Fast Friends was launched as a primetime Saturday Night TV show, where it averaged 44th place in the charts with 7.06 million viewers. After seven episodes were broadcast, it was shifted to a Friday night 8pm slot, where the ratings dropped even further, and its chart position fell to an average of 73rd place. No second series was commissioned.
The format for Fast Friends was reputedly adapted from an uncommissioned pilot for a US series of the same name that was recorded in 1984 with Bob Goen as the host.
Host Les Dawson savaged the show in his second autobiography, the 1992 book "No Tears For The Clown".
Les's reminisces included: "[...] the greatest load of crap ever to be committed to film as far as I was concerned [...] I've dropped some big ones in my time, but agreeing to do that show was akin to heaving an elephant's testicles down a pit shaft. [...] The reviews were all ghastly, the ratings were so low the only people who watched it lived in a submarine, and frankly Fast Friends put a man-sized nail in my theatrical coffin."
Les's reminisces included: "[...] the greatest load of crap ever to be committed to film as far as I was concerned [...] I've dropped some big ones in my time, but agreeing to do that show was akin to heaving an elephant's testicles down a pit shaft. [...] The reviews were all ghastly, the ratings were so low the only people who watched it lived in a submarine, and frankly Fast Friends put a man-sized nail in my theatrical coffin."
Although Les Dawson had been successful at hosting the comedy gameshow Blankety Blank (1978), he may be regarded as something of an odd choice to front Fast Friends.
A quiz show all about rapid responses and with a title sequence showing young, "hip" people, it's somewhat incongruous with a variety comedian who was nearly 60 years old and was famous for his verbosity and elaborate, laboured language in jokes.
There are many instances where the contestants look slightly perplexed at hearing old school "mother-in-law" gags on a Saturday Night primetime show airing in 1991.
A quiz show all about rapid responses and with a title sequence showing young, "hip" people, it's somewhat incongruous with a variety comedian who was nearly 60 years old and was famous for his verbosity and elaborate, laboured language in jokes.
There are many instances where the contestants look slightly perplexed at hearing old school "mother-in-law" gags on a Saturday Night primetime show airing in 1991.