So what I’m aiming for is a completely new kind of interviewing, the polar opposite of that tired, cynical, stale, disdainful, exhausted, dated and, above all, futile “lying bastard” routine. My hope is that on Sunday Salon we’ll create a uniquely fresh, nuanced, more civilised atmosphere, where I use the warmth of my personality – and relative youth, of course, my looks are for others to judge! – to do what the old has-beens are too cynical to do, and generate more light, less heat.
No – I see what you did there! – no, I’m not naming names: your readers know who they are anyway, of course. Brilliant interviewers, all of them, no question, for all their weird flaws, but it would be unfair to single out people when so many journalists are still stuck in that horrible, contemptuous, inquisitorial thing. It’s so vicious and tricksy, who can blame politicians for being evasive when they know their interviewer just wants to catch them out? It’s my theory – we’ll see if it works! – that if I softly massage their shoulders, check their makeup, pour them a hot beverage, be it tea or a hot chocolate, we can create, if you will, a safe space, where politicians can genuinely think out loud without fear of interruption, hopefully without me having even to ask a question. In my experience, you get much more out of people with a fascinating counter-factual, or just a quizzically raised eyebrow.
See? Thanks, that’s how I got David Cameron to admit what his favourite colour was. Exactly, yellow. Up to that moment, everyone thought it was mauve. But David Frost already proved that charm works better than interrogation: his interviewees relaxed, they trusted him and, before you knew it, he had another scoop – sorry, no, I can’t think of an example. But remember when George Osborne opened up to me about his 5:2 diet? That was right after I complimented him on his great body, though he said mine was even better! Quite, brilliant television. The public love to see the human side of power, and George came out of it pretty well, too.
