From On Patrol #74: The 80s or Whenever
October 20th, 2014

Ridley Tankersley was a recent hire at the station and the new bassist for Will’s band Wild Firth. I had this idea that he’d interview for Will’s intern position as part of the Strike Arc – this was really the beginning of bringing in more people, and expanding the show’s written material and universe. Ridley is a really talented comedian who became a huge part of the show; the section where he and Will go at each other with these non-stop jokes really cemented his role. Maybe the funniest is Will’s final line about Ridley’s godfather’s construction business: “He co-owns it with his wife – don’t lie,” which is just this earnest little throwaway at the end of all the nonsense. This was also the introduction to the bizarre religion I’d conceived of called the Zuluists – it was an extrapolation of this bit from MTV’s The State with Thomas Lennon called “Old Fashioned Man” that I thought was one of the funniest things ever. I really liked the idea of having the bit go in a completely different direction in the final moments, and Ridley’s character being way crazier than anyone would originally think. Ridley also really took to the idea of being described as a “computer nerd with a Hot Topic gift-card” – I think after I wrote that he was on board for whatever I wanted to do. I loved that I could insult people so acutely on the show and not get in trouble for it.