Tori appeared on the 'V Graham Norton' TV show on Channel 4 in the U.K. on Wednesday, January 15, 2003. Tori was the focus of the entire show, where she had some fun interactions with the host and performed Taxi Ride live with the band at the end of the program. Look below for photos from the show and commentary from people who saw it. I also have a complete transcript of the appearance from Roz Williams.

Photos

Many thanks to Jappy (Ian) for making these screen captures for the Dent!

Transcript

A sincere thank you to Roz Williams.

I'm not always very keen on Graham Norton, he tends to be a one-joke comedian and pushes the boundries of taste sometimes. That said, he can be very funny (often due to his researchers) and his interviews tend to be fun. It does annoy me however that he has a habit of asking a question, getting half an answer and moving on to something else, leaving you wondering what was going to be said.

Graham: She's the only popular Tori left in the world, a hugely successful singer, a fantastic songwriter, ladies and gentlemen, it's Tori Amos!

Tori enters

G: Hello (hugs) How are you? Come and sit down, Tori Amos ladies and gentlemen.

They sit

G: You look lovely

T: Thank you

G: You look gorgeous

T: and so do you

G: (mumbles and points at shirt) shiny, shiny

T: shiny

G: So, how are you?

T: I'm really well

G: You've just started your tour here in Britain haven't you?

T: Yes

G: And how, it's odd, earlier I met your drummer and the roadies and everything and it's all kind of rock and roll but your on tour with your baby.

T: (beams) my little girl, yes

G: the little baby, coz how olds your little baby?

T: Well, she's two years and three months

G: so a kind of toddler

T: yeah, she's a toddler, talking

G: what's it like touring with a toddler?

T: exhausting…but heaven. I mean it's one of those things where she holds court side of stage and the other night she said to me, 'mummy' when we were in Manchester and the people were being Manchester people and I love them so…

G: there's some Manchester people here (points at audience)

T: yeah, they were screaming and the lights were down and we were ready to walk on and she says, 'no, no, ring a ring if rosies' so we stand around and they're (implying the audience) still waiting for us to go on, sing ring a ring of rosies, side of stage, all black, blah blah, all fall down, she looks at me and goes 'now you rock Mummy!'

Laughter

G: wonderful. And what was the thing about jet lag?

T: well, we're just, y'know, we've just come over and O was up in the middle of the night because, umm, husband likes to sleep through the night

G: it's very important, busy, busy man

T: yes, and so he was having a sleep, I took her downstairs and I didn't know, I turned on the telly, I didn't think, I saw Tom Hanks and thought, oh that's fine for kids and I'm like (pretends to be asleep) like this and all I hear is, 'Wife!' and (startled look and sharp intake of breath), Tom Hanks is doing it with Shelley Long on the telly. And Tash is transfixed, she's just looking, she goes, 'what they doing, what they doing?'. I mean, right there, all out and happening and I didn't know what to say, I was speechless, I just didn't know how to tell her. So husband says, 'they're testing the bed!'. And he gave me the evil eye, you'll be testing the bed later wife.

G: That's no evil eye, it's a very good eye!

G: Your albums. First of all, I forgot all about it, congratulations on the new album, has it just gone platinum?

T: Gold in America

G: Gold In America

T: Thank you

G: That's a lot of CDs

T: It's nice

G: It is, it's a lot of them and your going to be performing your new single later, all very live and very special. Some of the other albums particularly Boys For Pele, some of the artwork in this, it needs explaining Ms Amos. First of all there you are on the front of it with a leg dipped in oil and a dead something

T: Cock, that's a dead…

G: limp cock

T: a dead, limp cock, yes

G: (laughing) Daddy, what's she talking about? But explaining this to your daughter, here you are and it looks like your suckling a pig Tori

T: well, the truth is, first of all that pig is a really good story, it's didn't become bacon

G: very good

T: it was made a pet

G: really

T: yeah, somebody made it a pet. Well, if you can do that, what else can you do, so?

G: I have to say to you, now watching you perform is just brilliant, you really, how aware are you when you perform, you really seem to lose yourself.

T: (looks at him, then laughs)

G: do you know, as I was asking that question, I was thinking for once that's a sort of sensible question there

T: Well, I don't know, you just… when you were doing the Queen just now (previous sketch) were you losing yourself in it?

G: No. I was just a poof in a wig, that's what it was.

Well, looking at pictures and you really go, all the pictures show the eyes shut, the hair going wild, in this picture (playing piano and keyboard at the same time) you just look, I'm sorry, you're being a bit easy there.

T: do you play an instrument?

G: No I don't

T: because it's, some of you play and it's, to me the most passionate thing I've ever done. Oops, sorry husband (looks sheepish!)

G: There'll be a lot of testing the bed tonight

T: but truly, I mean it's just, if you love you're instrument and I love…(giggles)

Audience laugh and applaud

G: it's the wrong show Tori

G: Look, I was jealous of all the excitement and I want to experience it but on a big level, so I have a big piano like the one Tom Hanks had in that film, not that film, but a film, Big.

Graham jumps around on piano and Graham and Tori play chopsticks.

Tori asks if he'll be impressed if she can do chopsticks in her (very pointy) shoes.

G: Before the break I noticed the shoes, now you like shoes don't you?

T: I do like shoes

G: Your way up there in the hundreds of pairs aren't you?

T: I don't count, who counts?

G: So we're talking hundreds of pairs

T: well, scattered around.

G: People send me calendars for the New Year

T: do they?

G: kind of people at work naked, that sort of stuff and…

T: no, no, no, really?

G: don't you have them America, there isn't an office in the land that has done a nude calendar I haven't seen. But I did get this one through, this is a 2003 'My Toes' calendar and each month you feast your eyes on some feet

T: oh my goodness

Graham continues to show off the calendar and both he and Tori notice some chipped nails. This follows on to the office party game already mentioned which Tori judges but makes no real comment on.

What I did find cute about the performance was that whenever there was some background music, Tori would do a little dance to it.

Commentary

Here are comments about the show from people who saw it:

From B:

I was able to score a ticket to the show outside the studios - a nice fellow had an extra. It was a lot of fun since Tori was the focus of the show.

They cut out a lot of the stuff they recorded, but not just Tori parts. I guess that's just what they always do - go through and edit stuff out. When they talked about the pig picture, after she told the story about it being saved from bacon, Graham kept prodding her for more info on the picture. So she told a story about how her father had always wanted her to do a Christmas cd of Christmas music, and do some Christmas cards. So... she said "Ok, I'll do a Christmas Card." and it was the pig picture. She said it was her version of he Virgin and Child. HA HA HA.... obviously, they edited that part out. hahahahaha....

They also talked a lot about how she used to play in gay piano bars with her father there in the collar, and how she played in piano bars in polyester and that once a week she was allowed to wear leather. And during that vile foot calendar part they asked her what month was her month and so they looked at the August page, but it was nothing interesting.

They also had to record Taxi Ride twice - the first time they had problems with the cameras, and apparently Tori's lipstick was smeared on her chin. LOL So they came out and touched up her makeup and recorded it again (so we were lucky to hear it twice ). The way it sounded live in the studio, and how it turned out on tv were very different. The bass and drums were loud in the studio, but barely audible on tv.

Also, the "Big" foot piano thing was really cute in person. Tori was grinning this ENORMOUS grin the whole time, and bouncing bouncing bouncing!!! SO cute!!!! It really was priceless to watch. They had to record parts of that again, also, because the "piano" didn't work at first.

What else..... the non-tori parts were edited as well. Those bad drunk picture segment was about twice as long, but they cut them down to only the three finalists.

That's about it. It was fun! I dont' think I would have enjoyed it nearly as much though if not for Tori (of course). I'm not the biggest Graham Norton fan - I don't hate him, but I'm not nuts about him either. Tori was great however, so it was a blast

I will be grateful for that kind man for giving me a ticket for ages! :)

From Steph Foster:

It is half time on Graham Norton- the first half was so funny! Graham had Tori on e "Big"/ Tom Hanks type keyboard, jumping around and playing chopsticks! All this with a pair of stilletto boots on- I am very impressed!

She has told some cute stories about Tash ("Go Rock Mommy!"), and says Mark (who she has been calling husband) has described sex to Tash as "testing the bed"!

So Tori did Taxi Ride at the end, as promised, and it was fab! A bit shorter than the recorded version I think... I'm pleased to have seen her as I can't get to any of her shows in the UK. It seems to me that she spends far less time and effort on the UK now, which makes me really sad. She used to perform much smaller venues, and more of them, so that more people could get to see her.

I'll have to keep checking The Dent for more UK TV appearances. Graham asked some good questions- his best one was whether she "loses" herself when she's playing on stage- TOri was a bit speechless and then asked him if he had "lost himself" during his sketch about the Queen! He said no! But the whole point of the big floor-piano was so Graham could experience the "piano rush" that Tori gets. She got into trouble for saying that playing the piano was the most passionate experience she ever had (sorry husband!).

From rainne laffety:

hey, i've just been watching tori on graham norton. it was much better than the last time she was on, as she was the only guest and she was there for the duration of the show. she told her "testing the bed story" and talked about her passionate love for her instrument! then graham had her play chopsticks with him on one of those big floor keyboards that you stand on (like in the film Big) & despite the shoes she had on she did it really well. it was very amusing! she played out with taxi ride. i never liked this song until i heard it play it live. it was beautiful!

also i just wanted to add, graham pulled out the artwork to boys for pele, and they discussed the picture on the front cover and the infamous suckling piglet. it was a really good show (atleast i think it was!)

From Steve:

Just to let you know about the Graham Norton show. It was pretty good, Tori was fairly quiet. She repeated the "ring a roses" story from Manchester and the "testing the bed" story from Glasgow, dodged some dumb questions about the pig picture(Graham asked why I think, and she talked about how the pig was now a pet but did not answer the question)

Tori then played chopsticks on a big floor piano for children, with Graham and Tori jumping up and down, very bizarre!!

At the end she played a short edit of Taxi Ride, which lasted about 2 mins, she played only the first and last verses with chorus, I believe  the "Trust Fund" verse was excluded completely. The drums were played down so you could only really hear Tori and the keyboard, but it was completely live and Matt and Jon were both playing.

It should also be noted that the performance was announced by Graham as "Tori performing her new single Taxi Ride". Maybe we will get a single after all, but I hope it isnt going to be cut that drastically

Im sure someone can give you an exact transcript later, all in all it was a great show.

From BarbaraKirk:

Tori was on 'V. Graham Norton' tonight (15 January) and I only caught the last 15 minutes so I missed her interview. I did see her judging the 'Jerking 9 to 5' contest and playing the show out with 'Taxi Ride' though.

From Carla:

What struck me about this interview was that it was fun to watch! I'll bet she hasn't really had an interview like that for a long time. Graham Norton really hams up his "camp guy thing" anyway, and I think Tori was able to play along with that. I wish that he would've let her express herself a bit more instead of the focus being on Graham which was a bit madenning though, but my thought while watching this interview was that Tori would make an amazing talk show host. It'll be really interesting to see the contrast between Graham Norton and the BBC show "The Morning Show" which I will watch before I go to work. The BBC interview will definitely be more straight-laced.

From Mark Ramsden:

Taxi ride was the first verse and chorus and the third verse and chorus

Sounded really fragmented.

It really annoyed me, if they are going to have a performer playing i think that they should be given the time required to play all of the song. This also happened when she played A sorta fairytale. It might also explain why that single failed to reach the Top 40, i dont see how you can sell a song when you are unable to perform it all.

Just my opinion. The rest of the show was quite funny.