dana, SG, save me....
 

What's new (or even new in the last 8 years) in the Brit comedy on TV world? Series/sitcoms etc (good ones obviously). give me some search terms for youtube please. I need a little pick-me-up....

The IT Crowd

Immediate thoughts - Benidorm, No Heroics, Green Wing, That Mitchell and Webb Look...

Panel Shows, the evergreen Have I Got News for You and Never Mind the Buzzcocks. The sometimes wonderful Mock the Week (all comedian show) and the hit & miss 8 out of 10 Cats.

Harry Hill's TV Burp unites my whole family - my parents Sky+ it and we sit down to watch it together when they come back from Mass (Saturday night fulfilling Sunday obligation). I've been watching it for years, so it might not be new, but it's always funny.

Also add Being Human to that. Not actually a 'comedy' more a drama with a comic edge. Very funny but also very good.

Don''t forget QI - Stephen Fry and Alan Davies with others.

Mum & Dad like that - I think it's gone downhill recently.
It's mostly jokes about Stephen Fry being gay.

Ohh I like Alan Davies. Already exhausted the Benidorm after you posted that last clip, SG :lol: thanks, will look into the others.

This is not a comedy, although there are some funny lines, but E4 (Channel 4's offshoot) premiered a fantastic series tonight - Misfits (TV channel website). I was all prepared to hate it - a series about teens (more like twenty-somethings) with ASBOs that get super-powers? Hello? No Heroics without the jokes and Being Human with attitude? Get some original material, yeah [sucks teeth].

But it was bloody good. The rest of the series might be pants of course, but the set-up was almost pitch-perfect. And I loved that there is a Midlands girl in there - Kelly. She sounds propp-ah Lest-ah. I give myself a 30 miles radius of inaccuracy of course :)

Thoroughly recommended if you can get it elsewhere. I've Sky-Plused it, as thankfully Thursday nights are relatively TV free in this house (Monday nights are a nightmare!)

But now I have to go back and watch my fave No Heroics episode. How did that slip under their radar for re-commissioning? It was grand. And yes, I'll be watching the one with Fusebox in again. It's not my fault. I'm reading a biography of Derek Jarman. He's influencing me from beyond the curtain.

WOAH! Just realised where I knew Martin (Benidorm) from!
Of course I am notoriously horrible with faces, but I swore I knoew him from somewhere. The Hotness, of course. Stand up Nivcholas Burns (yes I looked it up).

Learned something new today.

If you like him then it's worth checking out Nathan Barley.

"The Armstrong and Miller Show" - Hilarious.

Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Arm...nd_Miller_Show
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/results?searc...The+Armstrong+

Can't go wrong.

"The Mighty Boosh" is funny, but... not to everyone's taste. More a young-adult kind of humour, I suppose.

Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mig...28TV_series%29
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/results?searc...rch_type=&aq=f

Um, no, it's not funny. But thanks for playing.....

Armstrong & Miller... that's great, thanks :)

Oh Yeah, I forgot A&M. I love them.

There's a one off comedy pilot that aired a few days ago. Called 'The Campus'. It's part of a series of new comedy pilots (same way they got Being Human made). Talking of which: Being Human.

Armstrong and Miller: Not Jane Austen.

This video is not avaialable in your country due to copyright restrictions.

yay4youtube

Bleh. That suxxors. I'll have to wait until a fan puts those sketches on a non bbc channel.

There was a Mock-The-Week-athon (my name, not theirs) on Dave the other day.
I saved them all, and have watched them while ironing for Grandad.
I've ironed creases in all the wrong places on his boxer shorts & pyjamas while laughing immoderately.

Given Frankie Boyle's filthy tongue I figure Grandad should be grateful I didn't just put the iron down to burn while I cried with laughter.

My bro came round and completely agreed with me. Didn't help with the bloody ironing though!

Misfits ended this week.
The little teases - we didn't find out Nathan's super-power until the last five minutes of the series!

Won't spoil it in case anyone takes my advice and watches the series. It was really very good. And the door is certainly open for another series, which could focus on the group, on a single character (they're all strong enough) or even on different people similarly affected/ afflicted.

I'd be disappointed not to see Simon or Kelly again if they were missing though. Kelly for her attitude and accent and Simon for his brooding prescence. Oh and the fact he has the haunting/ haunted, slightly odd sort of looks Russel T Davies usually casts.

Interesting, that reminds me of Misfits of Science (1985). It's refreshing to see the British steal television series ideas from us instead of the other way around. I actually remember some of the series.

Of course, they could be using "Heroes" as their model.

U.S. Shows taken from Britain

All in the Family
Coupling
Life on Mars
Absolutely Fabulous

I've never got that whole thing of taking a hit show and remaking it. Just show the original. The reason a show gets remade is because it's been a small hit amongst those who've watched it (on BBC America, or the sci-fi channel or whatever). If the original was shown on the main networks it'd probably be accepted as it is. If an American show looks good, we just show it, we don't try to resituate it in an English setting.

Don't they trust their audiences to be able to handle something that isn't set in their own backyard?

I kind of get it with something like The Office. It's very rooted in everyday British experiences and may well not translate. But Being Human is going to be remade and resituated in an American setting. Why? We didn't see True Blood and think hey that's awesome, let's remake it and set it in kent.

Darn, I can't believe I forgot The Office.

I think that sometimes the feeling is that it helps the audience relate to the situation if it's familiar. For example, the average British corporate office probably has a slightly different social dynamic than it's American counterpart. In the US, we have certain social themes we understand, even if we don't experience them ourselves. So most of us can picture what a normal 4th of July company picnic would be like and be able to identify it as a setup for a comedy situation. In England, it might be Guy Fawkes day.

All in the Family and The Office are two examples of taking concepts, applying equally good writing and acting to the American versions, and coming out with something good that is similar but stands on it's own merits.

Coupling and Absolutely Fabulous are what happens when you treat the American version as just another part of the franchise with a different brand label. Poor writing results in a poor product.

Absolutely. The Office needed to be resituated for it to engage fully.

Being Human doesn't; it's no more about being British, than True Blood is about being American. Likewise No Heroics: it'll lose something if it's resituated. True Blood is absolutely quintessentially Southern in it's cultural references, but it doesn't require one to be a Southerner in order to get it. That's part of its charm in fact.

It's a bit like taking a story that's originally a period piece set in the 19th century and rewriting it as a 21st Century tale on the grounds that 21st century people can't relate to horse-drawn carriages.

The Office is a phenomenon; versions of it are now being produced in England (orig.), US, France, Germany, Quebec, Chile, Russia and India. Mr. Gervais deserves any and all success and the British should be proud that they are once again directing world culture.

yes, we should. And we should be proud of gervais. We are, however, instead rather more inclined to bitch about him and the current vogue is to say, 'Don't know what the fuss is with gervais. I never found him funny. The Office was shit.' or 'Everyone thought he was shit in the 11 o'clock show, now he's just doing the sam old stuff as he did the, so why is everybody treating him like some kind of comedy God.?'

personally I think he's a genuine comic genius. I adored him in the 11 o'clock show. I have loved everything he's done so far. But ya know....this is Britain and that's what we do. We love you til you've made it and then we hate you for making it.

I know! I am much annoyed by this.
I've never liked Gervais and never thought him funny.
Now everyone else is saying the same thing and it's NOT FAIR!

I rarely go off people.
If I like you, I like you long time, and I don't give a damn what Charlie Brooker says.

His humour is the kind you either love or hate. It's not comfy. It either strikes a chord or it doesn't.

What pisses me off is the media and blogosphere who go from hailing him King of Comedy one year to trashing him as empty hype the next. Typical of this country.

I seem to fall between two stools re comedy "comfy" and not.
I dislike Fawlty Towers for example, in the same way I dislike Gervais. It's too close to the bone.

And yet when Matt described Phoenix Nights as "MOR" (middle of the road - his most devastating critique) I was shocked. A comedy that has a disabled man trapped overnight on his Stairlift is hardly Terry and June.

And of course The League are not exactly the epitome of "easy viewing". I think I can cope with most things outside of failure as targets for comedy. I am too moved by the desperation in the men at the centre of FT and The Office to perceive the comedy.

But yes, it's rare I have anything good to say about our papers as a whole. I console myself by thinking that they write to sell. Therefore they are the attention seeking child at the back of the class (or if you are unlucky, the one at the table next to you) and should therefore be ignored if not excused. I try to practice this, but sadly the 'rents get The Express, and a week doesn't go by without me saying, "I just found this in your paper..."

Still, better my righteous indignation is kept without the family I suppose. Otherwise I'd be a journalist...

I must have missed the Amerian ABFAB. Thank goodness, I am so lucky. Loved the real thing, though.

I was devastated by what happened to Live and Loves of a She-Devil over here. ick.

And I have always harbored a suspicion that Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure was what happens when a Hollywoodian (a specific breed of American) gets hold of Doctor Who.

I wonder if it is all about money?
Not a comment on America, just entertainment in general - and your system certainly works in a different way than ours.

Surely BBC America shows the originals (BBC originals of course) but it just doesn't generate enough interest country-wide.

So the option is bought up (benefiting the BBC) and the channel that buys it has effectively a home-grown hit which has already been tried and tested and achieved a certain amount of appreciation nationwide. They reap the advertising revenue.

I don't know how selling a British made series would work in terms of revenue. I'm sure it must (countries throughout the world buy our programmes without needing to remake them) but perhaps it's less feasible in America. Certainly when the remakes are made, FAR more money is thrown at them then in our meagre budgets.

Just a suggestion - I admit I don't really know how this works :)

And after all you employ a goodly number of our actors in American roles, so I'm not claiming some sort of bias here.

I think the point about budgets might be central. American audiences are used to tv shows made with a certain amount of budgetary flair, which we just don;t do. Maybe our shows just seem a bit small and homemade to them?

I never considered that before actually. I always assumed that it was a case of networks and studios assuming too little of their audience (assuming that they wouldn;t be able/willing to make the leap), actually, thinking about it, it may be that they assume a greater level of sophistication in their viewers.

Just a quick update to the Brits to say that Misfits won the BAFTA for Best Drama this year and is transferring to Channel 4 (it was previously on E4). Even the Radio Times has it as their Pick of the Day. So anyone who missed it can catch up. DO!

And even better news, the ensemble cast are currently filming the second series. I assume it's all of them - at least the articles I've seen do not suggest it's a single character spin-off.

In sadder news, Geoffrey Hutchings who played Mel in Benidorm died last week from a viral infection. His agent reported that he was fine at Wednesday lunchtime but dead by Thurday morning. He was only 71.

Benidorm hasn't had much luck, what with the loss of Geoffrey Perkins too. They're about to start filming a new series. I'd be worried for Steve Pemberton... but his name isn't Geoffrey.

Oh, just an aside - I'm saving up to go and see Ghost Stories, a horror play written by Jeremy Dyson (The League of Gentlemen) and Andy Nyman (who works with Derren Brown and starred in Charlie Brooker's Dead Set - as well as a cameo in TLOG :)) It's transferred to the Duke of York (West End) from Hammersmith (not West End). Horror and Jeremy and Nyman - who acts as well as wrote - and theatre. Oh my.

Found this on the back of the Sherlock Holmes query.

Just about to watch Monte Carlo or Bust.
Docu-comedy about three pairs of travellers trying to find the essence of France.
So far, so yawn. Who they then?

Jack Dee & Ade Edmondson
Jodie Kidd & Julian Clary
Penny Smith & Rory McGrath

Brits will know why I'm bothering, I expect most others to be baffled (well, as baffled as I am by Penny Smith)
Going to watch the 1st episode on ITV catch-up - I realised today it started last week! Now this will be a saga, as their online service appears to be put together with yoghurt cartons and string. But if it's any good, I'll watch again tonight in real time and report back.

cool.

I wasted a bit of time on the Inbetweeners recently

Clunge.

Meh - have heard pro and anti Inbetweeners.
One of the teachers said it's only funny if you're 19, another said that she and her husband wept with laughter regularly, another that she found it amusing but not complulsively so.

It's been an award winner here, but I admit I've never watched it. I often feel guilty when a programme goes on to international acclaim and I've just not bothered (being more interested in books than TV generally). So it's kinda reassuring when I'm reminded that not "everyone loves it".

Monte Carlo or Bust made me laugh out loud - not bad when I usually laugh with my mind not my belly. Very like the recent BBC Three Men in a Boat and spin-offs therefof - obvious comparison given that it features Rory McGrath and is narrated by Griff Rhys Jones.

I take it back re Penny Smith. All the participants seems to have rudimentary (or better) French, but she is apparently fluent. And she works well as Rory's foil. I'll tell you a secret... shhhhhh... I really fancy Rory McGrath, and have done since Chelmsford 123

If you meet him, don't say anything.

There, there sweetums. Try this link:

It made me howl with laughter at some parts and cringe with embarrasment in others. sadly, it definitely deteriorated by the series.

What did you guys think of Lost in Austen?

Didn't watch it, sorry.

Probably just as well because I was going to criticise it.

I have an allergic reaction to all things Austen.

i can read and enjoy as a historian, looking at it as a historical source...but I just find all that stuff unreadable for entertainment; and mostly unwatchable when done as period drama on tv. I realise that Lost in was something different, but I just couldn't bring myself to find out in what way.


I saw a really interesting news report recently about a new theory on Austen's writing style. It seems that our doyenne of perfect grammar and oh so correct English, was in fact way more experimental in her style than we'd previously realised. The versions of her work that made it to us were heavily edited and 'corrected' to conform to established standards of grammar and punctuation.

Much of the reason I find her work so unpleasant to read is the stilted dialogue and overly precise sentence structure. It's like reading a primer for grammar, rather than a story. Turns out that her original scribblings show a much more fluid style, more in keeping with modern authors than her contemporaries. One of the specific differences noted is in her presentation of dialogue; which in the original, pre-edited form was much more naturalistic than the dialogue that we get in the 'corrected' version.

I do enjoy reading Austen - as with Dickens I find after a page or two I fall into the rhythm. I just don't watch much TV.

The new series of Misfits starts Thursday, though.
So that'll be two programmes for me on one day alone! (True Blood series two on Channel 4). Thank goodness they're on the same channel to avoid any overlap.

Well don't let that stop you, go ahead and rip it up. :D

Interesting stuff Dana. I quite enjoy reading Austen once in a while and usually like the film and TV of her work. I only managed one episode of Lost in Austen. Suspension of reality isn't my strong point and I thought it was ridiculous that the heroine of the series would actually want to stay in or be able to cope in Austen's world or that one of Austen's heros would even look twice at her. I felt it was something that I should like/give a decent go to, but never did get around to watching that second episode and have no regrets.

You guys should have told me about Mock the Week..... I had to find out in a Royal Wedding thread.......

Au contraire, Monnie-Mon-Mon
From this very thread:

I rest my case.
But you're right - I should have bigged it up more.

Oh... wait...

Just have to say (again!) how extraordinary Misfits is. Second series currently on E4.
I adore it, and would sleep with it if I could.

It's fantastic yet earthy, funny but shocking, dark and joyous and filthy, filthy, filthy.

Just watched the Christmas Special, which ended the second series.
Filled with with such hope for a third, and with an awesome new setup.
It's bound to win about a gagillion awards - all well deserved.

It really is the best thing on television. Not particularly clever, not the tightest of plotlines (hey - they're ASBO youths with super-powers, who cares?!), not the highest of budgets.
But the characters are well drawn, human - on the obnoxious side - and the dialogue spanks and sparkles. When I've gorged on two episodes at once I hear everything in my head in Kelly's wonderful Derby accent - just typing that I hear it as "ack-SUNT", said with pursed lips.

If ANYONE else out there in Cellar-land appreciates this gem please let me know. I feel I'm hollering into a canyon here. As I'm sure Nathan would say in different circumstances...

A Misfits short is available online from 15 September.
One MAJOR character doesn't come back for the third series. And a new one is introduced. The short covers that.

I don't want to spoil it if there are casual viewers - I knew a while back.
Gutted.
But if the writing is as good, we might not miss them anyway. Or at least not mourn them too much (no idea if it's a death, I just mean mourn their passing from our screens).

I am honestly looking forward to this more than I was Torchwood.
And that's a lot.

Looks interesting but very confusing -only clip compilations are available on youtube :(

I can get full episodes on YouTube, but I guess Channel 4 has restricted them to this country.
They should be available on (ahem) other websites?

There's only been two series so far, so not too much to catch up on if you like it.
I might have to go back and see if it was as good as I remember.

@ Monster

Full streaming episodes here:

http://www.tv-links.eu/tv-shows/Misfits_15094/


Meanwhile...Sorry to add to the confusion, but I just found a really nice fanmade trailer for the first series of Misfits.

Incidentally. I am now totally a Misfits convert. Easily one o fthe best shows on tv.

Thanks Dana. Do you use that site a lot? How is it funded/why do they stream current stuff free...? I'm always wary of joining things that seem to good to be true....

Does anyone else here use Flixaddicts?

That site doesn't stream anything. They act purely as a user-submitted links portal. The streaming, and hosting is done on other sites, who make their money through a combination of click-thru advertising and registered subscriptions. Those sites aren't just hosting tv shows. The users host all sorts on there. Bit like Youtube and cloud storage combined. Those users are then able to post links to any tv shows they've uploaded, via some of the portal sites. The portal sites I think also gain revenue from click-thru advertising.

Many of the streaming sites in those links, such as Videobb and MegaUpload/Megavideo offer a better service for subscribers. So, access to the videos is free for visitors but limited. Videobb for instance has a 70 minute per 24 hour period limit. You also get faster streaming speeds, less buffering and no adverts active on the page if you subscribe.

You'll find the streaming sites of variable quality. Some have an annoying habit of launching adverts on a different part of the page, and the volume is set to loud. Most are polite enough to set their ads to mute and you can unmute them if something catches your eye.

Personally, my current favourites are 'Putlocker' and 'Megavideo'. Neither of those impose mad ads on you. There's a little pop up ad that you can close down and thats about it. Both are good stable playersand usually have decent streaming speeds. Videobb and Videozer are both very unstable players. Don't know why, they didn't used to be.

Try out a few links and see which players/streamsites seem best to you. There are usually several choices of upload from different people, all of whom have their own personal favourites amongst the streaming/hosting sites.