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Thursday, February 21, 2008

The Man-Machines

SKETCHY! That Mitchell and Webb Look, BBC Two, 9.00pm

And they're back! Home computers Rob'n'Dave return for a second series of their much-loved TV sketch show, except of course it's the third Mitchell and Webb TV sketch show really, and the fourth if you count the Mitchell and Webb-heavy Bruiser, and actually their seventh sketch show overall if you throw Radio 4's That Mitchell and Webb Sound into the mix as well. Obviously that's quite a lot of PC-level heavy-duty mathematics to wrap our heads around (not sure the Mac could cope with it, to be honest, though it could probably turn it into a pretty pie chart or something), but that's Mitchell and Webb all over, you see: very funny and very intelligent men who also make you THINK (a little bit, even if it's just about how ridiculous numbers sound out of sequence or which computer you'd rather buy).

In a refreshing move that's almost unheard of in the sketch show world, they've defragmented their hard drives, restored their factory settings and chucked out pretty much every single character and concept from the first series (bar one or two, including the natural next step in the Numberwang! story), thus creating a blank comedy slate on which to start doodling with their hilarity chalk pencils all over again.

The previews we've seen so far have been excellent, including the bawdy Carry On-style hospital where one inadvertently-offensive doctor can't quite get the hang of innuendo, the over-excited TV sports announcer, and a lovely sketch where Rob persuades Dave to pretend to be gay for entirely selfish reasons. Rebooterrific!

Labels: BBC Two, comedy, Mac, PC, That Mitchell and Webb Look, TV

By Nick :: Post link :: ::
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Thursday, November 15, 2007

Thursdays are grumpy (but funny)

CHEEKY! Never Mind the Buzzcocks, BBC2, 9pm

DOUR! Lead Balloon, BBC2, 9:30pm

WEIRD! The Mighty Boosh, BBC3, 10:30pm

From time to time it has been insinuated that we are curmudgeonly old misanthropes. Or even misanthropic old curmudgeons. That we like nothing more than to sit back and cynically comment on the crapness of the world, or at least the crapness of popular culture.

Well, tonight is for people like us. If Wednesday is 'feelgood' night, with The Secret Millionaire, How to Look Good Naked and Love Trap, then surely Thursday is 'feel bad' night with that programme about terminally ill mums on C4 and the return of two of the most curmudgeonly old misanthropic comedy programmes of all: Never Mind The Buzzcocks and Lead Balloon (quite why BBC2 are screening repeats of Charlie 'God' Brooker's Screenwipe on a Wednesday is beyond us, clearly its spiritual home is right here to complete a triumviate of funny grumpy buggers).

After the mixed response to the last double bill of Vivienne Vyle and Peter Serafinowicz, this new Thursday night double bill sees BBC2 on somewhat safer ground.

Simon Amstell is now well installed as the host of Buzzcocks, and most of his jokes hit the spot, although like Mark Lamarr before him, he sometimes thinks he is funnier than he actually is. And he is the same age as us, but with several years of a hit telly career behind him, so we kind of hate him a bit. We don't know who the guests are during this series, but with last series containing Preston's storm-out and the amazing appearance of MADGE FROM NEIGHBOURS, we are suitably excited about the thrills that await us. And anticipating feeling slightly guilty about the inevitable Britney jokes.

Following at 9:30, newly 'promoted' (or 'robbed') from BBC4, it's the second series of Jack Dee's Lead Balloon. For those of you that haven't seen it, he plays a cynical, misanthropic, curmudgeonly comedian called Rick Spleen. Our kind of guy, then. Each individual epiosde has its own little plots, some of which are incredibly farcical, most of which involve some sort of mishap Rick gets into, which makes it sound shit, but it's actually brilliant. It also stars the wonderful Raquel Cassidy (famous for being the ace Susan from Teachers, amongst other things) and some other people whose names we don't know, two of whom play Rick's great stoner daughter and her great stoner boyfriend.

Our enjoyment of bleak comic thrills could only be improved by the announcement of the second series of Pulling. (Note to BBC: where is the second series of Pulling?)

(Oh, and for those of you who are a bit more cheerful or at least a bit more weird, a new series of The Mighty Boosh starts tonight at 10:30 on BBC3. We know several members of the messageboard go gibbery at the sight of Noel Fielding - and even a few at Julian Barratt, so this is your friendly reminder.)

Labels: BBC2 idents, BBC3 The Mighty Boosh, comedy, Lead Ballooon, misery, Never Mind The Buzzcocks

By Rad :: Post link :: ::
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Friday, March 16, 2007

Amusement crusade

GIVE! Comic Relief - The Big One, BBC1, 7.00pm

It's that time again! It seems like only two years since a bunch of the most talented, hilarious and generous people on British television pooled their resources to produce some of the most ground-breakingly brilliant, innovative, fresh television comedy ever seen in the UK, and now they're at it again! All in the name of charity and goodness, naturally. So, if you've got a spare eight hours tonight, you could do a lot worse than switching over to BBC1 for a laugh (ha ha!), a spot of stargazing (ho ho!) and the chance to make a hefty donation in excess of three figures (lowculture does not necessarily endorse the use of a decimal point) as a thank you to all the wonderful people involved in tonight's event, as well as Davina McCall, Kate Thornton and Fearne Cotton.

Of course, there's no better way to gauge a sense of the passing of time than by comparing the comedic names involved in successive Red Nose Days. New faces from 2005's show such as Henry, Wossy, Frenchy, Atkinsony, Nortony and Gervaisy now jostle for attention alongside lowculture favourites Mitchelly and Webby, who'll be putting Vordermanny and Bally (Snr) through their paces in a Special Red Nose Day edition of Numberwang, not to mention a Special Red Nose Day "surprise" from Kayey (probably a song, unfortunately), Hilly presenting a Special Red Nose Day edition of TV Burp (thanks, ITV!), and Tennanty in a Special Red Nose Day sketch with Tatey, followed by some other sketches from Tatey minus Tennanty a bit later on which probably won't be as Special. The big news (if you're Frenchy or Curtisy) is a Special Red Nose Day edition of BBC sitcom jewel The Final Ever Vicar Of Dibley, this time with young up-and-comer Stingy on hand to really force the chuckles from our throats. Frenchy's also due to pop up alongside Lucasy and Walliamsy, as are Brandy and Watermany, AND IF ALL THAT WASN'T ENOUGH FOR YOU COMEDY LEECHES there's the winner of Comic Relief Does The Apprentice to be revealed, not to mention the joyous prospect of Comic Relief Does Fame Academy being brought to an end in the name of charity and goodwill to the starving and unfortunate.

Finally, post-midnight, Peggy and Frosty draw the short straw / are the lucky bastards who get to do the pre-recorded links without having to be there on the night during the lengthy post-midnight Comic Relief clip anthology, which this year seems to drag on even longer than usual and almost certainly won't have O'Leary sitting in a sauna wearing a towel like it did a few years ago. Unless that's one of the clips. It's unlikely, but, you know, they could have snuck it in there. If they're feeling charitable.

Labels: BBC1, charity, comedy, Comic Relief - The Big One, Red Nose Day, TV

By Nick :: Post link :: ::
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