The Office

It's a new (ish) comedy fromt he BBC. It's in its second series and is as funny as two novelty items ins a humouressly shaped bag, telling jokes to each other.

Check out its pages on the BBC website for some more - possibly slightly confusing - information about the show.

The basic premise is a mockumentary showing the workings of a pretty normal office. Most of the characters are pretty regular, but there are one or two who are complete fuck-ups (in a kind of "I've met a guy like him" way), which is where most of the humour comes from. The main guy is the manager, and he's like your worst nightmare. He is actually VERY similar to a manager I was under at BT.

If you get a chance to see this series on TV, you should not miss it. If it isn't available where you are, the first series (30 episodes of 30 mins each) is on DVD and I can honestly say I think it would be worth the price of the DVD AND a multi-region player.

 

Cool. If I can find the episodes floating around, I'll give them a look. And yes, if I like it I will try and buy the DVD, Sheriff. I won't go so far as to buy a new DVD console, but I think my DVD-ROM is region free or at least can be made that way with some tweaking.

I think the chances of this being aired here, even on public television, is pretty slim. The only British sitcoms that are shown regularly are old ass episodes of "Are You Being Served?" and that one with Hyacinth and here husband. The one with the Tom Jones song as the theme. Everyonce in a while, they'll show a Mr. Bean or that other one with the Monty Python guy running a hotel.

 

Milo, at my house on the dear old BBC, we get the Coupling. Every Sunday night. I must say, it is hilarious, and that Susan is fiiiiiiiine. Have you seen it, Sheriff?

About the Office, haven't seen it.

*GASP!!!!! Surely you blaspheme!!!! He is John Cleese, the god of British comedy IMHO, and the show is "Fawlty Towers."

 

<----------------- Duh, I should've known that!


Anyway, you get BBC at your house? Is that a premium cable channel? We don't get that where I am, or if we do, it's not a part of basic cable. The only british stuff we get is from public broadcasting.

 

Yeah, Coupling is pretty big over here ... er ... you know what I mean.

As for the God of British Comedy, he may have just had a new gnome join the pantheon. Ricky Gervais, who writes, directs and stars in The Office, also has his own stand up show, which is very funny.

 

We need more imports here, I think. Something different. American Sitcoms suck now. People are starting to move on to reality TV as a reaction to "oh no, it's Friends again" or "it's like Seinfeld mixed with Everybody Loves Raymond with a touch of Cheers and MASH thrown in".

A big infusion of shows with a different sense of humor would do us good, I think.

 

I've noticed that. US sitcoms had a bit of a golden age (maybe sparked off by an F-16 winning a battle) in the 90s, but now all the previously good ones are either tired (Frasier/Friends) or dead (Seinfeld/Cheers/News Radio) and all the new ones are pale immitations.

 

Yeeeessssss I do. He he. I must confess the only show I have seen was a couple of weeks ago, and my wife and I spent the time laughing our arses off. She usually doesn't share my love for Fawlty Towers, Are You Being Serrddddvvvved, and the like, so it was very refreshing. The show we watched was the one where at the end, Steve thought that Susan's parents were talking about masturbating, and they were talking about whistling. "If music be the food of love, then masturbation is just a snack between meals. Sometimes I get excited just when I see my right hand naked. Whoo-hoo!"

But anyway, I'll stop derailing your thread now Sheriff.

To answer Milo, we get BBC on GPTV. (Georgia Public Television.) We don't have cable or sattelite. Just a set of rabbit ears. BBC airs on Sundays from 8:00 until Midnight, with Coupling showing at 11:00. If you ever see this show, you will piss yourself with laughter. I did.

And you guys are right about us needing more imports. And that U.S. sitcoms pretty much suck right now.

 

There *are* entire BBC networks available though, here in the U.S. Here in Charleston they have BBC 1 and BBC 2 - entire channels with british shows 24/7 - on digital cable. And they play Monty Python every single day. *drool*

But alas, can't afford digital cable right now. If I could you'd see much less of me.

 

The only british stuff we have over here is bbc america (the only good show I ever see on there now is Father Ted [feck off!]) and then on comedy central we get whose line is it anyway re-runs (the ones with clive anderson) and trigger happy tv (BEAUTIFUL!)

Maybe if it werent for all the damn hicks around here we would get some of the other stuff.

 

Ahh monty python the best of the best of the best. Did anyone know that life of brian was forbidden in sweden because it was blasphemic?(or something like that for all the gramerians out there)
Anyway now for something compleatly different, i em of to find a shrubbery.

 

Trigger Happy TV, on Comedy Central. I'm not sure if this is a British television show, but the the star certainly is, and I think it's shot in England. This has to be one of the funniest shows on the planet, it's laugh out loud material.

 

I know everyone will consider me extremely lazy from now on but when is this show on? I mean day of week and time. And which BBC is it (prime, world or some other)?

It's been a tough day and I really don't feel like looking for this info on that website so please answer me.

 

It's on Monday 10pm, BBC2. It's the second series, but you'll be able to dive straight in.

 

I would be if I had BBC2. I'll have to check but I think I have only prime and world. Or even just one of the two.

 

What? You mean...you'd put on clothes? NOOOOOOOOOOO!

British comedy is, as Fatman once said, either exceptionally brilliant or exceptionally bad. Monty Python and Ben Elton are exceptionally brilliant. I don't watch bad comedy, so I can't tell you about anything bad.

 

Naw. I'd just watch a whole lotta Monty Python naked. As it was, of course, meant to be watched. Oh, and donning a giant hat made of yogurt, naturally.

 

while we're talking about comedy shows i recently became aware of a show on the ABC here in oz, www.cnnnn.com , check it out it's fucking hilarious, i laughed non-stop all the way through it........ "i'm fungry"..... classic stuff.

 

I dunno if any of you remember this from wayyyyyy back. It was my little tip for some great comedy. Why am I grave-digging it, you may ask? Could it be that I want everyone who is supremely bored to post pointing out how old it is? Could it be I am jockeying for a ban? No! I'm bumping it because the show just won 2 Golden Globes.

They only made 2 series and a Christmas special and have said there will be no more of them. Do yourself a comedic favour, go get the DVD or something

 

I didn't even look at the date on this thing...until I saw a post from Windmills. Then I looked at it, and was shocked.

As for getting the DVD's, well, it's hard for me to take a punt on buying a series when I haven't seen any episodes. That said, I did buy Futurama season 3 recently, and I loved it. So much better than The Simpsons.