Never Mind The Buzzcocks was always something of an oddity. Part comedic-panel show and part pop-culture bonfire, the British show revelled in its ability to entertain while giving just about every genre under the sun a good kicking. Metal was no exception - from the chuckles about Napalm Death's grindcore grunts to Mistress playing Christmas songs to piling on to just about everything in the video for Open The Gate by Dutch heavy metal troupe Vortex, metal was ripe fruit for the picking.
Heavy metal wasn't just comedy fodder though - over the years the show played host to a range of Hammer-friendly guests including a non-plussed Lemmy (who walked out towards the end of his episode, though the clip never aired), Bruce Dickinson (paired with Placebo's Brian Molko in a collaboration we'd still pay to see today), Bill Bailey, who ultimately became a team captain in 2002, and Alice Cooper – who also guest-hosted in 2011.
The show's brand of snarky take-down humour wasn't to the tastes of everybody, however. Speaking to Hammer for an upcoming feature, Dani Filth shared some memories of his appearance on the show in 2001.
- “My village was the first one in England to install CCTV, just to spot us skateboarding”: Cradle Of Filth’s Dani Filth spent his teens being a skate punk hoodlum
- "I've given up drinking. And I feel great. I'm not as much of an arsehole any more": Massive Wagons on sobering up, getting serious, and the size of Bruce Dickinson’s mouth
“[Never Mind The Buzzcocks] was a bit brilliant, a bit cunty. The most tragic part is, it came at a point in my life where I didn’t suffer fools gladly; rather than just smiling, I’d go back. Mark Lamarr had this ferrety little guy who was so pedantic and rude all the time. I’d just had enough in the end and I punched him in the green room, in front of everyone! I enjoyed it as an experience but it was taxing.”
Revived on Sky after a six-year absence, the show is yet to unveil any metal-friendly guests for its new run, but with Noel Fielding confirmed as one of the team captains the hope is still very much alive.
Never Mind The Buzzcocks returns this week on Sky Max and NOW
Cradle of Filth release their thirteenth studio album Existence Is Futile on October 22.
