Catching up with Rob Lloyd of Who, Me. And getting a bit geekier

Catching up with Rob Lloyd of Who, Me. And getting a bit geekier

Rob Lloyd's currently here in New Zealand as part of the New Zealand International Comedy Festival, with his show, Who, Me. You can read my review of Who, Me. here. After seeing the show, I kind of had a few follow up questions that I wanted him to answer - and he was very generous with his time to do so. Read on below - and worry not, there are no spoilers.
(Rob's show, Who, Me runs at the Auckland Basement Theatre until Saturday May 11th at 8.30pm - you can buy tickets here - and you can follow Rob on Facebook with the Who, Me. site)

 I’m keen to know your reaction when you saw the appointment and reveal of the 10^th Doctor…What went through your mind when you realised that you could in some ways live out your dream as a Whovian, by being a doppelganger Doctor? I was actually kind of annoyed, I said to myself ‘Well there goes your chances of being the Doctor, Lloyd. They’re never going to cast a further Doctor who looks remarkably similar to the 10^th Doctor’. You see in my mind…I actually had a chance of ever playing the Doctor. I know…you should hang out in my mind sometime…it’s a funny, misguided place.

The main theme of your show (aside from the Who references obviously) is one of a celebration of obsession – how did that come about? 
My director and co-devisor Scott Gooding encouraged me to do my first ever solo show ‘A Study in Scarlet (A Study of…)’ about the first ever Sherlock Holmes story. It was just meant to be a show where I acted out the entire story in an hour, playing every character. During rehearsals Scott suggested I include stories of why I liked Holmes, how I got into him etc…revealing little bits about my obsession with him. This seemed to work really well in the show and the feedback was tremendous, so with Who, Me. we decided to explore it more and see if it could still connect with people.

 What have you actually learned about yourself while doing the show?
That it’s okay to be a nerd, that it’s okay to be obsessive but moderation is the key. I realised my favourite times with Dr Who were always with other people…so I shouldn’t keep Dr Who close to my chest…I should share it with other people. That’s what Who, Me. is ultimately about I guess. I love chatting to the audience after the show and hearing their stories about Dr Who. We are a community, we should embrace that more J 

Are there ever moments when you look into the crowd and see flashes of yourself from years gone by – or potentially think "That could be me in future?" How does that feel?
Not really…like I said before I see individual stories. I see a unique adventures of obsession. I see people who have contacted just as intensely with something that I have.

 The audiences are predominantly Dr Who fans – I’m guessing when you started writing this, you wanted to connect with them in a way you didn’t in your younger years?
I guess so yeah. I was so hard keeping Dr Who to myself for so long, I literally had no-one to talk to about to for seven years. I was so frustrating…I actually think it sent me a little crazy to be honest…but I’m definitely making up for lost time now. So many Dr Who fans, so many conversations, so many arguments, so little time.


You’ve been out on the convention circuit a lot in cosplay – and I’m guessing you get asked for a lot of pictures. What’s been the strangest request you’ve received from a fan?
It’s a cos-play photo at a convention…it’s pretty strange to begin with. To be honest I haven’t had really strange requests, I love getting photos with kids, they are awesome! The strangest experience for me was in Adelaide in 2012…an audience member came to see WHO, ME. and despite the fact I name myself Rob Lloyd about 100 times in the show, she still thought I was David Tennant. She kept on saying ‘Thank you so much for coming out David’. I just let her go...

 As a fan and comedian doing a Dr Who themed show, what are your hopes for the 50^th anniversary?
I just want the 50^th anniversary episode to be good. That’s all I want. I’m disappointed we don’t have more episodes this year. I’m worried that they’ve dropped the ball a little and aren’t really respecting the love the fans have, I feel as if we’re being taken for granted in some ways. Kind of like they’re saying ‘Look the fans are going to watch no matter what we do’. Which is true…but look after us please…we’re fragile. As for me as a comedian…I’m taking Who, Me. where ever I can. I’m trying to do every state and terroritory in Australia, I’m in NZ now (awesome) then we're off to Edinburgh and the UK in August/Sept…I just want to get this show to as many people as possible this year.

The big question has to be – have you met David Tennant – and if so, how did you a) handle it and b) what did he make of the show? Ha…I haven’t. I don’t know how I’d handle it. It’ll be tough because I respect him as an actor, I love his work in Black Pool, Fright Night, Broadchurch but I’m not a fan of his Doctor (I know…shoot me). It would be great if he could see the show…I’d love for him to do the show with me…just as a one off…him playing me and me playing the prosecutor…that’d be awesome!

(If not, do you plan to… and how….)
I have no plan at the moment, like the Doctor I’ll ‘improvise’. However I would like someone…anyone…at some point, if they get the chance, to go up to David Tennant and say to him ‘You know what? You look exactly like Rob Lloyd!’ That would make my century, it really would.