A thread for 'The Thick Of It' (and 'In The Loop' as well)

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Well yes, I don't think the Blair/Brown one was a comedy... or a satire for that matter

Vicious Cop Kills Gentle Fool (Dada), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:16 (7 years ago) Permalink

arguably 'state of play' was a satire on new labour, but it's tenuous. then there's 'the project', but we won't talk about that.

The Man Without Shadow (Enrique), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:17 (7 years ago) Permalink

off the top of my head - Tony Blair rock star, the drama docu abt the Islington restaurant where Brown and Blair sealed their 'pact', drama docu abt the death of David Kelly, My Dad the Prime Minister, that crappy thing abt PR etc. w/Stephen Fry and John Bird, Rory Bremmner, Dead Ringers, at least one crappy Andy Hamilton thing on BBC1

xposts

Ward Fowler (Ward Fowler), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:18 (7 years ago) Permalink

Tony Blair rock star - after TTOI

the drama docu abt the Islington restaurant where Brown and Blair sealed their 'pact' - not about NuLab in power

drama docu abt the death of David Kelly - COMEDY, but yeah ok, kinda (almost simultaneous w. TTOI though? -- TTOI was about may 2005, when was this?)

My Dad the Prime Minister - haven't seen.

that crappy thing abt PR etc. w/Stephen Fry and John Bird - not about nulab, surely?

Rory Bremmner - shit

Dead Ringers - not really dcedicated to nulab but yeah incorporated elements.

at least one crappy Andy Hamilton thing on BBC1 - ?

The Man Without Shadow (Enrique), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:21 (7 years ago) Permalink

that crappy thing abt PR etc. w/Stephen Fry and John Bird

Possibly the worst thing I've ever seen on TV, I'd rather sit down with a plate of liver and devilled kidneys to watch Gunther von Hagens strut his stuff

Vicious Cop Kills Gentle Fool (Dada), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:29 (7 years ago) Permalink

TTOI is pitch perfect. I think someone on the research/production team was actually a minister's special advisor at some point but not sure. why do you think Bremner's shit NRQ? (rather than just smug?)

barbarian cities (jaybob3005), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:37 (7 years ago) Permalink

martin sixsmith (who he?) is the adviser guy on TTOI.

to my mind, if something's smug, it's probably shit, and BB&F is both, but that's just me.

The Man Without Shadow (Enrique), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:42 (7 years ago) Permalink

TTOI has v. similar things to say abt PR/media manipulation etc. as that Fry/Bird bollox - we haven't really moved on from "if you're in marketing kill yrself now" - and the F/B ep i saw was all abt how a political scandal can be managed to the advantage of the ruling power

Bremner = "Mike Yarwood w/ O levels"


Ward Fowler (Ward Fowler), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:44 (7 years ago) Permalink

xxpost

Interesting that it's Sixsmith (of the 'bury bad news' Jo Moore/Stephen Byers scandal, cos as Wikipedia makes clear, he felt that his career as a civil servant had been sacrificed as revenge for the end of Moore's as a special advisor... hence TTOI is particularly hard on special advisors.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Sixsmith

barbarian cities (jaybob3005), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:49 (7 years ago) Permalink

but TTOI isn't just about 'ooh spinning = evil', there's more righteous (f)ire there. policies are determined by focus groups or the whim of tony. ministers are weak careerists. TTOI's got a very strong 'three stooges' thing in the minister's office; tucker's character (and his office) are much stronger than anything in 'absolute power' or bremner.

i dunno i just think it's far more than 'yes minister' done in an 'office' stylee.

The Man Without Shadow (Enrique), Wednesday, 25 January 2006 12:50 (7 years ago) Permalink

Proofing the subtitles - I don't like all the swearing.

I do like -

- Who's the only gay in the village?

- Dunno, Eddie Grundy?

PJ Miller (PJ Miller 68), Thursday, 26 January 2006 10:00 (7 years ago) Permalink

I only enjoyed watching Dr. Who more last year. Interesting to see that BBC3, formerly a channel of the year by some award or other, has been ursurped by BBC4 in creating a cross over comedy series, I hope tittybangbang doesn't make it across the divide.

MitchellStirling (MitchellStirling), Thursday, 26 January 2006 18:14 (7 years ago) Permalink

7 months pass...
OHHHHHHHHHHH DEAR.

don't think we'll be seeing this in the same form too soon.

a rapper singing about hos and bitches and money (Enrique), Thursday, 14 September 2006 09:35 (6 years ago) Permalink

Time for a AI to just start afresh with the tories. As brilliant as Langham is in it, it was never just a vehicle for him.

Johnny B Was Quizzical (Johnney B), Thursday, 14 September 2006 11:19 (6 years ago) Permalink

3 months pass...
"Jason Deans
Wednesday January 3, 2007
MediaGuardian.co.uk


BBC4 political satire The Thick of It returned for a one-off special last night, attracting just over 200,000 viewers.
The Thick of It has been showered with critical praise and awards, but, while attracting respectable ratings, has not yet broken into the top rank of multichannel shows in terms of audience figures.

Due to Chris Langham's personal problems, last night's one-off outing for The Thick of It focused on Peter Capaldi's potty-mouthed government spin doctor, Malcolm Tucker, and an opposition shadow minister played by Roger Allam.

The Thick of It was watched by 237,000 viewers between 10.30pm and 11.30pm, according to unofficial overnights.

[...]

The darts final attracted 1.25 million viewers between 10pm and 11pm. Overall, the darts averaged 955,000 viewers between 7.30pm and 11pm."

benrique (Enrique), Thursday, 4 January 2007 12:47 (6 years ago) Permalink

"personal problems"

Tiki Theater Xymposium (Bent Over at the Arclight), Thursday, 4 January 2007 13:32 (6 years ago) Permalink

TV: No-one watches TTOI so put the snooker on instead vs No-one takes To Kill a Mockingbird out of the library so stock Jamie Oliver instead.

Johnney B English (stigoftdump), Thursday, 4 January 2007 13:42 (6 years ago) Permalink

4 weeks pass...
god hell, a US pilot is gonna be made for ABC, from a producer of 'arrested development'.

the original hauntology blogging crew (Enrique), Friday, 2 February 2007 11:05 (6 years ago) Permalink

4 months pass...

just saw trailer for a new one

That one guy that quit, Thursday, 21 June 2007 21:56 (5 years ago) Permalink

next tuesday

That one guy that quit, Monday, 25 June 2007 16:04 (5 years ago) Permalink

H3nry K. M1ll3r
is stoked for 'The Thick of It.'

same here bro

Just got offed, Sunday, 1 July 2007 18:58 (5 years ago) Permalink

"why do they wear clothes with writing on them? and why are they so fucking fat? and stupid?"

That one guy that quit, Sunday, 1 July 2007 19:09 (5 years ago) Permalink

i will miss part 2 owing to french camping holiday/cricket tour...is there any way of obtaining it? doubtless it'll be on youtube or alluc before too long.

Just got offed, Sunday, 1 July 2007 19:14 (5 years ago) Permalink

"that is the worst thing i have ever seen. and i was in nam."

That one guy that quit, Sunday, 1 July 2007 20:21 (5 years ago) Permalink

OK I haven't laughed so hard at any British comedy in ages.

"I hope you go to jail and get nobbed...by men!"

"The trouble with people is that they're fucking horrible."

Just got offed, Sunday, 1 July 2007 21:02 (5 years ago) Permalink

was this the Christmas one they just repeated? it's so fucking brilliant - don't know why i missed it at the time.

"I hope you get..nobbed..in prison..by..men"

blueski, Sunday, 1 July 2007 22:25 (5 years ago) Permalink

yeah this was shown at xmas more or less. same night as 'this life +10'! not on the dvd, maybe they'll do a double.

the tory is really funny, i hope they keep him.

That one guy that quit, Sunday, 1 July 2007 22:29 (5 years ago) Permalink

total crush on the opposition team gurl :/

blueski, Sunday, 1 July 2007 22:29 (5 years ago) Permalink

i couldn't watch the extra opposition thing cos Tiscali Homechoice do not provide red button option ;_;

blueski, Sunday, 1 July 2007 22:30 (5 years ago) Permalink

it was basically the tory stylist guy persuades... the tory (roger allam?) to do a radio interview praising the outgoing PM, but it goes haywire. i think it was more or less to set up tuesday: the possibility of dan miller (who is in one of the early episodes) standing against the nutters in a labour leadership contest. the tories want the nutters in because they think they're unelectable.

That one guy that quit, Sunday, 1 July 2007 22:33 (5 years ago) Permalink

calling him Peter Mannion is not really on.

blueski, Sunday, 1 July 2007 22:34 (5 years ago) Permalink

i lolled at 'Peter Onion' tho, brought back memories.

blueski, Sunday, 1 July 2007 22:34 (5 years ago) Permalink

"not in a 'it's not you it's me way', but in a 'no, it's you, you vacuous fascist sloaney bitch' way'"

That one guy that quit, Sunday, 1 July 2007 22:37 (5 years ago) Permalink

"you don't deserve to live"

Just got offed, Sunday, 1 July 2007 23:03 (5 years ago) Permalink

"I know the public...I've met them"

Just got offed, Sunday, 1 July 2007 23:05 (5 years ago) Permalink

also, peter capaldi >>>> tory spin doctor

he actually showed some cracks, which of course made him much more human and empathetic. especial lols at his dependence upon ollie, despite his apparent contempt for him

Just got offed, Sunday, 1 July 2007 23:07 (5 years ago) Permalink

"young men with issues around stabbing"

That one guy that quit, Monday, 2 July 2007 21:14 (5 years ago) Permalink

wtf with the fucking fratellis being used to advertize part the second? wot a turn-off.

That one guy that quit, Monday, 2 July 2007 21:15 (5 years ago) Permalink

I have the new one and the xmas special to watch at home. Cannot WAIT, The Thick Of It is brilliant.

admrl, Monday, 2 July 2007 21:15 (5 years ago) Permalink

second one wasn't quite as out and out hilarity as the first and i found it just too hard to keep up with but still enjoyed trying

blueski, Wednesday, 4 July 2007 13:52 (5 years ago) Permalink

'this office is about as secure as a hymen at a South London comprehensive'

'are you a fucking horse'

'I have the cold cock'

Plenty of out and out hilarity I thought last night.

Billy Dods, Wednesday, 4 July 2007 13:56 (5 years ago) Permalink

the whole thing with the cleaning lady was probably the best bit.

blueski, Wednesday, 4 July 2007 14:01 (5 years ago) Permalink

8080

Ed, Wednesday, 4 July 2007 14:03 (5 years ago) Permalink

it was good but not as good.

That one guy that quit, Wednesday, 4 July 2007 14:03 (5 years ago) Permalink

I didn't see the first one but the second was one of the funniest things I've seen in years:

"Maybe in the future, there'll be robots knockin' about, Davina McCall will be Pope and you'll be able to download... rice"

Tom D., Thursday, 5 July 2007 12:13 (5 years ago) Permalink

Who watched the BBCi 15min opposition-view special straight afterwards? You just can't beat Roger Allam.

Michael Jones, Thursday, 5 July 2007 14:15 (5 years ago) Permalink

i watched the second one again and it grew on me -- though i missed the tories.

"i will fuckin' eviscerate you. now i don't know what that means exactly, i didn't have your education, but i think i'll tear your fuckin' cock off and busk it from there."

That one guy that hit it and quit it, Monday, 9 July 2007 15:24 (5 years ago) Permalink

now on BBC 2, in half an hour. have not yet seen. this promises to be awes.

Just got offed, Saturday, 14 July 2007 20:27 (5 years ago) Permalink

"We're not The Independant; we can't put the word "Cruelty" with a picture of a dolphin or a polar bear under it. That's not a front page, that's just cheating"

DavidM, Saturday, 14 July 2007 21:53 (5 years ago) Permalink

"I'm irrelevant I'm irrelevant I'm irrelevant... what do you know about Hitler? he had a moustache and lived over there. Fuck it all!"

"He thinks he's been leaking, wait till I've finished with him - he'll look like Mel Gibson's Jesus"

"These are good biscuits and they cost £4"

DavidM, Saturday, 14 July 2007 22:02 (5 years ago) Permalink

i was expecting/hoping olly to make some kind of fuckup rather than leave himself where he wanted to be, but oh well

i could see some value in revisiting it but it depends what british politics does in the meantime eh. plenty of scope i think. malcolm retired, one or two scenes only, ollie exactly as predicted, peter ... well, peter actually has more than one thing you could do with him, i think.

i'm interested how the series would stand up to rewatching. last week's i found i couldn't actually remember a lot of the details so it was kind of obtuse. also i'm all for That Sort Of Thing in theory - sudden inexplicable eleventh-hour format change, or whatever - but it only halfway came off, if that. like i wasn't actually sure at what point malcolm perjured himself, which uh

set the controls for the heart of the congos (thomp), Sunday, 28 October 2012 13:09 (7 months ago) Permalink

i rewatched the first five minutes of the first series last night, it was mentioned in some guardian thing (i forgot that the first five minutes is just malcolm and a guy you don't see again), and what struck me is how much of a shoestring it looks like it was filmed on, peter capaldi's suit doesn't really fit, no one's makeup is right, they're in some office that doesn't look set-dressed so much as it looks like they're just filming in someone's office ... what also struck me is quite how well capaldi's inhabiting the role right out of the gate, even when it looks like something being filmed for a media studies a level

set the controls for the heart of the congos (thomp), Sunday, 28 October 2012 13:11 (7 months ago) Permalink

Peter is the best character other than Malcolm I think, although that is to a large part down to Roger Allam's consistently world-weary performance. But the show wouldn't work without Malcolm at its centre.

Malcolm lied about having acquired Tickell's medical records, I believe. I kind of want to watch the series again from scratch, the Tickell stuff just didn't seem very important in the first couple of episodes so I barely paid any attention to it.

Matt DC, Sunday, 28 October 2012 13:21 (7 months ago) Permalink

when he showed up on both sides of things i figured it was going to be the unifying plot but also it seemed like there was a lot else to keep track of

and i don't know, malcolm moved from the periphery to the center and back twice already, so ..

set the controls for the heart of the congos (thomp), Sunday, 28 October 2012 13:28 (7 months ago) Permalink

Peter's face when hearing Stewart get sacked was sublime

stet, Sunday, 28 October 2012 13:42 (7 months ago) Permalink

Number None, Sunday, 28 October 2012 13:49 (7 months ago) Permalink

Beautiful

stet, Sunday, 28 October 2012 14:00 (7 months ago) Permalink

I liked how unashamed they were about making the Home Secretary look as much like Theresa May as possible.

Matt DC, Sunday, 28 October 2012 14:26 (7 months ago) Permalink

Stewart's speech after he was sacked, about rehabilitating the party, was stunning.

I hope they don't do any more, though. Some great eps this series, but I didn't really enjoy last week's hour-long epic on any level, though I could see that it was an impressive piece of work.

"pulling a Jaz" (stevie), Sunday, 28 October 2012 16:05 (7 months ago) Permalink

xpost She wasn't the home sec was she? I thought she the Home Office's version of Malcolm …

But brilliant episode, and made last week's seem much more worthwhile in retrospect (though that episode was rather killed in its own right by having to do all the heavy lifting for this one). Only two quibbles were the last two bits in the closing credits sequence: would rather they had left us not knowing if Glenn had gone to the police; and we didn't need the life-goes-on bit back at Dosac.

Manfred Mann meets Man Parrish (ithappens), Sunday, 28 October 2012 16:18 (7 months ago) Permalink

I dunno, I liked those bits. As well as being life-goes-on it was one of the real consequences of hurriedly reacting to media outrage, and I think they've been pretty restrained in the series until now wrt that.

kinder, Sunday, 28 October 2012 16:21 (7 months ago) Permalink

No, I'm pretty sure she's the Home Secretary. I'm sure on Stuart's awayday he boast about having two ministers at it.

passive-aggressive display name (aldo), Sunday, 28 October 2012 17:55 (7 months ago) Permalink

I loved Glenn not going into the station so much

Simon H., Sunday, 28 October 2012 21:56 (7 months ago) Permalink

the malcolmisms in everyone's mouths rang a little false to me this time for some reason ("i'll squeeze his balls til they look like glacé cherries" - sorry that line is just not in mannion's repertoire) but yeah, ep saved by tremendous monologue from malcolm to ollie

i loved stewart sitting on the floor!! then finally rising as he came to the climax of his cunt-iloquy

TracerHandVEVO (Tracer Hand), Monday, 29 October 2012 14:14 (7 months ago) Permalink

There was one particular Malcolm quote in the last episode that made my jaw-drop at the time but I can't recall it for the life of me now. Will have to watch it again.

comedy is unnatural and abhorrent (Scik Mouthy), Monday, 29 October 2012 14:27 (7 months ago) Permalink

I found myself wondering whether Iannucci voted LibDem at the last election and was vocalising his rage through Glen.

Matt DC, Monday, 29 October 2012 14:33 (7 months ago) Permalink

i was expecting/hoping olly to make some kind of fuckup rather than leave himself where he wanted to be, but oh well

But surely that's the thing - that he ends up well on his way to empty huskdom?

Walter Galt, Monday, 29 October 2012 15:48 (7 months ago) Permalink

yeah, this has been trailed all through the series

sug night (sic), Monday, 29 October 2012 23:04 (7 months ago) Permalink

xpost With Olly, I think he had to end up in that job. Through all the series, Olly has always been just an empty shell of ambition. Malcolm, as he continually reminded us - and like Campbell IRL - was always stressing that he was doing the job because he loved the party and wanted the party to the right thing. So who better to replace a man who became an empty husk than someone who always was an empty husk?

Manfred Mann meets Man Parrish (ithappens), Tuesday, 30 October 2012 18:38 (7 months ago) Permalink


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