Bob Mortimer

Crackanory Series 4 Preview

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The latest series of the ever-popular, dark anthology series Crackanory is looming. Here is quick preview of the latest set of episodes, to give you an idea of what sinister gems this new series has to offer, in time for January 30th, when the series begins on Dave.

The first episode in the series, entitled A Close Slave, is written by Tony Way. Dara O’Briain narrates the story of a playwright in ancient Rome, who is aided by his helpful slave when suffering from a particularly troublesome bout of writer’s block. Way presents viewers with an interesting blend of uneasy politics and delightful silliness, with the addition of various pieces of historical trivia on top. The drama levels are high as there is certainly a lot for our young protagonist to lose here. But as long as he writes the perfect ending, everything should go smoothly, right?

Living With A Lie, written by Nico Tatarowicz and performed by Sheridan Smith, follows the turbulent experiences of office worker Russell as he struggles to write his first novel. This story is one of lies and false impressions, with Russell’s fictional and genuinely disturbing ‘Aunt Janet’ making an unwelcome appearance across all aspects of his personal and professional life. The writing in this episode is particularly beautiful, with Tatarowicz’s use of metaphor making for poetic storytelling; the kind of writing that inspires others to write. And not only this, Steve Oram stars as Russell’s unsupportive manager Phil. This is definitely a highlight of the new series.

Crackanory S4 – Episode 3 – Bob Mortimer – The Despot of Tea

Bob Mortimer narrates the third episode in the series, Arnold Widdowson’s The Despot Of Tea, and his trademark matter-of-fact delivery shines through in this tale of Geoff, who becomes an unintentional propaganda icon when his acting career takes a surprise turn. This somewhat uneasy tale follows Geoff as he travels to a former Soviet state for of an acting job, only to find out that he has been recruited by the country’s president Alexei to get the nation’s people back on side. If this twisting thrill-ride of a story wasn’t enough for you, it’s worth watching just to hear Mortimer say Sir Slurpington-Boots.

The Frankenstein-esque The Survivor is a delightfully unsettling piece of television. Written by Alex Kirk and narrated by Anna Friel, this tale recounts the difficult discoveries made by Thomas, who awakes in a strange house in the middle of the countryside to the news that his parents have died. He is bed-bound and helpless, pined over more like a family pet than a patient. Nothing is as it seems in the warped, dystopian world Thomas finds himself in, and viewers are kept guessing right up to the very last scene.

Episode five, Proxy Lady, features Mel Giedroyc’s recognisable, playful delivery that is pleasingly blunt in parts. Mel introduces us to 27 year old Beth, a miserable hotel worker who’s life becomes infinitely more interesting when she receives an ominous email from a woman named Greta (House of Fool‘s Ellie White). There is certainly something sick and twisted about the behaviour of the characters from the offset, but an unusual development is that it appears to be Beth who is the heartless one, rather than the mysterious loner she has dealings with.

Crackanory S4 – Episode 5 – Mel Giedroyc – Proxy Lady

Devil’s Haircut is written by Sarah Morgan and narrated by the ‘cool kid’ of comedy Doc Brown. It is a tale of ‘four white men in waistcoats singing stolen slave songs.’ Well, that’s what the sultry and mysterious Lil (Sophia Di Martino) claims a barbershop quartet is, and our protagonist, Spencer, happens to be a part of said barbershop quartet. Seduced by Lil’s red lipstick and intense gaze, the singer finds himself implicated in a pact that he had not intended to get involved in, with the love of his life suddenly becoming a source of great fear.

The Office‘s Mackenzie Crook narrates The Disappearance, written by Toby Davies. This is a story of misdirection, one that explores the border between magic and madness, pushing it to its absolute boundaries until, inevitably, something has to break. This episode is pacy and impactful, with an air of The Prestige about it. It features Dominic Coleman as Solomon the successful magician whose love for the craft, family relations and sanity begin to crumble around him.

And finally comes the final episode in the series: Pickled, written by Kevin Eldon and narrated by Miriam Margolyes. This tale begins with a close look at Benedict, a man who goes from riches to rags as his extravagant lifestyle catches up with him. Benedict’s life is in tatters around him, entirely of his own doing. Add a haunted house to the mix and it looks likes things aren’t going to be looking up anytime soon for our poor protagonist. Margolyes’ storytelling is fantastic and dramatic here; perfect for portraying the tense relationship that develops between Benedict and the ghostly old man he meets in the abandoned house.

This latest series of Crackanory perfectly epitomises what the art of entertaining storytelling is all about. The narrators are well-chosen and each story is innovative and unpredictable; definitely worth a watch. Crackanory series 4 begins on Monday 30th January at 10pm on Dave.

House Of Fools, Series 2

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Reeves and Mortimer mature like a fine wine. They somehow manage to out-do themselves with every programme they create, and building on the foundations of shows like Big Night Out and Shooting Stars, that truly is some feat. Series one of House of Fools was a comical violation of the senses, in the most enjoyable way imaginable. A fool would assume it couldn’t get any better. But it has.

This second series has shown the group really cement themselves as a unit, if a rather dysfunctional one, which gives the comedy so much more meaning and vigour, and the addition of Julie’s Bistro downstairs provides an interesting new dynamic. Rachel, Erik’s straight-talking Norwegian girlfriend, is a new character and is played by Ellie White. She fits into the group effortlessly and the possibility of Rachel just becoming a reflection of Erik’s character is successfully avoided, as she is the centre point of jokes from her very first appearance (such as her fear of non-flat things, which Bob inadvertently brings to the surface).

BBC/Christopher Baines

BBC/Christopher Baines

Dan Skinner continues to bring elements of his hysterically funny stand up character Angelos Epithemiou to his performance as Vic’s younger brother, Bosh, and similarly, Matt Berry approaches the character of Beef in his typical smooth-voiced and flamboyant style. These talented actors have certainly worked out who they are in terms of performance and this is expertly picked up on by Reeves and Mortimer in the character development and sharp script writing. And then we have Julie. Julie is absolutely magnificent. She is bewildering, extravagant and outrageous yet has the depth of a wholly decent character at the same time. Morgana Robinson’s performances truly are a sight to behold, with her enthusiastic slapstick and unpredictable line delivery, particularly regarding her temporarily tiny hands.

From the strange interpretations of celebrities like Bruce Forsyth and Alistair McGowan, to the arrival of The Butcher Boys, a dance trio made up of Tom Davis, Tony Way and Romesh Ranganathan, to the appearances of Sally Phillips, Simon Farnaby and Rufus Jones, amongst others, it can’t be denied that this programme is diverse. As well as the new energy in the cast, the fact House of Fools is recorded in front of a live audience adds something extra special to the performance, especially as they are seen at the beginning and end of episodes when the camera pans out. Fans of Vic and Bob do not sound like your average laughter track; they are boisterous, enthusiastic and clearly having a bloody enjoyable time. This homemade feel is enhanced by the decision not to remove the frequent corpses and mistakes made by the cast, which often highlight how preposterous the plot is and remind us that a great deal of the script is semi-improvised.

BBC/Christopher Baines

BBC/Christopher Baines

House of Fools is a microcosm of insanity and childishness. When Beef announces that his black cape is “made of the nighttime,” nobody bats an eyelid. When Vic proposes to save Bob’s underwear from a giant moth by shooting it dead, Bob dismissively sighs: “Vic, I don’t want my panties covered in shot.” It always has been and always will be an absolute joy watching these two fantastic comedy minds working together, and seeing them have so much fun in the process. Vic and Bob have unlocked a door to a phenomenally wacky and unsettlingly funny parallel universe, and I want to stay there forever.

CATCH UP WITH SERIES TWO OF HOUSE OF FOOLS ON BBC IPLAYER

Christmas Round Up

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The Christmas period presented multiple comedy gems to our television screens last month, and here is a summary of a few of my particular favourites:

Derek

Ricky Gervais’ Derek reached its natural conclusion with a wedding, a fight and a baby. Gervais has shown a great subtlety in his writing that I had not noticed in his other projects that often displayed, in fact, quite the opposite. I found the episode to be dealt with sensitively and with great humour, with the character of Derek remaining endearing yet dignified throughout, as was noticeable from this year’s series two. Available on 4OD.

House of Fools

House of Fools has been one of my favourite sitcoms since it first aired in early 2014, as it is written by, and stars, the incredible Vic and Bob. This Christmas spectacular presented many problems for the duo: Erik has demanded a particular bobble hat for his present but it has been set on fire. The strange gathering must set off to steal a replacement, and meet Father Christmas (Reece Shearsmith) on the way. Available on BBC iPlayer.

Not Going Out

Not Going Out has been consistently and delightfully cringe-worthy with frequent small laughs and a few brilliant lines per episode (and there have been an impressive seven series, so that’s some great feat). This final episode did not disappoint, and audiences were finally given an answer to the age-old question: will Lee and Lucy ever actually become a couple? Available on BBC iPlayer.

Gadget Man

Richard Ayoade returned with a Gadget Man’s Guide to Christmas with special guests Adam Hills, Jessica Hynes, Stephen Merchant, Jonathan Ross, Reece Shearsmith and Robert Webb. With a wonderful array of toys and vehicles and strange household items, Ayoade presented us with an entirely new take on Christmas gifts and dinners. Available on 4OD.

Charlie Brooker’s 2014 Wipe

Charlie Brooker brought his infamous positive little rays of sunshine to Christmas by overviewing a seemingly awful year for everyone in the entire universe. From Farage to Ebola, Charlie’s typically sarcastic and cutting commentary overed it all, with help from Barry Shitpeas and Philomena Cunk. I should probably warn off people who are prone to depression from watching this programme but Brooker’s wit really takes the edge off, as does the wonderful song at the end. Available on BBC iPlayer.

Man Down

Man Down has to be one of my favourite new sitcoms from the past couple of years because it stars a couple of my most loved comedians: Greg Davies and Roisin Conaty. The Christmas episode was a beautiful tribute to the late Rik Mayall, who played Dan’s father in the show, and sent both Mayall himself, and the character he played, off in a hilarious but touching fashion. Available on 4OD.

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Top 5 Moments… Shooting Stars

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Shooting Stars is without doubt the greatest panel show ever made, with it lasting for a healthy six series and spanning from 1993 to 2011. It remains a source of frustration for me that the programme was cancelled in 2011 as it definitely hadn’t exhausted itself in anyway. The best justification for this may very well be that the comedic style of Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer was a tad too strange for a new and evolving audience, though there is still a gap in my life ever since its cancellation. I have very fond memories of being only nine or ten years old and absolutely crying with laughter at the madness that is Shooting Stars, from its Dove From Above round to Vic’s pub singing.

5) Jack Dee Finally Laughs

Every single week, Jack Dee was forced to listen to Vic talk disparagingly of his miserable face. Every single week, Jack Dee remained calm, if a little irritable throughout, until, finally on one fateful episode towards the end of the reign of Vic and Bob’s Shooting Stars, he snapped. The man with “a face like a neglected radish” actually cracked a smile.

4) The Arrival of Angelos Epithemiou

We were all pretty gutted to hear that Matt Lucas would not be returning as Man With The Scores: George Dawes in series 7, but the pain was dulled by the news that he was to be replaced by regular panellist and burger van owner Angelos Epithemiou (played by Dan Skinner). Angelos is a very complex character; an easily aggravated, no-nonsense loner, if you will, with his infamous carrier bag that contains a wild array of goods…

3) Larry Hagman

Poor Dallas star Larry Hagman was in for a big shock when he was booked to appear on the show when he clearly didn’t really understand what it was all about. In fairness, he was a good sport throughout the episode but it was an effort to hide the confusion he inevitably would feel when in the presence of the two madmen. A slightly bewildered Hagman responded to a question from Bob towards the end of the episode, “Are you beginning to think you may sack your agent?” with, “I’ve done some loony shows in my time but this is certainly the one”.

2) Baked Potato

Out of George Dawes’ wonderful back catalogue of ingenious songs, Baked Potato is the one that made me laugh the most. All of the giant baby’s tunes have proved to be very catchy and, of course, hysterically funny over the years but something about the addition of a talking potato really made this song special. This particular number taught its audience many moral lessons such as “do be happy, don’t be sad” and “do be early, don’t be late”. Once you’ve heard it a few times you will find yourself singing it all day everyday so “Thank you Baked Potato!”

1) Tiny Eyes

Not only is the song in this clip absolutely absurd, the visuals also aim to shock: with the eyes of all involved literally being of minute proportions. It is honestly quite difficult to find Tiny Eyes unfunny, especially for a person who ‘understands’ the comedy of Reeves and Mortimer, which appeals to both old and young. The sequel to Tiny Eyes is another must watch due to the faultless insanity and that is entitled Tiny Hands, I’ll leave you to guess the rest.

It is important that we celebrate Shooting Stars for the treasure that it was and appreciate the sheer amount of comedic skill hidden beneath the surface, underneath the apparent madness. What is your favourite Shooting Stars moment of all time? Let me know in the comments, or by tweeting me at @moodycomedy.

Want to know what my top five IT Crowd moments are?

Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled

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A couple of weeks ago, the channel Dave broadcast five episodes of a wonderful new comedy chat show: As Yet Untitled. It was hosted by Alan Davies, ran over the course of one working week and featured four different comedians each episode. It has been said that this show was an attempt at recreating the feel of a comedy green room, with a relaxed atmosphere and a minimal agenda. Of course, I cannot truly know if it drew an accurate comparison as I haven’t been in such a situation myself, but I can say that a comfortable conversational feel was definitely present and I found the series incredibly enjoyable.

For a start, the physical set up was uniquely casual, with the four guests and Alan Davies (the host) sat around a circular table and the audience sat around them. The way the audience was situated had almost a Top Gear feel as you could always see them in shot, but they weren’t often involved in the proceedings. Each comic provided a strange fact about themselves to begin with which allowed the discussion to have some kind of initial direction but other than that, the show had a clean slate with the objective of deciding on a title for the episode at the end.

There was a danger with this loose format that conversation might not necessarily be free-flowing but this was expertly avoided by Davies who did an excellent job at steering clear of awkward pauses in discussion. In fact, the overall feel of the programme was very natural and chilled out which I thought was really nice. There was no pushing to have anyone’s voice heard over another person’s and everyone seemed very supportive of each other which is refreshing in comparison to the vibes you get from shows with more competitive, maybe harsher formats. An important impression I got from watching As Yet Untitled was that the attention was very much focussed on the stories and the people in the stories, and not so much on the comedians telling them. This meant that nobody appeared to be pushing particularly hard to be the funny one and in this way, I think the show definitely achieved its objective of seeming like a green room.

There were many funny anecdotes shared throughout the five episodes, including Bob Mortimer’s explanation of his and Vic Reeves’ comedy style, where in the early days, if the audience weren’t laughing, the double act would throw their shoes at them. We also heard the wonderful Katherine Ryan’s tale of the creepy inflatophiliac and Noel Fielding’s reason for disappearing from his own stand up tour (he ended up spending the day working in a vintage second-hand shop in Brighton, I mean, where else?). Bill Bailey’s account of his New Zealand airport kazoo confiscation was whimsical, as can be expected from Bailey and Phill Jupitus’ numerous celebrity impressions were spot on. Ross Noble’s tales about his accident-prone kids and Josie Long’s flawless diet plan were highlights of the final episode.

It was easy for the television audience to get carried away amongst all these hilarious anecdotes, which proves what an authentic mood there was, and every now and then I would remember how different the show actually is and feel really impressed at the smoothness of it all. At any point where a normal chat show may have become awkward, such as when they transition between topics or invite a special guest on, the conversation just continued on in the same fashion which shows integrity. The only flaw I could find, or perhaps the only stunted part of each episode, was trying to round it all off at the end. Of course, these would have been heavily edited to fit the time frame but the scramble to find a title could be done with more finesse in the future.

I adored this new show and the many guests on it; my favourites including Noel Fielding, Bob Mortimer, Katherine Ryan, Josie Long, Jason Byrne, Ross Noble, Bill Bailey and Marcus Brigstocke. I will be pretty annoyed if there aren’t more episodes made soon!

BBC iPlayer: Original Comedy Shorts

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A wonderful thing happened on BBC iPlayer on June the 1st: six comedy shorts were released exclusively online with input from many of the most brilliant people in comedy right now. This kind of thing is so vital for keeping comedy on television and online alive as we need to keep pushing the boundaries of comedy in order to keep it successful and influential.

Each comedy short is around five minutes long and they are all completely stand alone episodes (though it would be great if someone could pick them up for series in the future). My favourites were Micky Flanagan’s Foxageddon, Matt Berry in Lone Wolf and Bob Mortimer and Frankie Boyle’s Cookery Show mainly because of the comedians they involved, but I also thought Morgana Robinson’s impressions Channel M were wonderful, as always (her Amy Child impression is spot on).

I can imagine Micky Flanagan’s episode evolving into some kind of Lead Balloon–esque series in the near future as Flanagan’s comic delivery is very unique, which you’ll know if you’ve seen any of his stand up. His character here has the same comic voice as his stand up which I thought really aided the episode because there was less ground work that needed to be done to set the scene. The episode was funny because it is entirely stupid, which I guess is just refreshing for an audience who are used to satire etc. Also, the fact it featured Kerry Godliman (Derek) was a brilliant thing as I think she is very talented.

Frankie Boyle and Bob MortimerBob Mortimer is a hero of mine and I was very looking forward to seeing what he could produce in a five minute time frame. I wasn’t disappointed; it was a whimsical, nonsensical cookery world and it was a beauty to watch, as Mortimer always is. I also noted that Bob was involved in almost all of the other comedy shorts: sometimes as producer and sometimes as writer and this proves what a clever, hardworking genius he is. It was also interesting to see Frankie Boyle playing a slightly different role, as a television presenter who hates peas:

“What is it, Frankie, is it the peas, or the thought that the knife might be on the brink of extinction?”

I can picture Frankie working on some kind of childrens’ show in the future and before watching this, I would never have thought so (for obvious reasons). I think Boyle and Mortimer are both incredible comedic talents, with an interesting partnership on screen and really hope something comes from this comedy short, as with many of the other episodes, but especially the cookery show.

I also love every show Matt Berry is involved with as the man is undeniably a fabulous comedic actor. Lone Wolf is an extremely funny mini-documentary that follows a wolf pack as they hunt their next meal but the voiceover is Berry-style: foulmouthed and hilarious. Again, I can see this making a fantastic feature in a sketch show or even a show on its own.

You can watch all the comedy shorts on BBC iPlayer here and I definitely recommend you do!

House of Fools

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January marked a much awaited time for Vic and Bob fans: the arrival of the brand new surreal sitcom, House Of Fools. The programme follows the troubles faced by Bob [Mortimer] and his group of unreliable and slightly insane ‘friends’ (plus his Norwegian son, Erik) who all insist on lodging in his house whilst continually mocking poor Bob as he manages to fail in all aspects of his life.

The casting of the programme is near on perfection, featuring Matt Berry as Beef, Dan Skinner as Bosh, Morgana Robinson as Julie and of course Vic and Bob themselves. I was pleased to see a new face on the programme: stand up comedian Daniel Simonsen as Erik, whose role in the show is refreshing, maybe because the exaggerated Norwegian accent is hilarious in itself.

Reeves and Mortimer have said in interviews that the aim of the show was to take the conventional idea of what should be in a sitcom and completely turn it on its head by recreating typical situations but in a new way. For example, when a neighbour tells the protagonist that they need them to look after something very important, the audience are immediately aware of the inevitability that something will soon go drastically wrong. The double act recognised this and made it the plot line of episode two, The Pork Pie Affair, in which Julie asks the group to look after an oversized pork pie that is to be given to Bruce Willis that evening.

The programme is broken up with songs of nonsense, that Bob describes as a “shortcut to telling a plot, so we set everything up via the gift of song.” The words are constantly going round my head on a daily basis and I can’t seem to get them out so beware!