Jonathan Van-Tam goes full Alan Partridge during ‘unique’ introduction at BBC lecture

Professor Jonathan Van-Tam has amused people with his Alan Partridge-esque lecture introduction on BBC Four on Tuesday night.

The Deputy Chief Medical Officer has become a household name since the Covid 19 pandemic began, having taken part in many of the government’s daily briefings, delighting many with his fondness for football analogies.

But now, we have seen a less serious side to the professor as he took part in the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures on the BBC.

In a clip shared by Twitter account Accidental Partridge, Van-Tam’s hilarious lecture intro saw him rip his shirt and tie off.

Dressed in a suit and tie in front of black background and standing at the podium we have come to know from the daily briefings, Van-Tam addressed the audience.

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He said: “I’m Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, deputy chief medical officer for England and many of you may have seen me giving public health announcements from the podium at No 10 Downing Street.”

Van-Tam continued saying, “but tonight is different” as he ripped his shirt and tie off and the black backdrop and podium were whisked away in a puff of smoke.

He went on: “Tonight I’m speaking to you as a scientist and a doctor, not a Government advisor.”

The explosive presentation resembles a scene in Alan Partridge where Alan’s “Dante Fires” presentation, complete with similar explosions, goes predictably wrong.

One person wrote: “I adore the transition from formal shirt and tie to unbuttoned shirt. BBC4 at it’s most thrilling.”

Another said: “The puff of smoke and slightly-longer-than-ideal pause before revealing a slightly different shirt. The complete lack of response from the crowd. Truly magical stuff.”