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Nathan Barley

Daz
Daz
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Daz polycounter lvl 18
http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/N/nathanbarley/

So c'mon UK folks, I need to know If this show is funny or not?!

For anyone who never saw the online spoof TV guide, TvGoHome thats where Nathan was born. Scroll down to the show that starts at 12.50am.

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  • danr
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    danr interpolator
    nope, it's not funny. Which would be surprising, considering the writing partnership of Chris Morris and Charlie Brooker ... except ...

    this is what we figured at work, while trying to make sense of it all : Charlie Brooker is Dan Ashcroft (the central character as far as the story is concerned), helplessly caught in the middle of all these hateful cunts ... and Chris Morris is the camera. It's real. It's deadly serious. So they didn't add any jokes.
  • MoP
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    MoP polycounter lvl 18
    Hmm, I hadn't heard of this. I enjoy Brooker's writing, though...
    Will check it out if possible. We get crappy TV reception round here.
  • Frankie
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    Frankie polycounter lvl 19
    It is quite funny! Although I've only seen a few episodes while round my girlfriends place as I don't have a TV. Danrs right that it dosen't have any jokes but its funny in the same way that the office is.
  • hawken
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    hawken polycounter lvl 19
    It'll be funnier second time around.

    Shame is that this program is around 5 years too late, this is what London was like when I used to work up there, and the web bubble was swelling up.

    However the tallent involved in this is staggering, for example Shynola did nearly all the tech bits you see in the series like web pages, videos and flyers / posters. Shynola were responsible for the Jnr Snr video among others.

    It's not totally funny yet, but then neither was the office, bo selecta, little britain or mighty boosh when they first started. Most people just reacted with WTF is this?

    oh and btw, I think the URL you are looking for is: www.trashbat.co.ck
  • thnom
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    thnom polycounter lvl 18
    [ QUOTE ]
    It's not totally funny yet, but then neither was the office, bo selecta, little britain or mighty boosh when they first started. Most people just reacted with WTF is this?

    [/ QUOTE ]

    Little Britain was and has always been funny and a hit from the off. I better example would habe been Pheonix Nights which wasn't well known in the first series, although one of the funniest series I've ever seen. By series 2 the word of mouth had got around and everyone knew about it. Bo' Selecta was never was/is funny..

    The office was REALLY funny or you hated it. Series 2 was exactly the same in that, so it did pick up a fanbase, by the people who liked it.

    As for Nathan Barley - I've watched it twice now, and I've yet to grin, nevermind chuckle or smile. It isn't funny IMO, and never will be..
  • hawken
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    hawken polycounter lvl 19
    thnom I'm guessing you dont have bbc3...

    I think it's fairly subjective, not everyone finds the same0 things funny - I personally hated "knowing me, knowing you" but loved the alan partridge radio series and 3rd tv series.

    the little britain and mighty boosh radio serieses were ace, by the time they reached bbc3 they became funny, by the time little Britain reached the terrestial channels it was pretty well established. But honestly when it first aired on bbc3 people were pretty damn confused.
  • Bronco
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    Bronco polycounter lvl 18
    this was my opinion when I saw the trailers in between other programs

    nathan Barley= TWAT!!

    though having said that I havent seen any episodes or anything so really i can't judge...just the trailers just made me think it was stupid and so didn't appeal to me.

    john
  • danr
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    danr interpolator
    yeah bronco, that's kinda the point ... The original TVGoHome source material was, and i quote, "candid scenes from the life of Nathan Barley, an odious twentysomething toff and media wannabe who genuinely deserves to die".

    Or, if you like, a "worthless upper-middle-class cuntsack" ... "proud to live at the absolute epicentre of a thundering whirlpool of meaningless shit".

    maybe it's just funnier written down than played out on telly
  • Daz
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    Daz polycounter lvl 18
    Watched the trailers thanks. Whilst I didn't really find any of it too amusing, they were very short clips that didn't make much sense out of context, but I had the feeling that it could have potential. I've always enjoyed the 'no actual jokes' spoof documentary format. But yeah I agree, I think the timing is a little off. It feels a lot like the nineties to me.

    But yeah of course, let's not forget that people find different things funny, and that characters often get funnier the more you get to know them. I actually always found 'The Office' very funny from day 1 ( as I think a lot of people did who had ever worked in an office like environment ), but 'Little Britain' has always been very hit and miss for me. Some sketches work, some just don't. The funniest content for me personally is generally the darkest. 'The League of Gentlemen', 'Blue Jam', 'Human Remains' and more recently the mightily dark 'Nighty Night' ( I am waiting with baited breath for this release on DVD. I have friends at work that I know would love this ). I would marry Julia Davis since a) she is hot and b) one twisted individual.
    The only real exception for me is 'SPACED' which I still believe to be one of the funniest series ever to grace British televisions. And that's generally way more uplifting than it is dark. Perhaps it isn't as funny as I think it is but merely holds sentimental value for me as a romanticized portrayal of how I remember London life. So I guess I conclude that what one finds funny in life has a lot to do with ones lifes experience. Stating the obvious I suppose.

    Right, back to Benny Hill, 'cos my life is all about slapping little bald blokes and chasing topless women. That's about all I have to amuse myself over here til I get a new DVD player!
  • JonMurphy
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    JonMurphy polycounter lvl 18
    The turn-around was this week when Nathan got his come-uppence thanks to geek pie.

    I do enjoy it, but I went to uni with people like that
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