Bob Mortimer’s strange 1989 encounter with David Byrne: “Can you imagine a more perfect meeting?”
During the late 1980s, Bob Mortimer was appearing on One Hour With Jonathan Ross alongside comedy partner Vic Reeves, performing a comedic quiz segment. One episode featured musician David Byrne as the musical guest, promoting his Latin-influenced solo album Rei Momo, an artist whose work with Talking Heads Mortimer greatly admired.
In the green room before the show, Byrne entered and ignored Mortimer's greeting entirely. Instead of engaging, Byrne walked deliberately to a corner of the room and stood facing the wall for approximately five minutes, then turned and left without uttering a word. Rather than feeling rejected, Mortimer later wrote in his autobiography that he found the bizarre encounter oddly perfect, viewing Byrne's peculiar behaviour as something to appreciate rather than resent.
- Comedian Bob Mortimer encountered his musical hero David Byrne backstage in 1989 at a late-night talk show
- Byrne ignored Mortimer's greeting, walked to a corner and stared at the wall for five minutes in silence before leaving
- Mortimer later recalled the strange interaction with amusement, viewing it as a humorously perfect encounter