The history of the world backwards.
Wasn't that more like an experimental comedy than a satire?
Comedy you want to like, but don't Page 15
Yes, but all you asked was whether he'd had his own solo work of late...
I phrased my initial question poorly
It was a satirical stand up show though. He toured with it (I'm 90% sure).
Quote: Tokyo Nambu @ March 5 2012, 8:21 PM GMTBremner himself is just Mike Yarwood with O Levels and is nothing like as incisive, or funny, as he believes he is. He can only make jokes about things about which he has an impersonation available, which is a huge limitation.
Bremner is actually Yarwood with genuine anger and the talent to focus it. Not sure how being able to impersonate only some people as opposed to no-one, as is the case with most comedians, counts as a limitation. The show is inevitably hit and miss, but he was the only comic to really go for Blair during his tenure, and he nailed him very accurately.
The Thick Of It was superb as comedy, but had absolutely no politics at all: it was completely about process and presentation.
Politics these days is process and presentation and nothing but, which was the point the show was trying to make. Rather heavy-handedly in my view.
Quote: zooo @ March 5 2012, 8:55 PM GMTIt was a satirical stand up show though. He toured with it (I'm 90% sure).
Yeh he's well known for his satirical and scathing standup.
I just don't think it ever made it to the telly.
I'm sure I remember him going on about the environment and American politics. And I've never seen him live so it must have been on telly.
He had a one off on the story of oil.
Certainly Charlie BrookeR, Mark Thomas and Bremner/Bird/Fortune were the only recent ones.
Quote: sootyj @ March 6 2012, 10:22 AM GMTHe had a one off on the story of oil.
Ah, oil does ring a bell. Remembered it as a series though. Maybe I got it mixed up with his other thing.
According to his website he's just finishing his fourth novel.
I always remember Adam and Joe to be masters of slating pomposity in comedy.
They did a version of Blue Jam that was almost too brutal.
Info on Rob Newman's shows here, http://www.robnewman.com/ and here, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Newman_(comedian)
Great as Rob Newman is, history of oil was one episode.
Which reflects more on the "nice 'n safe" ethos of the BBC et al then in any way on him.
It's interesting that no one has mentioned the Thursday Night show or what ever it's called or that CGI abomination on ITV.
Quote: Timbo @ March 6 2012, 10:06 AM GMTNot sure how being able to impersonate only some people as opposed to no-one, as is the case with most comedians, counts as a limitation.
If you think impressions are the sine qua non of satire, your point stands. But in my view, a comedian with no impressions can talk about any politician, while a comedian who's an impersonator can only (or, perhaps, will only) talk about those he can impersonate. One of the Dead Ringers offshoots, I forget which, had an interminable sketch in which Al Pacino wouldn't stop talking to John Humphries on a plane --- it was absolutely obvious that the only reason the sketch existed was because someone had an Al Pacino of sorts good to go. Margaret Thatcher killed Mike Yarwood's career stone dead, of course.