I saw my pal being almost blown up in Afghanistan on TV – then I went out to join him

COMEDY author Henry Naylor was impressed to place his life on the road in Afghanistan after watching an in depth pal virtually being blown up dwell on TV.

The multi-award profitable playwright was surprised to see his previous flatmate and BBC cameraman Phil Goodwin survive a bomb touchdown simply ft from him in the course of the broadcast from war-torn Kabul two months after 9/11 in 2001.

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Naylor, who was head author on satirical puppet present Spitting Picture, had been researching his critically-acclaimed  play Discovering Bin Laden and glued to information experiences concerning the battle on terrorism – however had no thought his pal was among the many thick of it.

Then BBC World Service correspondent William Reeve was being interviewed dwell by a fellow correspondent  when a 2,000 pound bomb smashed right into a constructing simply metres away.

And Naylor, 56, did a exceptional double take because the carnage unfolded earlier than his eyes.

He recalled: “William Reeve was blown off his chair and the cameraman ran in entrance of the lens and I almost fell off my very own chair as a result of it was my previous flatmate from uni, Phil Goodwin.

“I knew he had gone into journalism after which turned a cameraman, however I didn’t know the place.

“So to see him in the course of this battle was simply unimaginable.”

After the battle, Naylor – who’s bringing his newest play Afghanistan is just not Humorous, to the Edinburgh Fringe for its European premiere – contacted Goodwin to test his script for accuracy.

Talking on the Scottish Solar comedy podcast Laughter Unlocked, Naylor explains: “Phil mentioned he couldn’t endorse a piece of fiction –  however as an alternative he mentioned he would  invite me out to Afghanistan and introduce me to the BBC fixers.”

Inside months he was within the battle zone with pal and Scottish award-winning photographer Sam Maynard.

A rare story ensued by which they had been threatened by a battle legal, captured by the Mujahideen and almost blown up by the Taliban.

Carried out by Naylor himself, the newest present takes us again to the beginning of the fashionable Afghan tragedy. It comes straight from the Adelaide Fringe, the place it received 12 five-star evaluations and two main awards.

Henry mentioned he was fearful of the profession change from comedy to playwright however his willpower to make his work stand out, led him to actually cube with loss of life.

He says: “That hubris and vainness made me go on the market. And Sam took some terribly good photographs which type a sideshow to the present present. There are 70 or 80 photographs from Kabul that are elegant.

“Discovering Bin Laden was a type of exhibits that actually took off, promoting out inside three days. It turned me from an okay comic right into a playwright.”

Laughter Unlocked is sponsored by inside specialist Harry Corry and produced by Ten10 Podcasts.

You’ll be able to hear the complete interview with Henry Naylor right here or wherever you get your podcasts.

Henry Naylor: Afghanistan Is Not Humorous August 3-29 Gilded Balloon Teviot 4pm, purchase tickets for the present right here.

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