Simon Day

Harry Hill stars as Professor Theophilus Branestawm in an adaptation of Norman Hunter's classic books. He's an absent-minded inventor, prone to left-field mutterings, which makes him an easy target for local businessman Mr Bullimore (Ben Miller) and councillor Harold Haggerstone (David Mitchell), who want to eject him from the village of Great Pagwell. Assisted by schoolgirl Connie, best friend Colonel Dedshott (Simon Day) and housekeeper Mrs Flittersnoop (Vicki Pepperdine), will he prevail?

In which Simon Day's progger attempts to stage a live performance of his Day Of The Triffids musical ("The Triffids descend from the skies/ To sting our eyes!") at Mount Kilimanjaro. What could possibly go wrong? Actually, aside from being mistaken for a racist, not much: Roger Moore's a hoot as the Richard Burton-style narrator, gamely ploughing on through a Triffid-human molestation sequence: as Tim Rice comments, "It didn't go down very well with Germaine Greer - or Percy Thrower."

Radio Times review

A second slice of the joyfully funny Simon Day-fronted spoof rockumentary sees our hero desperate to finally stage his Day of the Triffids rock opera. But will Pern be upstaged by the other members of his erstwhile prog-rock band Thotch (Paul Whitehouse's Pat Quid and Nigel Havers's Tony Pebble, pronounced "Pebblay")? Not likely.

He has a few problems ensuring the confectionery stand stocks vegetarian-only Jelly Babies, however, and a Twitter storm erupts when a stray mic catches him remarking how he "hates Blacks". Pern, of course, is referring to the outdoor clothing specialists. Roger Moore and Paul Young are among the guest stars.

Brian Pern: A Life in Rock was very funny indeed, and featured great cameos from, among others, Martin Freeman, Kathy Burke and Tim Rice. It's splenetic, hilarious and just wrong. Can there be yet another urgent need to send up the pomp of the prog-rock years when it has already been spoofed so sublimely by Spinal Tap, and The Comic Strip's Bad News Tour?

Simon Day is behind this, and very good he is too, and you should watch it if you haven't watched any other satire on 70s musical vainglory. But if you have, you'll simply be asking yourself: why?

Anybody who saw the faux documentary presented by Brian Pern (Simon Day) on BBC4 knows that the frontman of Genesis-esque prog rock band Thotch is a great comedy creation.

Director Rhys Thomas, who co-wrote the series along with Day, brilliantly portrays the life of an ageing rocker as he tries to keep himself relevant with a modern audience. The stories of Pern refusing to be in a room with his former bandmates (played brilliantly by Paul Whitehouse and Nigel Havers) were perfectly pitched. The creation of a Thotch jukebox musical was an equally enjoyable subplot especially when the show's director Kathy Burke decided to cut all of the overly long Thotch songs from the show.

I personally enjoyed the final few moments of the comedy as Pern was dragged into the police station in a manner that would suggest he was part of a Yewtree-type investigation. But the punchline itself was brilliantly delivered as was the reaction from Pern's manager John Farrow (Michael Kitchen).

Part of the charm of Brian Pern is the fact that everyone is willing to go that extra mile and, in the case of those playing themselves, send up certain elements of their characters. Martin Freeman is a prime example of this as he tries to capture Pern's mannerisms in order to correctly portray him in the musical.

Meanwhile, a cameoing Tim Rice perfectly sums up his feelings about the Jukebox musical and how they've taken away from his type of musical theatre.

Although some of the jokes don't hit the mark, Brian Pern: A Life in Rock is a perfectly constructed mockumentary that owes a massive debt to the work of Christopher Guest. The fact that the sitcom is only three parts means that it won't outstay it's welcome and at the same time will leave the audience craving for more from Day's egotistical prog rocker.

Follow-up to BBC Four's spoof rockumentary, starring Simon Day as Peter Gabriel. Sorry, as Brian Pern, the ex-frontman of progressive rock band Thotch. Brian has been persuaded by his manager (Michael Kitchen) that a bankable way forward for him and his former bandmates is a new "jukebox musical" of Thotch music, in the vein of We Will Rock You. Paul Whitehouse and Nigel Havers are great as Brian's colleagues, but it's surely Gabriel who comes out of this best, for not trying to sue.

Radio Times review

The gloriously silly spoof documentary from Down the Line star Rhys Thomas may have grown up with a move from BBC Four to BBC Two - even if its lead character, played by Fast Show alumnus Simon Day, certainly has not. There's also a slight format change. Pern, former front man of fictional prog rock band Thotch, no longer narrates and this opener is more of a spoof arts doc fronted by Thomas and focusing on Stowe Boys, a West End rock musical about the band directed by Kathy Burke. What could go wrong? Well, everything of course.

Yes, it clearly owes a debt to Spinal Tap, Christopher Guest's 1984 masterpiece, but Thomas (who won a Rose d'Or for a Freddie Mercury documentary) has a scalpel-sharp eye for rock-star foibles. And there are joyous contributions once again from Michael Kitchen as Pern's fantastically arrogant and unpleasant manager John Farrow, Paul Whitehouse as the band's guitarist Pat Quid and Nigel Havers's priapic Tony Pebblé (pronounced "Peblay").

Simon Day & Rhys Thomas on life with Brian Pern

This week sees the launch of Brian Pern: A Life in Rock on BBC Two. The mockumentary focuses on prog-rock singer Brian Pern, as he attempts to adapt to life after fronting one of rock's biggest bands. Featuring a host of big name guest stars, the show is an absolute treasure, and TVO was lucky enough to talk to its creators, writers and stars, Simon Day and Rhys Thomas about the life of Brian.

Rhys Thomas and Simon Day interview

Rhys Thomas and Simon Day on Brian Pern: A Life In Rock.

Simon Day and Rhys Thomas plan new sitcom

Fast Show star Day is set to reprise his character of Deptford armed robber Tony Beckton, who previously appeared on Bellamy's People and on Radio 4's The Simon Day Show, in a sitcom that Thomas is developing about divorced men living in a caravan park.