Several people have asked for my views on Miranda Hart's B.B.C.-2 sitcom. "You must like it!" goes the refrain: "Its done in the style of a '70's sitcom!". That's true. Unfortunately, the sitcom from that era it bears most resemblance to is 'A Soft Touch' ( a deservedly forgotten I.T.V. flop starring Maureen Lipman ). With my shelves groaning under the combined weight of goodness-knows-how-many archive D.V.D.'s, I see no need to watch a copy of something when the originals are close at hand. I recently acquired the '80's series 'Ever Decreasing Circles' ( starring Richard Briers ) and would rather watch that than Hart's show. She is the latest in a long line of obscure comedians to be given a show and hyped as a genius despite not having done much of note. All her shtick - the falling over, losing her clothes etc. - was copyrighted years ago by the late Sir Norman Wisdom and was not particularly original then.
Onto Alan B'stard. Hearing that there is a huge reward for catching Nazis, he decides to turn in one of his constituents - Helmut Drucker ( William Merrow ) - who lives in a bungalow, the inside of which is full of World War 2 memorabilia. Alan has been blackmailing him. Pictures of Hitler stand on the shelves next to those of Mrs.Thatcher. Helmut offers to bargain with Alan. In return for his freedom, he will hand over a fortune in gold bullion. A meeting at a railway station is duly arranged...
Quite a few of Mayall's contemporaries adorn this episode. There's Stephen Fry as the General Melchett-like financial journalist 'Piers Lonsdale', Hugh Laurie as a harassed waiter, and sexy Helen Lederer as a radio interviewer. Fry and Laurie appear in the scene set in Mussolini's restaurant, named after Il Duce as you might expect. His pictures grace the walls, and the waiters wear black shirts. When Piers Lonsdale and Alan start bullying the waiter, they make it clear they expect to get away with it because they are stinking rich. Parallels between the Thatcher Tories and the Nazis are laid on with a trowel. Helmut tells Alan the only real difference between Tory Britain and Nazi Germany is that the latter's newspapers were more independent! At one point Alan refers to him and Lonsdale as 'Thatcher's stormtroopers'.
Funniest moment - Piers Fletcher-Dervish reads a booklet on World War 2 and says to Alan: "It says here that the Russians were our allies in the war. Do you think somebody should tell Mrs.Thatcher?".
Second funniest moment - Alan tries to get fresh with the radio interviewer. She shuts a briefcase, trapping Alan's manhood. Ouch!
Onto Alan B'stard. Hearing that there is a huge reward for catching Nazis, he decides to turn in one of his constituents - Helmut Drucker ( William Merrow ) - who lives in a bungalow, the inside of which is full of World War 2 memorabilia. Alan has been blackmailing him. Pictures of Hitler stand on the shelves next to those of Mrs.Thatcher. Helmut offers to bargain with Alan. In return for his freedom, he will hand over a fortune in gold bullion. A meeting at a railway station is duly arranged...
Quite a few of Mayall's contemporaries adorn this episode. There's Stephen Fry as the General Melchett-like financial journalist 'Piers Lonsdale', Hugh Laurie as a harassed waiter, and sexy Helen Lederer as a radio interviewer. Fry and Laurie appear in the scene set in Mussolini's restaurant, named after Il Duce as you might expect. His pictures grace the walls, and the waiters wear black shirts. When Piers Lonsdale and Alan start bullying the waiter, they make it clear they expect to get away with it because they are stinking rich. Parallels between the Thatcher Tories and the Nazis are laid on with a trowel. Helmut tells Alan the only real difference between Tory Britain and Nazi Germany is that the latter's newspapers were more independent! At one point Alan refers to him and Lonsdale as 'Thatcher's stormtroopers'.
Funniest moment - Piers Fletcher-Dervish reads a booklet on World War 2 and says to Alan: "It says here that the Russians were our allies in the war. Do you think somebody should tell Mrs.Thatcher?".
Second funniest moment - Alan tries to get fresh with the radio interviewer. She shuts a briefcase, trapping Alan's manhood. Ouch!
