The delicate art of pulling off prank calls on the radio
Radio pranks have been part of the craft for years, but there’s a knack to pulling them off as 2DayFm hosts Mel Greig and Michael “MC” Christian found, says Jason ‘Jabba’ Davis.
Radio pranks have been a part of the game since 1938 when listeners were panicked at the prospect of an impending martian invasion by Orson Welles. It set the tone for the next 75 years of radio tomfoolery.
Pranks and prank calls have been a staple of radio shows with hosts from Howard Stern to the Jerky Boys favouring the ‘gotcha’ call.
india!
Hate to be pedantic, but Orson Welles’ ‘War of the Worlds’ wasn’t a prank. It was clearly identified at the beginning as a radio play…they even broke for ads! It showed the power of radio, not the power of the prankster.
Cheers
I was going to write the same thing, Tim. Welles and the broadcaster never pranked anyone – it was a play, for Pete’s sake.
Jabba your thoughts on the2DayFM prank now?