The real reasons behind Rob and Doug's breakup

[Jawscvmcdia]

The reasons behind Rob and Doug’s breakup have long been debated within the Red Dwarf community. The fact that it has never been truly explained has led to great speculation in a wide variety of forms. I would, however, like to summarise what we know so far.

Doug Naylor stated in the Red Dwarf Series 7 documentary: “If anybody knows the reason, give me a ring”, suggesting that he himself was never fully informed as to the reasons behind the breakup. Additionally, he went onto add that during the production of a GNP series “The 10 Percenters”, which was broadcast between April 1994 to September 1996, Rob Grant was asked to rewrite some scripts that he had produced by ITV, but refused and left. Doug Naylor was then tasked with the responsibility of re-writing these scripts, which he later described as an “interesting time”.

At the British Comedy Awards ceremony in December 1994, Rob Grant and Doug Naylor appear together (although they don’t speak to each other), with Craig Charles in between them. Rob states “I don’t know what we’re doing right this year, but we hope to do it again next year”, suggesting that at this time, the breakup was still yet to be permanent. At the end of his speech however, he quickly walks off the set while Doug Naylor is at the back, being cradled by Danny John-Jules. By September 1996 however, the breakup seemed to be permanent with the incorporation of Rob Grant’s company, the aptly titled “Taken for Granted Productions” (a subtle swipe?).

In Robert Llewellyn’s “Carpool” dated 4 October 2010, Rob bluntly states: “It was basically musical differences between me and Doug. That was it”. Robert (Llewellyn) then asks “lots of people ask if you still get on with Doug now, which you do” and Rob replies “er- yeah, we see each other from time to time”. I find it hard to believe however that a writing partnership that had worked well for almost 20 years (prior to 1995) would just split over “musical differences”.

Rob told the BBC in 2004 (as part of Comedy Connections) referring to Red Dwarf “I just felt, I’d had enough of that and wanted to do something else”, yet there was nothing stopping Doug and Rob working on new material, so why would that be a reason to break up a good writing partnership? Paul Jackson later adds that he didn’t know the reason why the partnership failed and he didn’t know anybody else that did. Whatever it was must have been a closely guarded secret.

Therefore, with Doug’s keen interest in continuing Red Dwarf, one might suggest that it was Rob who decided that either he could no longer work with Doug for unknown reasons. People have suggested that Rob had some kind of mental breakdown that prevented him from working with Doug, but surely if that were the case then they would have ‘taken a break’ and then got back together later on? Even if that had been the case, I am quite sure that Doug would have supported Rob back to work, so it can’t be something along those lines. Again, in the Series 7 commentary, Robert Llewellyn stated: “I’d be in their offices and Rob would walk in with lawyers. I’d attempt to lipread what they were saying. (He jokes) I want all the money. You can’t have it.” So perhaps it was something financially related? This would corroborate with Rob setting up his own company around this time.

Clearly by 2007 however, whatever had happened between them was history as Rob Grant had returned to work on the Bodysnatcher DVD. Recording DVD commentaries with Doug, taking part in the documentary and even working with him on tightening up a long lost script, many would have thought that the two writers had finally put aside their differences. So why did Rob not return for Back to Earth, Series X and Series XI/II? We have reason to believe that Doug has asked Rob if he would like to return for each series, so why hasn’t he?

Whatever the reason is, we will probably never know. But we can speculate, and I hope that one day the two greatest comedy writers of all time will get back together and make magic happen, once again.

Topic

[clem]

> a hologrammatic wig with its own individual light bee

Sort of a toupbee, you mean? Oh come on, it’s nearly Christmas!

[flanl3]

Perhaps his the extra energy required to run in hardlight mode is acquired through the light bee taking in the mushy powder his digestive system would produce, the bee’s placement is sensible enough to catch it in the later stages of its journey.

[Dave]

Sort of a toupbee, you mean? Oh come on, it’s nearly Christmas!

Most bees make honey, but this one makes a syrup!

[si]

I always wondered: when Rimmer switches off his own light bee in Legion…where does it go? Likewise in Gunmen. He gets shot in the mid-section, then he comes to in the cockpit. Where’s his light bee?

[Dave]

Does it not just fall on the floor both times?

[International Debris]

I never really got the whole ‘turning himself off’ bit in Legion anyway. Does it mean he can just put his hand through his own hardlight skin?
You certainly don’t see the light bee fall to the floor (or just… exist) in that scene.

[Jawscvmcdia]

Bump.

[(deleted)]

But why did you bump three separate threads at once though?

[Stephen Abootman]

Why ‘bump?’ Has some new information come out? Did Rob leave after Doug combined 3 seperate jokes into 1 and subsequently refused to explain why?

[Pete Part Three]

>Bump.

Oh, do piss off.

[pfm]

What a cunny wee fella.

[Ben Saunders]

1) Rob Grant wanted to leave
2) Rob Grant left

[Jawscvmcdia]

1) Opinion
2) Opinion
3) Opinion

COMBINED ACTION!!

[Jawscvmcdia]

1) Opinion
2) Opinion
3) Opinion

COMBINED ACTION!!

[International Debris]

Looks like it’s time for a new joke, everyone.

[Ben Saunders]

We should try combining three old jokes into one to create a whole new superjoke.

[Paul Muller]

When is Chloe Annett’s foaming cloche going to update the Blue Midget page?

[cwickham]

EPILOGUE: The second joke after the “combining three separate opinions into one” one, which was much less intelligent than the first, stowed away in the “I’ve finally figured out why…” thread – where it died of old age many years later.

[Ridley]

HARRIOTT: We like a butter cloche, don’t we?

[Dave]

Can’t cloche won’t cloche.

[Rival Schools]

Didn’t Rob have a breakdown of sorts after Series VI?

[Taiwan Tony]

He wrote Dark Ages. So yes.

[Rival Schools]

I might have to watch that one, it looks quite good, IN THEORY.

[Ben Saunders]

The Strangerers was shite but I think he did Dark Ages after that so maybe it’s better, I didn’t care enough to find out

[International Debris]

It’s worse.

[Paul Muller]

I remember thinking it was quite funny at the time. But then again, I was twelve…

[Ben Saunders]

I’ve always wondered how people would react if Rob Grant returned to Red Dwarf, and it was shite. That would throw a real spanner in the works.

[Rival Schools]

You mean, more shite.

[Phil]

Oh, hey, welcome back.

[Rival Schools]

I’m here to avenge the BBC.

[Author]

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