You see, I always took free lessons to mean what they say on the box type of thing, where I'd sit there and read a book, or mess around and do nothing for lessons at a time.
But no, i was sadly mistaken. This is what I spent my free lessons doing today:
English Language
This is a transcript of Daniel Radcliffe being interviewed on the BBC talk show ‘Friday Night with Jonathan Ross’ on the fourth of November, 2005. The interview was prior to the release of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, in which Racliffe stars as the main character.
0:30
JR: Daniel welcome to the show
DR: thank you very much
JR: and congratulations you’re our youngest guest ever on the show (1.0) DR: really JR: you’re sixteen years old
DR: that’s quite an achievement (.) that’s fantastic (.)
DR: I didn’t even have to do anything besides be young (.) I didn’t even have to do anything then and everyone applauded [laughter] I might be rubbish (.) you never know
JR: hang on (.) you’ve got too much energy for me [laughter]
DR: I’m trying to prove to you that it’s not past my bedtime
JR: well no I can see you well well you’re obviously full of the vim and vigour of life (.) when were you sixteen (.) when was your birthday
DR: July twenty-third
JR: so you are now (.) coming up to sixteen and a half
DR: well (1.0) yeah
JR: now what can you do at sixteen (.) that you can’t can’t do at other ages you can’t legally drive yet can you
DR: no (.) seventeen so Rupert who who plays Ron’s having his lessons at the moment
JR: wow now are you a bit jealous about that
DR: no (.) not at all I’m going to be the worst driver in the world cause my dads a really bad driver and I think I’ve got his genes (.) rather than my mums (.) who’s an amazing driver but my dad’s terrible (.) I’m going down that road [laughter]
JR: okay (2.0) you are old enough (.) you could get married I believe if you want to (.) with your parents consent DR: I (.) could (1.0) I probably won’t
JR: okay
DR: cause (1.0) not yet (.) I mean
JR: playing the field for a little bit longer take it easy (.) um (.) you can’t vote yet =
DR: no
JR: you can’t drink alcohol yet =
DR: no
JR: so you’ve never tried alcohol =
DR: no
JR: no [laughter]
DR: it’s not actually a moral thing (.) I just tried uh a sip of wine once I didn’t like the taste very much
JR: right
DR: I think it’s something you get when you’re about eighteen (.) and suddenly you (.) start to like it [laughter] (1.0) I’ll probably try it cause (.) you know a lot of people do it so there must be something in it (1.0) I mean (.) I don’t I haven’t yet (.) no [trails off]
JR: and you don’t (.) I’m sure you don’t smoke at all
DR: no
JR: good good that’s sensible (1.0) do you know any adult jokes (.) that you can share
DR: do you [laughter and applause]
7:15
JR: I wish I could say it was a first but David Attenborough did the same thing when he was here (1.0) that’s great (.) presumably you’re a football fan then are you =
DR: no [laughter] um
JR: I’m sure this all makes perfect sense somewhere
DR: I I think I probably was at the time but I’m I’m not anymore (.) but Chris Columbus said at the end of that [Daniel pauses and laughs to himself] (1.0) sorry I’m just thinking about the eggs and that (.) um he said he said well if that doesn’t get you the part nothing will and it did
JR: yeah (.) so you think that was what did it for you
DR: J.K. Rowling saw that and thought (.) that’s my Harry
JR: that’s my Harry (.) anyone who can play match of the day on his cheeks (.) uh (.) they’re great fun books they’re a lovely read
DR: yeah
JR: now there are (.) seven in total when it’s completed (1.0) six so far released (.) kay (.) I read the first four (.) I don’t think I finished the fifth (.) I’ve got the sixth one waitingDR: oh God
JR: well don’t (.) was that your voice breaking [laughter]
DR: sorry
JR: wouldn’t that be a great moment if that happened live on tvDR: yeah on tv
JR: well it’s kind of (.) your voice isn’t going to break with your age (.) it’s it’s already
DR: my voice has broken [laughter]
JR: I still think it can get a bit deeper
How is conversation structured in television interviews?
In my analysis I will focus on how conversation is structured in television interviews, I will closely focus on a Daniel Radcliffe interview on the late night BBC show ‘Friday Night with Jonathan Ross’ prior to the release of the Goblet of Fire. The interview is structured on questions asked to Daniel Radcliffe for information about what he does in his own time, what he can do at sixteen, and about the new Harry Potter film that is to be released soon. These questions are asked by the interviewer Jonathan Ross and answered by Daniel Radcliffe.
The interview is structured on a formal and informal register, meaning that there will be overlaps in speech, but things like adjacency pairs will be present for example Jonathan Ross would say “you can’t vote yet” and Daniel Radcliffe would confirm this fact by saying “no”. Throughout the interview adjacency pairs are used for Radcliffe to confirm facts. This effectively creates conversation, showing that there are two participants in the conversation and interview.
Jonathan starts the interview by congratulating Daniel on being the youngest interviewee ever to be on the show with him “and congratulations you’re our youngest guest ever on the show” (line 3) this is to show that the ‘Friday Night with Jonathan Ross’ show is not usually done with younger people, aiming for an adult audience, perhaps Daniel Radcliffe was added to the show to add more of a variety to the show and the audience watching at home.
There is an overlap at the beginning of the show where Jonathan Ross says “you’re sixteen years old” (line 5) where Daniel Radcliffe overlaps by saying “really” (line 4). This shows that its spontaneous and that there was no planning done before the commencement of the interview, this also shows how conversation is structured throughout the interview, because it is spontaneous there will be such things as overlaps in the interview. This also shows that it is like a normal conversation as there will be overlaps in spontaneous conversation.
An example of some questions used in this interview would be when Jonathan Ross uses the interrogative “when were you sixteen (.) when was your birthday” he does this in hopes of creating an opening conversation with Radcliffe and share some knowledge to the audience about the actor playing the titular character Harry Potter. Jonathan Ross uses tag questions throughout “you can’t legally drive yet can you” tag questions are added for Daniel to confirm that the fact is true.
False starts are evident throughout the interview “seventeen so Rupert who who plays Ron’s having his lessons at the moment” (lines 19-20) this shows that Radcliffe is nervous, but it also shows that he is thinking about what he is saying, proving that the conversation is spontaneous.
Spontaneous speech is prominent when Daniel Racliffe is talking about the time where he played the Match of the Day theme by slapping his cheeks, and the whole audition process of getting to play Harry Potter, he stutters and then there’s a topic shift, and then he gets back on to the topic, he says “but Chris Columbus said at the end of that [Daniel pauses and laughs to himself] (1.0) sorry I’m just thinking about the eggs and that” this shows that the conversation is spontaneous, it effectively shows that there are topic shifts throughout the interview which is a main feature of conversation theory.
There are filled pauses throughout also for instance Jonathan Ross says “playing the field for a little bit longer take it easy (.) um (.)” (line 31) the hesitations by the interviewer are usually added to allow the interviewee time to think. Filled pauses can also be used as time for the interviewer to think of what questions to ask the interviewer, though most of the questions will have been prewritten before the interview so that the interviewer to know what kind of conversation to hold. This opposes the idea of the conversation structured in the interview as being spontaneous if the questions are prepared then perhaps the responses can be prepared as well, meaning that the interview is not spontaneous but prepared.
Word stress shows surprise, for instance when Jonathan Ross says “you’re sixteen years old” (line 5) he’s stressing on how young he is, and commenting on how young he is. The collocation in line 31 “playing the field for a bit longer” is used to perhaps make the interview feel spontaneous and show that conversation is being structured in the interview by talking about Daniel Radcliffe’s relationships. This is also a topic shift as they were talking before hand about driving lessons and about how Daniel Radcliffe is going to be a bad driver because his father is.
The collocation also in lines 11 and 12 “full of the vim and vigour of life” is used because Radcliffe is talking at an accelerated pace meaning that it was hard to Jonathan and the audience to keep up with what he was talking about. Jonathan Ross also uses the collocation “hang on” (line 10) to show that Radcliffe is speaking at an accelerated pace, making it hard to people to follow what he’s talking about. This is a feature of conversation theory because you need to have two participants in the conversation, but if Radcliffe is talking too fast for other people to understand then there’s only going to be one participant in the conversation.
The pitch change when Daniel Radliffe says “ oh God ” (line 69) shows Radcliffe’s surprise at Jonathan Ross not having read all of the current Harry Potter novels, in the line his voice changes pitch unintentionally because of the fact that his voice is breaking, which creates humour to the audience in the show and Jonathan Ross.There are many pauses throughout the interview. There is a two second pause by Jonathan Ross after Radcliffe finishes speaking about being a bad driver “okay (2.0) you are old enough” the pause here is to create humour at Radcliffe’s rant on being a bad driver, it could also show Ross’s shock after Radcliffe’s rant on being a bad driver because perhaps he was not expecting to get an answer like that. The pauses in the interview are mainly for creating humour on Jonathan Ross’s part, the pauses on Radcliffe’s part are usually because he’s pausing to think of what to say next.
In conclusion, conversation is spontaneous throughout the interview. There are arguments to say that perhaps the interview is prepared, but the overlaps, adjacency pairs and filled pauses, attributes of conversation theory throughout the interview show that the interview is spontaneous.
This shows to us that the structure of the interview is questions and answers which create an interview between the interviewer and the interviewee. This can create humour, but it can also be serious. The pauses throughout the interview can be seen as a device to allow humour into the interview, but also a chance to show that the interviewer and interviewee is thinking. The point of the interview is to question the interviewee on a specific subject. In this case, Jonathan Ross was questioning Daniel Radcliffe on the release of the Goblet of Fire, the latest (at the time of the interview) film in the Harry Potter franchise. There were topic shifts throughout the interview to structure a conversation between too people, and interrogatives were used frequently too to create conversation, and perhaps an atmosphere of humour.
Now just let me get this straight. This is a first draft so there is obviously going to be mistakes in it. So I wouldn't even begin to comment on that. Then there's the fact that I'm only posting this because I have a paper cut on a part of my finger that makes it really painful to type. So I'm not going to be post a long one today.
I've also got really high hopes for tomorrow. I'm going out job hunting primarily, but I also have to get something for my Mother, since it is Mother's day on Sunday. We can't go out this year because we don't have enough money, so my sister and I are planning on getting her something.
But the job hunting is something that I'm really hoping is going to turn out really well tomorrow. I've printed off five of my CV's and I'll see how that takes me.
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