short trousers.

…My Dad Appearing On Opportunity Knocks
Both my parents loved performing. Mum was a keen member of the local am-dram group and was always being described as a scene-stealer in the regional papers. As for Dad, he was in bands as long as I can remember. One of his groups, Pendulum, went on Opportunity Knocks, back in the days when the far-from-sincere Hughie Green was still presenting and producing the show. The night he was on, the entire street crammed into our house to see the show and eat all the vol-au-vents in the county. If all this wasn’t thrilling enough, Pendulum scored highest on the clap-o-meter! The only downer was that, to reach the final, you had to poll the most postal votes and Pendulum came a close second. The winner that week? Pam Ayres.

… The First Time I Realised How Smart Movies Could Be
I was watching Steven Spielberg’s ET and I noticed that part of the soundtrack mimicked that of another Spielberg film, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind. Even then, I thought that was really clever. I also liked the fact that most of the audience didn’t notice - it was like a wonderful secret. That kind of flourish still gives me a thrill. When Edgar Wright, Jessica Hynes and I made our sitcom Spaced, we were sure to reward viewers with touches like that.

… Wanting To Be A Rock Star
I think it’s every kid’s first dream - either play football or form a band. When I was 16, I was in a group called God’s Third Leg. How we didn’t make it big, I will never know. Personally I blame it on a JFK-style conspiracy. Maybe Oliver Stone could make a movie about it!