David Mitchell on QI’s tricky questioning.
“Do I get stress headaches at work? Yes, definitely. From the moment I get in, it’s “Denise we need this! Denise we need that!” Which is stressful… ‘cause my name is Linda. Denise is the other black woman that works here. By 10am, someone in the copy room makes a joke about Kobe Bryant, and everyone looks at me to make sure it’s ok. And I smile like it’s ok. But really, my head and neck are starting to throb. Then I spend the rest of my afternoon training my interns, and answering their questions, like, “Yes, black people use shampoo”, and, “No, I don’t know any good reggae clubs around here”, and, “Yes, Condoleezza Rice is very articulate, why do you sound so surprised?” And, “No, I can’t tell you where to buy weed!” And that’s when I reach for Excedrin.”
Presented without comment.
She used to come to this house all the time and say, “Let’s go for a bike ride.” So we’d go for a bike ride, and we were coming down the main street, because then there weren’t any houses around here. There were a lot of palm trees, and a mad dog came out of the woods just like this. Foaming at the mouth. And I fell off the bike. And Lucy says, “Get the hell out of here. Go back in the woods.” And I turned to her and I said, “That is why you are queen of the world.” She was a toughie when she wanted to be, but she was also the best.
- Kaye Ballard
