Al Jean doesn’t look like one of the funniest men on the planet. Nor does he assail his entourage with hilarious pop-culture observations, or compulsively cut those around him down to size with his rapier wit. Instead, the the man who as head writer has presided over 375 episodes of The Simpsons, arguably the funniest television programme ever made, requests a mineral water, sits down quietly and launches into a breathless spiel. “We just recorded the Ricky Gervais episode. He really wanted to do something where we satirised Wife Swap. It’s a very funny episode.” Jean, who is big and bluff-looking, resembling an outgrown 44-year-old college boy in a polo shirt and slacks, giggles at the thought. “Ricky was over to collect his Golden Globes for The Office. There are so many of our writers who are fans of his that we thought we’d throw a lunch for him. And he mentioned that he would be interested in writing an episode with us. Before we knew it, it was worldwide news.”
SOURCE: Belfast Telegraph