I don't think I've ever seen him make a joke that was offensive - the granny-love jokes are off-putting but not offensive as such. Then again, as a non-Brit, it's easier to laugh at the queen I guess.
And the serious discussion where the joke gets quoted only manages to make it 92849 times more funny.
Looking forward to the Christmas special.
It was really embarrasing today in my office, as there was a lot of background noise and I was talking to this woman about Mock the Week and told her one of my favourite 'Scenes We'd Like to See' moments. It was on the rejected lines for Bond films one and it is when Hugh Dennis said in a Russian accent "I hope your Russian name's not a cheap sexual pun, Miss Suckmeoff?"
I quoted this to this woman and suddenly the whole office went silent. I hadn't noticed this and everybody heard me say 'Suckmeoff' in a really dodgy Russian accent. Oh dear.
I'm mostly with the original poster. Never understood the adulation this show gets.
Dara O'Brien is a solid host. Russell Howard is clearly still finding his feet as a comic and always tries a bit too hard to hit the student niche, which grates. Hugh Dennis is probably the most intelligent of the lot, though Frankie Boyle hits the big laughs more frequently (despite routinely settling for shock value).
Andy Parsons isn't the wittiest man around but he's a character and it never fails to amuse me when he sets himself for a joke: one eyebrow quizzically raised, shoulders relaxed in a half-turn towards Dara or the audience, and hands hovering slightly above the table, like some kind of mad-but-lovable uncle attempting to captivate a group of children.
Overall it is far too scripted for its own good, coming across like a contrived Whose Line is it Anyway? (a programme, incidentally, which surely must be seen live, given its desperate appearance on screen). I appreciate the need for planning in any panel show but its presence in Mock the Week is about as evident and vital as that of Call My Bluff in the "concept" of Would I Lie to You?.
It's definitely nowhere near the standard of HIGNFY, QI or Never Mind the Buzzcocks, and despite having far better production values, can't compete with the WILTY cast of Deayton, Mack and Mitchell. I'd put it on par with 8 Out of 10 Cats. It's definitely not bad, or unfunny, but I can never really justify it being more than background fodder.
Quote: Jack Massey @ January 8 2009, 5:34 PM GMTI quoted this to this woman and suddenly the whole office went silent.
Ha ha. It's like you were in your own little sitcom.
Quote: Mav42 @ January 8 2009, 5:42 PM GMTI'm mostly with the original poster. Never understood the adulation this show gets.
Whilst I don't necessarily agree with everything you've said Mav42, I just wanted to say I thought it was an excellently described post!
