Ed Gamble & Matthew Crosby on Radio X

Episode 336: Sikisa / The Front-Facing Public
Released: November 30, 2025

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode features Ed Gamble & Matthew Crosby's trademark blend of improvisational comedy, listener engagement, and playful generational debate. The central focus is twofold: special guest stand-up comedian Sakisa joins to discuss her upcoming YouTube special, "Life of the Party," and the hosts continue their recurring investigation into the mysterious habits, references, and culture of "the young" – with in-depth, tongue-in-cheek interviews with Radio X's younger staffers.

The show swerves from raucous riffs about the "Radio X Vatican" and how few people came to Ed’s local charity fair appearance, to meta-discussions on pop culture, heavy metal, memes, parties, and trousers, with the common thread being the hosts’ affectionate bafflement at a rapidly changing world.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Radio X as the Vatican of Rock (00:11 – 03:30)

• Ed & Matthew open with a whimsical bit about if Radio X were a country, ultimately declaring it’s the "Vatican City" of the Global network – the core of “the Church of Rock.”
  • Ed: "We are the very center of the Church of Rock." (01:08)
  • Imaginary scenario: Chris Moyles as the “Pope”, with DJs as cardinals.
  • Use of AI to edit Johnny Vaughan into Pope conclave scenes — riff on technology's pointlessness except for silly jokes.

2. Podcast Correspondence: Listener Letters & Cultural Confusion (03:36 – 10:52)

• Listeners write in to share their confusion about musicians (Terence Trent D’Arby misheard as a football club), memories from Ed’s New Zealand tour, and references to infamous internet memes ("be bisexual, eat hot chip and lie").
  • Ed: "You genuinely don't know what a difference you make to me. And I'm all of your listeners. We may all be thick, but we are thick and grateful." (05:03)
  • Decoding meme generational gap: Vin explains the meme’s origin and struggles with Gen Z references.
• The team debates doing another “World Cup of Fruit,” referencing past running gags.

3. Top Five: The Bald Musicians Quiz (06:51 – 08:23)

• Quick-fire musical quiz: songs/artists that connect through baldness, leading to tangents on bald icons in metal.
  • Vin: "From number two and number five, I think you could get it… Man on the Moon… and Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?... Baldies." (07:43)
  • The hosts riff on bald musicians across genres, culminating in comical metal references.

4. Young People & The Generational Divide (20:07 – 47:51, and 48:36 – 53:14)

• Ed’s “Chat with the Young”: Series of interviews with Jay, Margot, Emily, and Chris, all in their 20s, exploring:
  • Their awareness (or lack thereof) of classic British TV — Only Fools & Horses, Goodnight Sweetheart, You Bet!, Get Your Own Back.
  • Old music vs. their current favorites: Calvin Harris, Jamiroquai, Duran Duran, and confusion over what counts as “old.”
  • Margaret’s gig-going and Jamiroquai knowledge (or not).
  • The meme, music, and clubbing culture gap: WhatsApp in the club, lack of formal “clubs” these days, and rise of bar culture with trainers over heels.
• Meta-commentary:
  • Matthew pokes fun at Ed lurking around the building like a “local character at a bus stop.”
  • The whole bit becomes a satire of workplace generational research gone awry.
  • “What is old music?" “Beethoven,” one young guest replies.
  • Surreal moment: hosts reckon with the reality that The US Office is considered "old TV" by Gen Z.

5. Sakisa Interview: "Life of the Party" (28:39 – 38:46, 33:06 – 34:40)

• Topic: Sakisa’s new stand-up special going to YouTube Dec 21 (Turtle Canyon Comedy)

• Party Philosophy:

  • Sakisa: "I think if it's me invited to a party, then you know it's going to be a good time and I think that's how I am with everything." (32:28)
  • Brings her own food to bad house parties, sometimes ordering KFC/Domino’s if hosts fail.
  • Matthew: “I respect you for it. It's a bold move… what you are saying to them is you've not planned this party well enough.” (31:15)

• Clubbing is dead:

  • “Clubs don't exist anymore. It's all about bars that turn into after-parties, concerts, or festivals,” per Sakisa (34:16)

• Big Pig Question (by producer Stuart Laws):

  • “What’s the biggest pig you can imagine?” Hilarity ensues as Sikisa alleges a three-metre pig in Barbados, hosts challenge her math.

6. Ed’s Christmas Fair Fiasco (12:03 – 18:15, 47:21 – 47:44)

• Ed recounts the humiliating story of opening Bromley Greener and Cleaner Christmas Fair to precisely zero fans; neither wife nor even his dad showed up.
  • Matthew: "Pretend to be a pirate or something." (13:23)
  • Ed: “I had to cut a ribbon staring out across an empty shopping center. I bet that didn't happen to Paul Ready…” (12:24)
  • Later: Ed confronts dad, who admits, "I didn't forget, I just couldn't be bothered." (47:23)

7. Heavy Metal, Bums, and Norwegian Pilgrimages (39:06 – 42:35)

• Matthew’s trip to a legendary Norwegian black metal record store, Helveta/Nezblod, sampling tapes and the horror of realizing he accidentally paid £40 for a cassette.
  • Ed: “That’s the problem with shopping on holiday. Monopoly money…” (42:23)

8. Trousers, Tea Cosies, and Accepting Aging (54:04 – 54:28)

• Generational fashion gap as Ed and Matthew discuss skinny jeans vs. wide trousers, agreeing they’re “years out of date.”
  • Ed: “I look like what I am, which is a dad on the school run.” (54:06)
  • Producer Vin: “Imagine Matthew was a tea cozy anyway.” (54:29)

9. Music, Recs, and Outro Nonsense (55:06 – End)

• Wrapping up: The team offers “Beck Recs” (music recommendations), debates Taylor Swift’s latest, and share random music industry run-ins.
  • “Why are you doing your cool stories in the outro? You had a go at me...” – Ed (56:44)
  • Playful bickering over music taste and “cool stories.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On podcasting & fame
  • Ed: "I've got less famous from doing more work." (17:04)
• On generational gaps
  • Matthew: "What Gen Z have to understand…things can happen before you're born, and that's old stuff." (50:32)
  • Emily (age 26): "Old TV? Maybe The US Office and Desperate Housewives." (49:47)
• On party etiquette
  • Sakisa: "If you know me well enough, if you've invited me to your house party, you should know better. There should be food because otherwise I will judge you." (31:28)
• On clubs becoming obsolete
  • Sakisa: "Clubs don’t exist anymore. It’s all about bars that turn into after-parties." (34:16)
• Music & meme references
  • Vin: "Any female born after 1993 can't cook. All they know is McDonald's, charge they phone, twerk, be bisexual, eat hot chip and lie." (11:13)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Radio X as Vatican / Moyles as Pope: 00:11 – 03:30
• Listener Letters & “Eat Hot Chip and Lie”: 03:36 – 10:52
• Top Five Bald Musicians / Metal Riffing: 06:51 – 08:23
• Christmas Fair Humiliation: 12:03 – 18:15; Return at 47:21
• Chatting with the Young: TV, Music, Memes: 20:07 – 47:51; 48:36 – 53:14
  • Jay (23): 21:14 – 23:45
  • Margot (23): 26:34 – 28:29
  • Emily (26): 43:18 – 46:11; 49:37 – 51:13
  • Chris: 51:45 – 53:14
• Sakisa Interview: 28:39 – 38:46; 33:06 – 34:40
• On British clubbing’s demise: 34:10 – 36:33
• Norwegian Metal Pilgrimage & Pricey Tapes: 39:06 – 42:35
• Trousers, Ageing & Acceptance: 54:04 – 54:28
• Outro Recommendations/Cool Story: 55:06 – End

Tone & Style

The episode’s tone is warm, daftly self-aware, and often meta – the hosts riff breezily, veering from high-concept observational gags to affectionate ribbing of their own lack of youth and coolness. Guests are welcomed into the in-jokes. The interplay between Ed, Matthew, Vin, and their interviewees makes the generational gap endearing rather than alienating, and the podcast is punctuated by rapid-fire wit, surreal tangents, and a sense of play above all.

For Listeners New & Old

• If you enjoy clever, surreal, self-deprecating banter with irrepressible digressions and a healthy dose of pop culture trivia—often filtered through two blokes negotiating their own midlife anxieties—this is a prime episode.
• For fans, the show delivers classic Crunch & Crumble: absurd hypotheticals, list-based games gone off the rails, and a parade of memorable one-liners.
• For new listeners, it’s proof you can jump in at any point – you may miss running gags, but you’ll feel immediately included in their eccentric universe.

Guest highlight:

• Sakisa brings her own brand of energy and directness, especially on party etiquette and her upcoming special. Her clarity on "life of the party" carries the same vibrancy as the hosts’ comedic approach.

Ed: “I've got less famous from doing more work.” (17:04)
Sakisa: “If you've invited me to your house party, you should know better. There should be food because otherwise I will judge you.” (31:28)
Emily (26): "Maybe the US Office and Desperate Housewives as old TV." (49:47)

For a blend of heavy metal, parties, meme decoding and good-natured mockery of both the young and themselves, Episode 336 is an ideal listen.