You’ve just got to love a prank that goes off perfectly. Five days of patience paid off for two Montreal radio station comedians who managed to keep Sarah Palin strung along for six minutes thinking she was talking to French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Have a listen:
Actually the pair are carrying on a long Quebecois tradition of making famous people look like twats. One of the funniest assignments I ever had was a book signing by the late Montreal author Mordecai Richler in 1992, back in the day when I was scribbling for a weekly newspaper for free just so I could build up some clippings to show around to people who just might want to pay me one day.
Half-way through the signing a Quebec comedian known for celebrity ambush interviews burst into the store with a camera crew to try to interview Richler, who was busy signing copies of his controversial new book Oh Canada! Oh Quebec! Richler enjoyed antagonising the Quebec separatist community and held little back in his criticism of anyone supporting Quebec independence.
The comedian’s schtick was simple: Arrive with a book and propose a trade. Richler gives him a copy of Oh Canada! Oh Quebec! and the comedian gives Richler a copy of Final Exit – a book on how to commit suicide.
Richler was so pissed off he stormed off in a huff. The Montreal Gazette got the better photo:
But I did the more complete write-up:
The banner photograph shows the town of Britannia Beach, BC, Canada, where I grew up. It's home. But I don't live there anymore.
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