Triple J Jesters.

Triple J's drive slot has recovered its missing comedy.

Craig Reucassel is talking to a woman who runs an animal shelter somewhere in America. Shirley MacLaine wants to write another book, he tells her, and he's wondering if she has a dog who looks as if it might have something to say. The woman gives the matter serious thought before saying: "There is a little deaf dog here who looks at you in this special way."

Radio prank calls have long been a feature of FM radio but Triple J's new drive show has taken it to a new level.

In the tradition of Norman Gunston and Ali G, the funniest moments are when the person at the other end of the line just doesn't get it.

The phone calls are Reucassel's domain, while co-host Chris Taylor focuses on comedy sketches. His daily spoof, Coma FM, captures the worst of commercial FM radio so accurately that for a moment you might think you've inadvertently switched to the wrong station.

After just three months in the national slot, Reucassel and Taylor are still finding their feet but the early feedback from management, listeners and peers has been favourable. Triple J program director Linda Bracken says they have brought edgy, intelligent comedy back to the Triple J drive slot. It has been largely missing since the departure of Merrick and Rosso three years ago.

Perhaps it's a positive sign that Bracken is spending a lot more time fielding editorial complaints, particularly from Christian groups. "We've had a lot of complaints about the religious stuff we do but we are equal opportunity," Taylor says. "We've managed to offend Christians, Jews and Muslims."

Reucassel and Taylor are best known for their work with the Chaser team on ABC television, first with The Election Chaser and then CNNNN. Presenting a radio show as a twosome was somewhat of a leap into the unknown.

Taylor's fear of commitment is a constant source of banter, with one listener offering to be his "radio girlfriend", phoning him on the show every Friday. "It's a challenge to see if I can maintain the relationship for

12 months," Taylor says. Reucassel, in contrast, has been with the same partner for nine years and has a two-year-old son.

The Chaser team is in talks with the ABC about another TV show but Reucassel says it won't be a rerun of CNNNN. He says he'd like to do another Election Chaser but it's hard to plan on short notice. "If John Howard wants to call with the date of the election, recognising the important role we played in Australian democracy last time, that would be great," he says.

Remembering Reucassel's appearance at the Liberal Party's post-election victory party, dressed as "the race card" and yelling, "We won, we won," it's unlikely Howard will call any time soon.