Noel Gallagher recalls how Half The World Away became The Royle Family theme song
27 August 2020, 11:00 | Updated: 25 August 2023, 13:15
The former Oasis man has recalled how the B-side ended up being the soundtrack to the much-loved British sitcom.
Noel Gallagher has revealed how Half the World Away came to be the theme song for The Royle Family.
The hit show, which featured Ricky Tomlinson, Sue Johnson, Ralf Little and the late Caroline Aherne, ran from 1998-2000 and included specials which ran from 2006-2012.
The former Oasis rocker was a guest on Matt Morgan's Funny How? podcast, earlier this year, where he recalled how the 1994 track ended up being part of the sitcom, and what the show means to him on the whole.
"I knew (writer and creator) Craig (Cash) from Manchester," Gallagher revealed. "I didn’t know Caroline. Craig had a radio show in Manchester […] and they just asked could they use the track."
Oasis - Half The World Away (Official Lyric Video)
Asked what he thought when he saw it, the Ballad of the Mighty I singer replied: "Well, I instantly fell in love with it, because that house and the awkward silences and eating your tea on a tray on your knee like your Dad…
"My dad was a version of Jim Royle, which is like, ‘Everything on the telly is shit,’ and me Mam was like 'Jesus Christ, shut up’. So that was our house, and the long awkward silences, I was like ‘well, that’s our house,' you know and I instantly fell in love with the pregnant pauses more than anything."
READ MORE: Noel Gallagher was supposed to appear on The Fast Show
Asked if the show's creators asked for Half The World Away specifically, he said: "It’s funny because it was a B-side. I mean, that show made that song famous really, because that song was never performed until way into the 2000s.
“It became a thing. They asked for that song in particularly. I don’t know why. They would have told me why, but it doesn’t bear any connection to the show”.
“They asked and I said yeah. And then of course, as that song became Christmas special after Christmas special, and became part of the fabric of the culture, then that song took on a life of its own.”
READ MORE: Noel Gallagher says he's "ready to call it a day"
If you’re into your comedy podcasts, then look no further!
