The Graham Norton Showis a staple of British late night television, where Irish comedian, actor, author and hostGraham Nortonwelcomes actors, musicians, and celebrities alike to share their work and their most entertaining stories on his red couch.The show puts together exciting combinations of entertainers from all over the world, making for compelling interactions, hilarious anecdotes and a good time.
Known for his ability to pull great stories out of his guests, the best moments ofThe Graham Norton Showare when Norton gives a guest a slight nudge in the direction of a fun story and lets them tell it as they please.The format of the show allows for Norton’s guests to take the reins and show their personalities, which is always exciting to see.Fans of the show get a chance to join in on the fun too, as the show typically concludes with a round of the Big Red Chair, a game where anyone can volunteer to tell the best story that they know, and if it doesn’t live up to the hype, Norton, or one of his guests, can flip the chair over.
The Graham Norton Show
10John Krasinski vs. English Customs Agent
Season 23, Episode 1
John Krasinskiand his wifeEmily Bluntwere on the red couch during the season 23 premiere ofThe Graham Norton Show, sitting alongsideKylie MinogueandTom Holland. While promotingA Quiet Place, John Krasinski shared a story about his experience in England as an American, and one story in particular about a grumpy customs agent made for a great laugh in the audience and on the couch.
Traveling back and forth to see his wife and kids while Blunt was shooting a project in England, Krasinski ran into a customs agent who was not very pleased with him. When asked what his occupation was, Krasinski told the man that he was an actor and that he was in the American version ofThe Office, to which the agent responded that he loves the British version. When asked what the reason for his visit was, Krasinski said to visit his wife, and when the agent asked if his wife was also an actor and would he know her, Krasinski told him that he was married to Emily Blunt.This was the last straw for the customs officer, who sent him away angrily, shocked that Emily Blunt would have married him.
9Ryan Gosling, the Cellophane Salesman
Season 22, Episode 1
Graham Norton is great at connecting stories between his guests, so when he was on the topic of young entrepreneurship, he moved toRyan Goslingwho had some childhood experience in sales. Seated on the couch withHarrison Fordto promote their filmBlade Runner 2049, his futureBarbieco-starMargot Robbie, andReese Witherspoon, Gosling tells the story of when he was asked to sell cellophane by his parents.
This odd story is made memorable by Gosling’s deadpan humor and Ford’s misunderstanding of cellophane and its uses.Gosling remarks that his parents stumbled upon a truck of cellophane one day and asked him to sell it to his teachers and friends at school, to which Ford asks “what are the uses of cellophane?” Gosling is caught off guard by the question, which elicits some laughs from the rest of the couch and the audience. By the end of the story, Ford knows what cellophane is used for, and Gosling announces that there’s still some merchandise left if anyone wants it.
8Charlie Hunnam Gets Revenge on an Old Schoolmate
Season 21, Episode 6
Charlie Hunnamcame on the show to promoteKing Arthur: Legend of the Sword, but was presented with the opportunity to get back at one of his old school peers instead. At the end of the episode, during the Big Red Chair segment of the show, a man popped up and told a story about how he managed to get one of the popular girls in his grade school to go to the dance with him, at the expense of the boy she already agreed to go with.
Sebastian from Newcastle set off on telling his story, which seemed normal enough, butit took a turn when he admitted that the boy he beat out to take the most popular girl in school to the dance was,in fact, Charlie Hunnam!Hunnam then realized that the story sounded so familiar because it happened to him! The moment was very organic and fun, especially because Hunnam was in good spirits about the old rivalry, and Sebastian played along. Hunnam got the last laugh though, as he flipped Sebastian in the red chair to exact his revenge.
7Jamie Dornan’s Walk
Season 14, Episode 20
Aaron Paul,Declan DonnellyandAnthony McPartlinlearned all about the history ofJamie Dornan’swalk during this moment from season 14 of the show. Dornan, while promoting his roles inThe Fallas well asFifty Shades of Grey, explains and demonstrates the genesis of his walk before describing how his dance instructor forFifty Shades of Greyfinally gave him the key to walking normally.
Walkingdid not come very easily to Jamie Dornan, as the way he walked was always a topic of conversation.It even impacted his professional life when a writer and producer onThe Fallasked him on his first day if his bouncy walk was a character’s choice or his real walk.The audience and fellow couch members were eager to see Dornan stand up and show his walk, which he had tried to change with the help of his wife, but until his dance instructor told him to walk heel-to-toe, he could never get it right. The story of a man in his thirties finally learning how to walk properly made for a surprisingly funny moment on the show.
6Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling’s Ill-Fated ‘Dirty Dancing’ Lift
Season 20, Episode 14
While promotingLa La Land,Emma Stoneand Ryan Gosling took a trip down memory lane to discuss theDirty Dancinglift in another one of their films together,Crazy, Stupid, Love. Apparently, the lift did not go as planned and Emma Stone had to use a double because she realized, due to an internalized phobia that she didn’t know she had, that she couldn’t go through with the lift.
Emma Stone explains thatthe fear she didn’t realize she had internalized had stemmed from when she was 7 years old in gymnastics class on the day before the last day of school.Young Emma Stone was standing on top of the parallel bars when her teacher let go of her ankles and she fell forward, breaking both of her arms.This memory was triggered when Ryan Gosling lifted her forCrazy, Stupid, Love, and she, in the words of Gosling, “tried to scratch [his] eyes out.” This once-scary, now-hysterical memory for Stone makes for a great and memorable story on the couch.
5Jodie Whittaker is Mistaken for Begging on The Tube
Season 26, Episode 10
Kevin Hart,Dwayne JohnsonandJodie Whittakerare on the couch discussing what it’s like being recognized out in the world when Whittaker shares an embarrassing story about when she assumed that an older gentleman had recognized her on the Tube platform, when he was actually trying to catch her attention for an entirely different reason.
Jodie Whittaker’s humor paired wonderfully with Kevin Hart in this episode, particularly when she shared a recent story of when she was standing on the Tube platform holding a reusable glass coffee cup when a man approached her with his arm out. Thinking he recognized her from her role onDoctor Who, she got a little frustrated with him for invading her personal space. It was then that the man told her that he thought she needed money, and that he was trying to put some money in her cup.Kevin Hart circles back on the story when it’s his turn, remarking that “for somebody to put money in your cup, it’s gotta be a lot worse than” dressing like a teenage boy in a baseball cap.
4Miriam Margolyes’s Drug House
Season 26, Episode 15
Miriam Margolyesis always a pleasure onThe Graham Norton Show, but when she appeared on the show to promote the newest season ofCall the Midwife, she shared an unbelievable story about the property she rents out in Dover, England, and how it became the focus of a high-caliber drug bust, which prompted some people online to deem her “Miriam Escobar.”
The town of Dover is very close to and acts as a major port for France, an important fact to know whenMargolyes tells the storyof how a gang from Liverpool rented out her house and used it as a base to drop drugs.She was completely unaware of this until the police called her and asked if she knew that her house was being used in the transportation and dumping of 13 million pounds worth of cocaine.The shock of the story and the hilarious way that Margolyes told it, while also trying to sell the house and its amenities to the audience, made for a very funny and memorable moment.
3Mark Ruffalo Insults Josh Widdicombe
Season 17, Episode 3
The cast ofAvengers: Age of Ultronis on the couch with British comedianJosh Widdicombewhen Norton asksMark Ruffalo,Elizabeth Olsen,Jeremy Rennerand Widdicombe what their fears are, asone of Olsen’s character’s powersis conjuring up other people’s fears. The fears get personal when Ruffalo fills in what he thinks Widdicombe’s fear is before he can answer.
During the episode, one of Josh Widdicombe’s previous jobs as a writer forDora the Explorermagazine became the topic of conversation. Widdicombe had also been remarking about how theAvengersis a little hard to believe. It seems that Mark Ruffalo saw the opportunity to retort Widdicombe’s earlier criticisms of the franchise when Norton asked Widdicombe what his biggest fear was, and Ruffalo jumped in to say “girls over 12.“The jab took the whole room by surprise, even Ruffalo, who tried to shake Widdicombe’s hand before saying goodnight and almost leaving the stage.While viewers can debate if that joke was too harsh, it certainly was a moment to remember.
2The O’Donovan Brothers
Season 20, Episode 13
This 2016 New Year’s Eve episode featured a packed guest list from actors likeMarion Cotillard,Michael Fassbender,James McAvoyandFrank Skinner, to Olympic Irish rowing brothersPaul and Gary O’Donovan, who had won the silver medal in rowing atthe 2016 Summer Olympics. As the duo shared their experiences at the Olympics and upon returning home to Ireland, their laid back nature and thick accents made for some very organic comedic moments.
Several layers of this episode made the O’Donovan brothers' appearance so enjoyable to watch, from the fact thatthey carried their Olympic medals casually in their back pockets, to the fact that Marion Cotillard could not understand a word that they said due to their accents, and the very straightforward way that they spoke about their sport.These Olympians clearly do not take themselves too seriously, and their personalities, humor and comedic timing made for a wonderfully funny segment on the show.
1Greg Davies’s Rough Day at School
Season 19, Episode 9
Welsh comedian, writer and actorGreg Davieshas been onThe Graham Norton Showseveral times, and he is always great at getting a laugh out of the couch and audience, but the standout story he has told was the story of when he was a teacher, and he showed up to school one Monday after going out for a drink and a curry the night before. Seated on the couch withJodie Foster,Russell Croweand Ryan Gosling, Davies had the whole couch in stitches by the end of this story.
Davies recounts the story of when he was a teacher at a school with a brilliant hearing impaired department, and one weekend he went to visit his mother, who also did his laundry for him, despite him being in his thirties at the time. On Monday morning, he showed up to school hungover and feeling uncomfortable, so he went to the bathroom, where he realized that he was wearing his mother’s underwear. This was only half of the battle for Davies, as the food and drinks he had the night before caused him to do a “fecalJackson Pollock.” And finally, when he left the bathroom and returned to his students, who looked shocked, he realized that he was wearing a microphone on his shirt the entire time.Davies’s excellent storytelling hooked Jodie Foster and Ryan Gosling right away, but by the end, even Russell Crowe could not help but double over at the insanely funny story.
The Graham Norton Showis available to stream on Freevee in the US.
