was just marvelling at jan ravens on radio 4 (talking about how she mimics voices on dead ringers) and they got charlotte green in to read a passage and then jan ravens read the same. according to the experts there were obvious differences between the two, but you try telling them apart. remarkable because you hear one immediately after the other, whereas in most cases mimicry works because the other, original, is not there for immediate comparison. earlier in the day was absolutely startled by michael sheen's portrayal or kenneth williams in the new biopic - he has got the voice down pat - and yet you couldn't really say that - not not exactly right, but somehow capturing all the features of williams' speech in the right way to produce the overall impression of being identical. the way gyles brandreth always sound like derek nimmo until you hear them both on the same program and you realise they don't really sound alike, and that brandreth's voice is, well, more nimmo than nimmo himself.

anyway, monday is bbc 4's kenneth williams night! i read this on stop messin' about:

"BBC Four's new drama on the life of Kenneth Williams, starring Michael Sheen as Williams, is scheduled for broadcast on 13th March. Fantabulosa! was shot on location at Pinewood Studios, home of the Carry On films, at the end of 2005. BBC Four will be having a whole evening of tie-in shows as part of a not to be missed Kenneth Williams Night, from 7pm on March 13th.

As well as the main Fantabulosa drama, there is to be a programme called Kenneth Williams In His Own Words, a new documentary from BBC Arts. Trawling through the archives we see rarely viewed interviews of Williams where he talks about Christianity, architecture, his friendship with Joe Orton and his passion for music. We hear him performing Gogol, see him larking on the Carry On set and reducing Wogan and Parkinson to fits of laughter. There's also a classic episode of Jackanory: The Dribblesome Teapots.

The next set of programmes making up the evening are repeats of the 1998 Reputations: Seriously Outrageous & Desperately Funny documentaries on Kenneth Williams in which his life and times are documented and explored in these foremost profiles of him. Finally, the other programme scheduled is the stage show Round The Horne Revisited. Brian Cooke, the only surviving scriptwriter from the groundbreaking 60s satirical radio comedy, adapts a selection of the original material for this tribute.

interview with michael sheen, who plays kenneth williams, and three clips from the biopic.