Quote: LAUGH?NEARLYDIED @ November 24 2009, 11:41 PM GMTSo no you are NOT weird, just, it seems, a sucker for the catchphrase technique.
Thanks - that's going on my CV.
Catchphrases are so tricky though - it's easy to be annoying or divide audiences. Ideally, as you say, they grow on people after a while. But I find it hard enough trying to write to please an audience at the first viewing without thinking ahead to what they might find funny at some point later on!
Quote: Jane P @ November 25 2009, 1:40 PM GMTCatchphrases are so tricky though - it's easy to be annoying or divide audiences.
Whatever.
Quote: Jane P @ November 25 2009, 1:40 PM GMTCatchphrases are so tricky though
Quote: Renegade Carpark @ November 25 2009, 1:41 PM GMTWhatever.
Don't have a cow, man.
Quote: SlagA @ November 25 2009, 1:58 PM GMTDon't have a cow, man.
Man? I'm a lady!
Thank God this will all be wiped out by the Off Topic Kraken.
Quote: SlagA @ November 24 2009, 12:10 PM GMT
Zooo, educate the guy please. Fawlty Towers, Blackadder, Red Dwarf, Spaced, Yes Minister. The five greatest UK comedies, ever.
You've two erroneous entries there, A.
Quote: Moonstone @ November 24 2009, 2:49 PM GMTTie him to a chair and make him sit through it all!
I've sat through the whole thing before. An abortion of a sitcom.
Quote: Renegade Carpark @ November 24 2009, 4:28 PM GMTJokes. That's right, funny dialogue that invokes laughter. It is an old fashioned concept, but I like it. Which is probably why it's being bigged up by members of this Forum.
Oh and it's not an Office or Thick of It rip off, unlike every other sitcom that's being shown at the moment.
This is correct.
Quote: LAUGH?NEARLYDIED @ November 24 2009, 5:22 PM GMTYeah but don't you think it borders on the utter ridiculous and exaggerates every sketch to the point where it all looks very very contrived, overcooked and over indulgent? That's what killed it for me, the OTT antics that border the plain stupid that not even kids would do in their maddest moments.
But it's funny, so that matters not one jot.
Episode 3 was funny.
I never liked Spaced.
Quote: Griff @ November 25 2009, 2:01 PM GMT
"Kraken" isn't used anywhere near enough these days. Although I liked it when Malcolm Tucker sneered "The Kraken Wakes!" at Terri when she tried to join in the conversation in TTOI recently.
TTOI?
Quote: Jane P @ November 25 2009, 1:40 PM GMTThanks - that's going on my CV.
Catchphrases are so tricky though - it's easy to be annoying or divide audiences. Ideally, as you say, they grow on people after a while. But I find it hard enough trying to write to please an audience at the first viewing without thinking ahead to what they might find funny at some point later on!
I agree the catchphrase can be an annoying device, I did tire of some of the 'Allo 'Allo! catchphrases which seemed to be over used, same with the Are You Being Served? catchphrases. I always try to use catchphrases where I can, but it has to be the right character with the right phrase and most definitely at the right time.
Interesting you write thinking of "the audience", I used to do this, then I started to write just what I found funny and others around me found funny. I find writing for "an audience" tends to create very formulaic and contrived scripts. Just my humble opinion.
Good luck with the CV but don't blame me if you don't get the gig.
Just remembered of course her mother mouthing and saying out loud the wrong bits was taken from Les Dawson as the old lady.
I reckon most of it is borrowed from other shows, mostly from the 70s, it looks like to me. That's part of the reason why it looks a bit chaotic, probably, but you can see clear influences from some old shows I think. I thought the first show was very Dick Emmery, the second, Morecambe & Wise, the third was just too chaotic to notice one, but there's a lot of influence from 70s shows.
Quote: Alfred J Kipper @ November 25 2009, 7:29 PM GMTI reckon most of it is borrowed from other shows, from the 70s to right now, that's part of the reason why it looks a bit chaotic, probably, but you can see clear influences from some old shows I think. I thought the first show was very Dick Emmery, the second, Morecambe & Wise, the third was just too chaotic to notice one, but there's a lot of influence from other shows.
Think they might have nicked some ideas from Crackerjack too.
End of the day, it very looked amateurish and dated. Not entirely Miranda's fault as she is trying very hard, perhaps too hard. I still think she has a place in the British comedy landscape.
The kitchen thing in the previous episode was obviously their answer to Morecambe and Wise's breakfast sketch.
Perhaps it's intended as a tribute show to all the shows that inspired her. The campness of Are You Being Served?, the Croft/Perry credit rolls, the Morecambe & Wise miming to music routines, The Les Dawsonesque gossipy stuff, the Dick Emery sauciness and the Frank Spencer pratfalls - there are just so many clear references here, that have been sort of hurled together like a comedy bubble and squeak. But it conjures up that era of TV comedy really well, I reckon.
Quote: Alfred J Kipper @ November 25 2009, 7:29 PM GMTI reckon most of it is borrowed from other shows, mostly from the 70s, it looks like to me. That's part of the reason why it looks a bit chaotic, probably, but you can see clear influences from some old shows I think. I thought the first show was very Dick Emmery, the second, Morecambe & Wise, the third was just too chaotic to notice one, but there's a lot of influence from 70s shows.
Yes, just being funny, nothing else to prove or to pretend.
Quote: Marc P @ November 25 2009, 10:08 PM GMTHow's that going with yourself career wise?
Ahh Marc P - The Master of the Subtext.
Personally I am mostly my own audience and have no career so it's working out great for me so far!
I have been quite interested in audiences lately though. And wonder if you, Mr P, can be serious for a moment would say it's something you consider much in your work? Especially as you're writing for various audiences - some of whom are already loyal to a programme or now a series of books but also live audiences who won't know what to expect from a new show.
It's the live audiences that I find quite intriguing and having seen a fair bit of live comedy, including recordings, this year I've seen everything from disinterest and talking over jokes (eg some Edinburgh shows) to complete adoration (Stewart Lee).
Getting back on topic Miranda said at her Q&A that she was lucky in the sense that when they recorded these shows the audiences were predisposed to having a good time - partly, as with any recording, if you make the effort to go along you generally want to enjoy it plus there's usually a fun atmosphere and hopefully a good warm up. Also because some of the audience already knew Miranda and perhaps had heard the radio shows. So she kind of knew when they'd go along with the joke and now TV audiences are making up their minds about it.
In an ideal world I'd love to be in a position one day to really push an audience somehow (without losing most of them altogether) but for now will just try to be funny (which this post hasn't helped with at all - apologies for waffle - I just woke up!)
Then of course there's the pyschology behind controlling and manipulating crowds but that's another story altogether...
Jx
