There’s a new sit-com just started on the radio. Based in Geordieland it’s called ‘Y’a tarkin shite man’ and it involves the goings-on at a shambolically-managed footie club affectionately known as the Doon, so called because, as the locals put it, that’s where the club’s gannin’ next season.
I used to like watching Ricky Gervais enormously. ‘The Office’ was a brilliant concept and the follow up ‘Extras’ was extraordinarily ambitious and funny too, when the humour was self-deprecating and aimed very much at his own character Andy Millman or his close circle of hapless associates or when he was pricking the pomposity of his celebrity guests. But to me it became rather uncomfortable viewing when the focus of the humour was re-directed away from the fame-hungry and towards some easier targets like the Down’s boy in the restaurant, the girl with celebral palsy, the dwarf actor and perhaps even the outrageously camp BBC tv producer of Andy’s programme ‘When the whistle blows’, in the second series.
As the red tops know there’s nothing like a clever punny headline to capture lots of interest; and that’s nothing like a clever headline. Anyway have you seen the recent C4 adverts for a new programme to be hosted by Alex Zane called Rude Tube? It’s a celebration of the top 50 good, bad and the simply shocking clips appearing on youtube and the like. In other words it’s the online equivalent of You’ve Been Framed which spawned Kirsty’s Home Videos. You’ll be pleased to note that as well as all the latest user-generated stuff there are also some rude TV outtakes, an idea first covered by It’ll Be Alright on the Night and copied by Harry Hill’s TV Burp. Plus there’ll be some crazy ads but hang on doesn’t Tarrant on TV do that?
Pasta Paulie 