Current Television Comedy

What, in the way of television comedy, do the networks have to offer us at the moment? BBC1 can give you a rehash of the classic 1970's show 'Porridge.' It was revived as part of the BBC's 'Sitcom' season, something to do with it being 60 years since the first 'Hancock' television series. They gave us  rehashes of 'Are You Being Served?' (really awful. The original was never brilliant, a lot of cliches and rather annoying catch-phrases, Mr Humphry's limp wrist and Mrs Slocombe's cat and her over-the top hairstyles, but definitely stuck in a 1970's end-of-the-pier type comedy limbo.) Also, a prequel to 'Keeping Up Appearances' (I never saw it). The one-off episode of 'Porridge' was alright, up to a point, but it wasn't exactly what you'd call 'comedy gold.' It's the one episode which has been developed as a full series of six episodes. But let's be honest, 'Porridge,' in it's original incarnation, was brilliant for being great basically because it was a well-written and acted gem because of it's leading actor, Ronnie Barker. How on earth can an actor emulate his timing, his skill as a comic actor and general all-round likability? The BBC had revived another of his comic hits, 'Open All Hours,' and given David Jason's character, the downtrodden nephew, Granville, the central role. From being the put-upon delivery-boy to becoming the owner of the corner shop, might sound a good idea, basically because Jason is such a popular actor, and they know, with him in it, audiences will watch regardless. It's just that there remake, which is called, unimaginatively, 'Still Open All Hours' is just a clone of the original and is stuck determinedly in the mid 1970's. By now real corner shops have moved on, to being Tesco Extras and Little Waitroses. I think Arkwright's shop would have been taken over by Tesco's by now. It's just a rather creaky excuse for some corny jokes.

Let's leave off about the reboots. Please, BBC, don't do any more. Just because they get large ratings doesn't mean it's a good idea to do more. ITV revived 'Birds of A Feather' which was originally made for the BBC, and gets good ratings, but why do they have to keep on copying what the other channel does?

To original sitcoms. There's 'W1A', which isn't what I'd call a traditional sitcom in the sense that a sitcom is made in a television studio, with around 3 electronic camera, and is performed and recorded before a live audience. 'W1A' isn't made in that format. It doesn't have a live audience, to begin with, is shot (presumably) using a single camera, on location, in the style of a 'mockumentary.' It was a 'sort of' spin-off from the earlier series '2012' (to tie in with the London Olympics.) It has many of the same actors from that, Hugh Bonneville being one of those actors. There is a commentary, delivered by David Tennant (which is something traditional sitcom never has.) It is something of a one-joke comedy.

I've just discovered something on Gold, one of the UKTV digital channels. It's called 'The Rebel' and stars Simon Callow who plays Henry Palmer, a pensioner who absolutely detests the way old people are treated in society. It's based on a comic strip in 'The Oldie' magazine. In this way it is similar to a Radio Four sitcom called 'Clare In The Community' which is based on Harry Venning's 'Guardian' cartoon strip of the same name. 'The Rebel' is currently in it's second series, but, as I've only just discovered it, I've started watching it from the beginning of the first series which is available on catch-up. One of the advantages of having this technology is that you can watch series which you might not have otherwise managed to see. I know you can do this if you have DVDs of series, but in some way catch-up is better because you don't have to have piles of DVDs you watch once and probably never watch again. Anyway, I don't think Simon Callow has ever done sitcom before. He's generally known for fairly light comedy, or at least learning towards that sort of area, but I've never seen him in this sort of vehicle before. It's great to see actors in something that is slightly different from their usual roles. I can't see this being shown on the main channels, BBC1 or BBC2, although it might be shown after the watershed, because the language and some of the subject matter is quite, what I'd call contentious. By the way, don't confuse 'The Rebel' with the Tony Hancock film of he same name. There is no connection in any way with that film. Just a note.

Another more recent sitcom, although not in the stereotypical mould is 'Boomers'which is about three couples who are in the category of being retired. They live in 'Norfolk's only west facing resort, Thurnmouth. It ran for two series as well as a couple of Christmas specials on BBC1 and was written by Richard Pinto. It starred Philip Jackson, Alison Steadman, Russ Abbott, June Whitfield, Stephanie Beacham and Paula Wilcox. It was written by Richard Pinto. It's shot on film and has a similar feel to a much earlier series which also starred Russ Abbott with the sorely missed actor, Michael Williams, married to the fantastic Judi Dench and called 'September Song.' I think you would describe it as being 'bitter/sweet' as it could be extremely funny one minute and the next quite sad and extremely poignant. I think the best comedy should be able to shift between sad and the next be amusing. In a sense Anton Chekov's plays have a similar feeling to them, not entirely achingly funny, but having a depth to them beyond being merely amusing. It could definitely leaving you with a lump in your throat and give you pause for thought. Not a lot of modern comedy can do that. It moves from being funny one minute and the with a shift of emphasis be quite profound.

Odd Jobs

I even worked in a shop at one time. Really odd when I come to think about it looking back nearly 40 years or so. Who really, honestly would employ me in a shop, with my total lack of maths skills?  I was hopeless at maths at school, so the very thought of me on a till doesn't bear thinking about.  How on earth I got the job I will never know. Well, the truth is I did get a job in a shop, and it was called University Audio and Photography. With a name like that it had to have a base in Cambridge.  I know they had a branch in Cambridge, but whether it's still there I don't know. I doubt it somehow. The Bedford Branch was in Silver Street, opposite Debenham's and in a unit which is now (or was, when I used to live there) occupied by a branch of Dolland and Aitcheston opticians. They sold cameras upstairs and audio equipment downstairs (University Audio, not the opticians. Well, of course. That's being just plain stupid to think an optician's would stock such things.) I was supposed to work in the audio department, but for some reason I cannot ever fathom, this was closed when I went to work there and was put in the photography department upstairs.  I imagine I got the job because I did actually have some interest in audio equipment and stereo in particular, but I don't think I made a very good salesman. I think it was closed because it was only open in the winter. And It was during the summer that my brief employment seemed to occur. Strange, but that was how it was and I can't think of any logical explanation as to why. Was it that the company thought that people they wanted as customers didn't buy audio equipment at any time other than during the winter?  Re-arrange the stock. Dust the shelves, make idle banter. Try and look busy and then pounce on the first person through the door who looks as if they might actually part with their cash. Not very likely. So I was stuck in that department. We weren't allowed to sit down during opening hours. Which can be a bit of a strain, standing for a good 7-8 hours without sitting down. It sounds like something out of the sitcom 'Are You Being Served' but certainly not as funny. The manager, one Mr DeWitt (I cannot remember his first name, more like Mr Witless when you read further.) was a real snob in regard to photographic equipment. He really turned up his nose when selling Kodak Instamatics or any of the more popular variety of cameras, mostly those that used the cassette-loading systems that cameras were utilising then (you have to remember that this was a good three decades before the introduction of digital cameras.) For some reason or other the shop never opened on a Saturday, another strange mystical decision that wouldn't happen today. But, on one particular Mr DeWitt DID open the store on a Saturday, when he had a customer for a very expensive camera, which was going to cost well over £600. I'm not sure what sort of camera, but presumably not one using Instamatic technology. Most likely a Nikon or other very top-of-the-range camera. I don't actually recall whether he made a sale. Probably he expected to get commission on the sale, but I'm not sure. The reason being I never found out because I didn't last the week. Boredom and not being able to sit down all day was too much and I left after a week. The store closed down and I put this down very much to the company's strange opening arrangements and not having half the shop available for customers. As regards money and tills, with today's technology you don't even have to work out the change as they can do this for you, and just scan the bar-code on the item for the price to go through the till, so I don't expect it's that difficult. But I'm never likely to have to work in a shop again. I'm not really suited to that sort of work and can get easily bored and it was boring, waiting for customers to come in. I sympathise with anyone who works in a shop, basically for that reason.