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ITvine

8 Jun

Yesterday saw day 2 of the filming of the last ever IT Crowd, and Graham Linehan kindly treated his twitter followers to vine clips of three of the main cast members!

© Graham Lineham

© Graham Linehan

We retweeted Jen’s at the time, but in the spirit of completeness we thought it would be rather jolly to follow up with Moss’ and Roy’s vines. So here, for anyone who didn’t catch them yesterday, are mini videos of Chris O’Dowd, Richard Ayoade and Katherine Parkinson - alongside the  paraphernalia of geekery (as you’d expect). Just click on the name to watch the clip.

Filming continues today, and we live in hope of a Douglas Reynholm or Richmond vine to accompany the others!

To follow Linehan on twitter head over here.

Top Ten IT Crowd

28 May

© Talkback Thames

While we’re all buzzing off the fact that the filming of the final IT Crowd is underway, Metro has very kindly put together their Top 10 episodes of the past four series.

It includes such classics as Roy’s plans to shoot a nude calendar, the German cannibal incident and the moment that Douglas Reynholm crashed into his father’s funeral. What’s more, Metro has helpfully included a clip for each of the Top 10. Wonderful stuff! To view the full article (and to see whether you agree with their choices) click here.

Now all that remains is to wonder whether that conversation escalated beyond twitter and Richmond is indeed going to be making an appearance in the hotly-anticipated final episode…

Be In The IT Crowd Crowd

18 May

© Talkback Thames / Steven Peskett

Applications for audience tickets for the filming of the forthcoming IT Crowd special finale are now open!

Tickets are free, and SRO Audiences are running the audience selection process.  The filming of the show will take place on Saturday 8th June 2013 at Elstree Studios, Shenley Road, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire WD6 1JG; doors open at 6.45pm. Please note that the minimum age for attending the filming is 16 years.

To apply for tickets (max of 4 per person) visit SRO Audiences here. Be aware that, sadly, applying for tickets doesn’t guarantee you get them.

IT Crowd Back For Final Farewell

7 May

© Talkback Thames

Graham Linehan has confirmed that IT Crowd will be retirning for a one-off 40 minute special.

Chris O’Dowd, Richard Ayoade, Katherine Parkinson and Matt Berry are  expected to return for the new episode, which will be filmed  in three weeks’ time. As yet, there’s no news as to whether Noel Fielding will be joining the cast for the grand finale.

Last year that O’Dowd revealed that he would be interested in reprising the role of Roy, claiming that the show’s stars still “need closure”.

“I’d love to do something more with those characters,” he said. “I don’t think we said goodbye to them properly.”

The script for the special was written over a year ago, but the cast have been too busy with other filming commitments – and in one case a pregnancy – to work on it until now.

As yet there’s no news about when the special will air, but as soon as we hear anything we’ll be sure to let you know!

Matt & Katherine On The Radio

20 Apr
© bbc.co.uk

© bbc.co.uk

We hope you have all been listening to the new series of Matt Berry‘s surreal psychological award-winning radio show, I Regress, on Wednesdays at 11pm on BBC Radio 4. The latest episode Thunder is available now on BBC Iplayer.

If you keep listening you might have heard Don’t Start, written by and starring Frank Skinner and Katherine Parkinson, as a long-term couple who, during each 15 minute episode, fall out over another apparently trivial flashpoint. You can catch the latest episode here, and the next one on Wednesday at 11.15pm straight after I Regress.

Catch Up With Onion Land

4 Apr

© BBC

The last remnants of your Easter Eggs are starting to look like wicked reminders of pure liquid gluttony.  Spring is officially here, though some parts of the country seem to have swapped sunshine for snow.  As you stop to take a breath, you realise this seemingly barren period in Onion Land is actually filled with glorious programming you might have missed!

There’s a number of TVO regulars cropping up in various shows at the moment, and as some of them won’t be on catch-up for very long, we thought it was as good a time as any to give you a brief round-up.

For starters, Colin Hoult and Steve Oram appeared in the Easter Special of Life’s Too Short - the mockumentary series about Multiverse head-honcho Warwick Davis.  Oram’s also been regularly appearing in Heading Out with Sue Perkins, and all six episodes can be caught on catch-up at present.

Then there’s our full blooded TVO shows to savour – with It’s Kevin halfway though it’s initial run, and all episodes available on iPlayer, you can savour Kevin Eldon, Julia Davis, Justin Edwards, Matt Berry, Alex Kirk and many more joining The Actor, Kevin Eldon for some full blooded titting about.  The show continues on Sunday evening.

© Dave King / Roughcut Television

Over on 4oD is every episode of Anna & Katy - the silly channel-hopping style sketch show from Anna Crilly and Katy Wix, which also features appearances from Fergus Craig, Colin Hoult and David McNeill.  The show wraps up next Wednesday.

There’s also the brand new series of Game Of Thrones featuring Paul Kaye airing on Sunday evenings, which is available on catch-up exclusively to Sky customers, alongside Dan Clark and Katherine Parkinson in Love Matters.

If radio is more your thing, don’t forget that Matt Berry returned for Series 2 of I, Regress last night on Radio 4, who are also in the middle of a rerun of Knowing Me Knowing You… With Alan Partridge.

And if repeats are all you crave, you’ll be pleased to know that Mongrels will be heading to freeview channel Dave from April 12th. All this, plus the release of Sightseers on dvd and blu-ray, and a wealth of archive materials available from our TVO Amazon Stores now!  Get stuck in!

Nods & Nominations

26 Mar

© Queenonline

The Oscars may seem like a distant memory already, but Awards Season continues apace, and TVO regulars are, as always, in the offering.

The BAFTA Craft Awards were announced this weekend, and comedy legend Rhys Thomas is up for the highly prestigious Breakthrough Talent award for his documentary Freddie Mercury: The Great Pretender, which shone a candid light on the period between Freddie’s debut solo album in 1985, and his premature death in 1991.

He’s up against stiff competition from Mike Bartlett for The Town, Julie Gearey for Prisoners’ Wives and Tim Whitnall for Best Possible Taste: The Kenny Everett Story.

Elsewhere, in the comedy department, Julia Davis has been nominated for “Writer (Comedy)” due to her gloriously funny period piece Hunderby.  She’s up against Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche and Simon Blackwell for the final run of The Thick Of It (which featured Justin Edwards), as well as John Morton for Twenty Twelve and Jo Brand, Vicki Pepperdine and Joanna Scanlan for Getting On.  For the full list of nominations, check out Digital Spy’s rundown over yonder.

Last week saw the Royal Television Society Programme Awards take place in London, and again, there were TVO connections on show.  Horrible Histories was pipped to the post as Children’s Programme by Room On The Broom, but Sherlock - the last episode of which featured Katherine Parkinson and Tony Way – won the award for Drama Series ahead of Call The Midwife and Line Of Duty.  Sherlock also picked up an award for “Writer – Drama”, given to its showrunner Steven Moffat.

© RTS

However, the big TVO win belonged to BabyCow for Alan Partridge: Welcome To The Places Of My Life - which picked up the nod for Scripted Comedy – so congrats to Steve Coogan, Dave Lambert and the rest of the team!  For more info, pop here.

Lastly, and by no means leastly, the delightful Tony Law won Best Club Comic and Best Show for Maximum Nonsense at this weekend’s Chortle Awards, with Stewart Lee & Richard Herring also scoring double wins.

And of course, as we told you this weekend, Sightseers picked up yet another gong – this time for Best British Film at the Empire Awards.  All in all, a glorious time for the stars of TVO – and we’re over the moon for everyone winning things!

Love Matters

26 Mar

© Sky Living

There’s a brand new comedy show with TVO connections tucked away on Sky Living later this week – so much so we almost missed it!

Entitled Love Matters, the six half-hour comedies are all about the ugly business of relationships.

The series will be airing in three double bills starting on Thursday evening at 9pm, with Dan Clark, Katherine Parkinson and Daniel Lawrence Taylor (How Not To Live Your Life, Hunderby) on hand.

Clark & Taylor star in Episode One, 30 And Counting, which blurs the lines between online dating and reality in a tale by writers Chris Little and Tom Vinnicombe.

© Sky Living

Episode Two, which follows at 9:30pm, is entitled Officially Special.  The episode sees Parkinson as world record official Jo Pepper juggling her bizarre job with her complicated social life.

Later episodes feature the wonderful Isy Suttie, Hunderby star Rebekah Staton, the award winning Sarah Solemani and comedy legend Meera Syal, so they’re definitely worth sticking around for.

For more info on the run, visit the show’s mini-site over yonder, where you can savour trailers, preview clips, galleries and behind the scenes interviews with the cast.

There’s currently no news on a dvd release, but if we hear anything, we’ll keep you posted, so stay peeled!

Turning It On Again?

18 Dec

© Talkback Thames / Steven Peskett

Buzz has been spreading across the internet about the long awaited grand finale of The IT Crowd which is due in 2013.

The show was initially pencilled in for a fourth series, with creator Graham Linehan opting for co-writers to help ease the load.  However, this plan was scrapped and a special was announced over a year ago.

What happened next was surprising.  Chris O’Dowd became a Hollywood movie-star, Richard Ayoade became a highly acclaimed movie director, Katherine Parkinson kept adding to her incredibly busy CV with roles on radio, television and in film, as well as preparing to become a mum for the first time, and Matt Berry continued to be generally awesome wherever he turned up throughout 2012.  Linehan too, was also busy, with his stage show The Ladykillers and his forthcoming new sitcom Count Arthur Strong.

And so, the special fell into limbo, though the unwritten rule was simple – as soon as the cast can all be assembled in one place, then it will happen.  Which is exactly what Linehan clarified to a fan on Twitter last week, sending the already fairly obvious faint news into a bit of a tizzy, as these reports from brilliant sites like British Comedy Guide and Den Of Geek confirm.  His actual comment was simple: “Hoping to do a special middle of next year.”

Which is exactly what we’d anticipated, given everyone’s schedules.  This isn’t confirmation of the show’s return, but a nice reminder that it’s still on the agenda.  Here’s hoping for one last adventure with Roy, Moss, Jen and Douglas as soon as possible.  As always, if you want confirmed news, you know which onion to peel…

Hunderby Does The Double

13 Dec
© british comedy awards

© british comedy awards

Julia Davis’s dark, costume-drama comedy Hunderby picked up both Best Sitcom and Best New Comedy Programme awards last night at the British Comedy awards.

The show beat off competition from The Thick of It, Rev and Twenty Twelve in the Sitcom category and Alan Partridge, Cardinal Burns and Chris O’Dowd’s Moone Boy in the Best New Comedy Programme category.

Hunderby was not the only TVO related winner on the night, the Best Comedy Entertainment Programme award was won by Harry Hill’s TV Burp directed by Spencer Millman.

Nathan Barley writer Charlie Brooker won Best Comedy Entertainment Personality and Horrible Histories was beaten this year by Cardinal Burns (script edited by Rufus Jones) in the Best Sketch show category.

David Rawle from Moone Boy missed out on Best Comedy Breakthrough Artist to Morgana Robinson, but he has plenty of time to win awards!

Another TVO connection was that Katherine Parkinson was on the Jury this year.

Noel Fielding also popped up on film in a tribute to Vic and Bob, talking about Toasty Surrealism!

The full list of winners can be found below, and the whole ceremony is available on 4OD.

Best Comedy Entertainment Personality – Charlie Brooker

Best Sitcom – Hunderby

Best Male TV Comic – Lee Mack

Best Comedy Entertainment Programme – Harry Hill’s TV Burp

Best Comedy Breakthrough Artist – Morgana Robinson

Best TV Comedy Actress – Rebecca Front

The Writers Guild of Great Britain – Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer

Best TV Comedy Actor – Peter Capaldi

Best Female TV Comic – Jo Brand

Best Sketch Show – Cardinal Burns

Best New Comedy Programme – Hunderby

Outstanding Achievement – Sacha Baron Cohen.

Standard Nerds

27 Oct

© Qwertee

It’s that time again… Qwertee have launched their latest IT Crowd inspired tee… and this one is the best yet!

Paying homage to the video-game influenced title sequences, this Nintendo-styled tee features the polygonal likenesses of Chris O’Dowd, Richard Ayoade and Katherine Parkinson, and can be bought for the next 48 hours over at Qwertee, before being retired indefinitely… so get in there whilst you can!

Pop on over to their website over yonder to buy the shirt for just £8, €10 or $12 plus postage and packaging in the next 24 hours, with the price popping upwards a little after that.

In other related news, the long awaited grand finale of The IT Crowd saga looks likely to film next Spring, according to creator Graham Linehan – who has mooted a filming date of May 2013.  We’ll keep you peeled on any further developments, and in the meantime, spread your love for the show by buying this epic tee!

Funny Fortnight Favourites: The IT Crowd

24 Aug

© Talkback Thames

This weekend sees Channel 4 approach the conclusion of its Funny Fortnight with a countdown of its greatest ever comedy shows.  One show sure to feature is Graham Linehan’s hugely popular sitcom The IT Crowd.

Our American correspondent, and self confessed Anglophile, Trixie, takes a look back at this comedy classic below…

“Have you tried turning it off then on again?”

If you’re familiar with this phrase, you’ve probably watched The It Crowd. This classic British comedy series aired on Channel 4 and ran from February 2006 to July 2010, producing a comfortable four season’s worth of witty, charming and unique entertainment.

Created and written by Graham Linehan, The It Crowd centres on the goings-on at sexy, glamorous Reynholm Industries. However, the three main characters, oddballs Roy, Moss and Jen, don’t get to experience the attractive benefits of the company – as these social misfits are relegated to the dark, dirty basement of the building. Pariahs in the workplace, they are ignored and unappreciated by their boss and co-workers.

© Talkback Thames

Roy Trenneman, played by Chris O’Dowd, is a movie and junk food loving geek, who is looking for love… in all the wrong places, of course.  Jen Barber, played by Katherine Parkinson, has lied on her CV and has no technical experience with computers whatsoever.  A lover of shoes and the beautiful things in life, she longs to escape her basement prison and will lie, lie, and lie in order to accomplish her goal.  Finally, Maurice Moss, played by Richard Ayoade, is a tech genius that lives at home with his mother, and has different sized glasses for different sized plans.  Yeah, they’re that sort of people.

Continue reading →

Funny Fortnight Favourites!

13 Aug

© Channel 4

Details have emerged of the exact transmission times for much of the programming in Channel 4′s Funny Fortnight – which features a number of TVO faces in new productions and old favourites.

These include Julia Davis and Sharon Horgan in Bad Sugar, Matt Berry in Toast Of London  Kevin Eldon and Colin Hoult appearing in The Function Room and repeats of The IT Crowd, Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, Brass Eye, Jam and more.

The season will also include new material from Vic & Bob and Harry Hill, archive programming long forgotten, stand-up from the likes of Steve Coogan, Lee Evans and Peter Kay, plus a count-down of the Top 30 Comedy Shows in the history of Channel 4.

© Talkback Productions

The special season starts this Thursday night (Aug 16th) with the broadcast of Peter Kay’s latest live show, followed by Phonejacker spin-off Verry Terry from Kayvan Novak.  The first TVO flavoured show crops up after these – with a repeat showing of the infamous Brass Eye at 11:30pm.

Not too long afterwards, the early hours of Friday 17th bring us a repeat of Russell Brand And Friends at 1:10am, which featured a memorable appearance from Paul Kaye as Mike Strutter.  Another Onion flavoured repeat comes along on Saturday night (Aug 18th) with another chance to see a firm favourite from The IT Crowd.  Series two opener The Work Outing is the chosen episode, which of course, was the one with the gay musical, the disabled toilet, and Richmond’s missing copy of Heat.

© Phil Fisk

Sunday evening (Aug 19th), sees the first new show to feature TVO faces, in the form of star-packed trad-sitcom The Function Room.  In this pilot episode, police officers hold a public meeting to discuss crime in the local area.  However, their plans for the event get derailed when it emerges local residents only want to talk about one thing – a notorious criminal with a highly offensive alias.

The Fucntion Room stars the legendary Kevin Eldon, League Of Gentlemen/Psyschoville star Reece Shearsmith, Fast Show favourite Simon Day, and The Vicar Of Dibley‘s James Fleet, alongside Paul Ritter, Daniel Rigby, Blake Harrison and our very own Colin Hoult!  Eldon portrays unflappable Inspector Marks, who wants to present a human face to the force, but is just a little bit weird.  Meanwhile Hoult and Josephine Bulter play local well-to-do couple Stuart & Marina, who effortlessly rub all the other locals up the wrong way.

A few hours later, early into Monday, Aug 20th, is a very rare chance to see a compilation episode of The 11 O’Clock Show from 1999.  The satirical news-based show was a breeding ground for comedic talent – launching the careers of Iain Lee, Daisy Donovan, Sacha Baron Cohen, Mackenzie Crook and Ricky Gervais.  It also brought to prominence Rich Hall’s blossoming UK career, and boasted a fine writing staff which included James Bachman, Rhys Thomas, Tony Way, Phil Whelans, Charlie Brooker and Stephen Merchant, and one of it’s associate producers was none other than Spencer Millman!

© Kuba Wierczorek

Monday 20th is, perhaps, the biggest night for Onion fans – starting with the première of Toast Of London at 10pm- written by Matt Berry and Arthur Matthews, and starring Matt alongside Robert Bathurst, Geoff McGivern,  Tracy-Ann Oberman and Lee Cornes.  With that fantastic cast behind it, the lineage of both it’s writers, and the hilarious preview clip which appeared online recently, we’ve marked this one down as a must-see.

© Dan Goldsmith

Not long afterwards, the repeats kick in, with a re-run of Steve Coogan‘s 1994 live show Live & Lewd at 11:40pm, preceded by a new introduction from the comic.  This is followed by a repeat episode of Chris Morris‘ dark and devious project Jam featuring Kevin Eldon and Julia Davies, followed by a very rare chance to see Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace back on our screens with the classic episode, Skipper The Eye-Child.

For those who don’t know, Darkplace aired not long before the first series of The Mighty Boosh, and this sci-fi horror spoof featuring Matthew Holness, Richard Ayoade, Alice Lowe, Matty Berry, Kim Noble, Stuart Silver and occasionally, Julian Barratt and Noel Fielding too {though not in this episode, sadly} was a golden nugget of genius which sorely deserves en-mass reappraisal.

Things go a little quiet on the Onion front for a while after that, beyond Friday night’s short editions of Baby Cow’s Comedy Blaps which will feature the voice of Steve Coogan, but with the promise of Julia Davies & Sharon Horgan‘s Bad Sugar, repeats of Anna & Katy, Star Stories  and Black Books, plus the countdown of Channel 4′s greatest comedy shows ever still to come at some point between the 25th and the 31st, we’ll be keeping a close eye on the schedules for any news worth shouting about.

In the meantime, enjoy the gallery of images from Bad Sugar below.  With the likes of Olivia Colman, Reece Shearsmith, Peter Serafinowicz, Greg Davis & Kayvan Novak joining Davis & Horgan, this is looking likely to be an absolute cracker!

Blinkbox Booshdom!

6 Aug

© Copyright blinkbox Entertainment Limited.

Steve Coogan‘s sitcom Saxondale and anthology spoof Dr Terrible’s House Of Horrible are amongst a smattering of TVO favourites available to watch free online.

UK based video on demand service Blinkbox offers television and film from both sides of the pond to download or stream via pc, mac, games consoles, tablets and smart tv’s – and already offers a large back catalogue of programming for purchase.

This includes the TVO flavoured likes of The Mighty Boosh, Dead Boss, This Is Jinsey, Horrible Histories and Mongrels, and movies Come On Eileen, Weekender and The Boat That Rocked to name but a few.

Coogan’s work is well represented on the site, from films such as Tropic Thunder and Hot Fuzz (also featuring our very own Alice Lowe), and the televisual adventures of one Alan Partridge.

Now as part of a deal with the BBC, a number of comedy classics are available to stream free of charge.

These include Saxondale – which also featured Matt Berry, James Bachman and Tom Meeten, and underrated spoof Dr Terrible - featuring Julia Davis.

© BBC

Also up for free viewing is criminally ignored sitcom Lab Rats featuring Dan Tetsell alongside Chris Addison and Dead Boss star Geoffrey McGivern.

You can also take another look at Rob Brydon’s Annually Retentive which co-stars Sharon Horgan and Alice Lowe, or That Mitchell And Web Look featuring James Bachman.

For something a little bit more ‘out there’, you can also catch rarely seen French animation series A Town Called Panic – which included Lucy Montgomery and Alexander Armstrong in it’s English dub cast.

To browse the full Blinkbox catalogue, click on any of the links above, or be really obvious and fall onto it’s home page via the word Battenberg - and of course, almost all of these shows, and more, can still be purchased the good old fashioned way on dvd and blu-ray via THE VELVET ONION AMAZON STORE!

Funny Fortnight Forthcoming!

20 Jul

© Channel 4

Channel 4 have released more details of their Funny Fortnight next month, which features more than a smattering of TVO regulars and influences.

Over 30 hours of programming across two weeks of television, the season promises brand new shows, excellent stand up and familiar faces staging their returns to the channel.

A new video preview over on the Channel 4 press website showcases highlights from some of the channel’s flagship shows, and offers an exclusive look at a number of exciting specials.

© Tiger Aspect Productions

Amongst these new shows is Bad Sugar - written by Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong of Peep Show and Four Lions fame.  It combines three of comedy’s biggest names of the moment - Julia Davis, Sharon Horgan and Olivia Colman, and centres on a dysfunctional, wealthy mining dynasty, with an ailing patriarch and some greedy siblings.

The show also stars David Bradley, Peter Serafinowicz, Kayvan Novak and Reece Shearsmith, and it’s producer is Derren Schlesinger – who was previously responsible for both Four Lions and Noel Fielding’s Luxury Comedy.  Undoubtedly one of the most exciting shows on telly in some time, this Tiger Aspect Productions show has real potential to be a smash hit.

© Objective Productions

Also set to première is Toast Of London, the new sitcom pilot by Matt Berry and Father Ted/Big Train creator Arthur Matthews.  Matt stars as successful actor Steven Toast, who has recently made a career faux pass by electing to star in a controversial west end stage play.

Recently divorced, and attacked in the street by members of appalled public, the previously much loved actor auditions for a role in the long running television series, Inspector Somerset.  However, it’s producer has been imprisoned for racial chanting on set, so Toast auditions for the part of a gay corrupt detective during prisoner’s visiting time.  Made by Objective Productions, we’re keen to see if this show lives up to its potential.

Other new shows include: Them From That Thing  – a two part sketch show featuring Kayvan Novak, Sally Phillips and many more, co-written by one Charlie Brooker; The Function Room - a traditional looking sitcom featuring the likes of Reece Shearsmith, Kevin Eldon, Simon Day and James Fleet; Lucky Sexy Winners - a new panel show from Vic Reeves & Bob Mortimer; Very Terry - a Phonejacker spin off from Kayvan Novak focusing on car salesman Terry Tibbs; Harry Hill: The Reunion - in which the madcap comic seeks out the cast of his old Channel 4 show to find out “where are they now?”; The Boyle Variety Performance  – a spoof of the annual royal-attended show from Frankie Boyle; Just Around The Corner  – from the creators of Drop The Dead Donkey; and I’m Spazticus  - a prank show featuring disabled performers which has been seven years in development since its pilot aired in 2005.

© Avalon Productions

And that’s not all!  As we previously reported, Channel 4 are counting down their 30 Greatest Comedy Shows, which will feature the Onion flavoured vehicles Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, The IT Crowd, Brass Eye, Father Ted, Star Stories, Spaced, Black Books, and Friday Night Dinner. 

These classics will be up against the likes of The Comic Strip Presents, Vic Reeves’ Big Night Out, The Adam & Joe Show,  Da Ali G Show, Trigger Happy TV, Pheonix Nights, Bo’ Selecta!, Peep Show, Green Wing and The Inbetweeners and more.

© Talkback Thames

The channel have also turned to the writers of classic shows to name their favourite episodes, which will air across the fortnight.  These include Graham Linehan‘s favourite ever The IT Crowd  and Father Ted; Chris Morris‘s legendary Brass Eye; mockumentary series Star Stories which featured Fergus Craig, Alice Lowe, Tom Meeten, Laura Patch, Rhys Thomas and Dolly Wells in it’s expansive cast; plus episodes of Spaced, The Inbetweeners, Peep Show and Vic Reeves Big Night Out.

There’s also a chance to catch tv premieres of live shows from Alan Carr, Peter Kay, Lee Evans and Micky Flanagan, plus the early and rare Vic & Bob special The Weekenders, Harry Endfield one-off Norbert Smith: A Life and Peter Cook’s interview with Clive Anderson, plus editions of Comedy Labs featuring Dynamo, Peter Kay, Karl Pilkington and TVO’s very own Anna And Katy!  Plus we’ll still have The Midnight Beast featuring Simon Farnaby every Thursday too!

Phew – we think we’ll need a lie-down after all that!  Exciting times indeed.  We’ll aim to bring you a complete run-down of exactly when each show will air as soon as possible, so stay peeled.  In the mean time, check out the video preview over on the Channel 4 press website – and you can pick up a string of Channel 4 classics in The Velvet Onion Amazon Store.

Please Invade Carefully

2 Jul

© Zimbio

A while ago we told you that Katherine Parkinson would star in a new radio series about a small English village invaded by the Geonin – Aliens who have decided to invade Earth one village at a time.

Welcome to Our Village, Please Invade Carefully will be broadcast this Thursday (5th) at 9.30pm on BBC Radio 2, as part of the Radio 2 Showcase.

The show is written by Eddie Robson and also stars Julian Rhind-Tutt, Jan Francis, Peter Davison, Dave Lamb, Hannah Murray (Game of Thrones), John-Luke Roberts and Don Gilet.

Click here, to read more about the show and characters, and you can listen on BBC Iplayer, if you miss out on Thursday.

Meanwhile if you can’t wait to hear Katherine on the radio, she also stars in a 2 part adaptation of The Diary of a Nobody alongside Jonny Vegas. You can listen to the first part here and the second part will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 at 3pm on Sunday 8th July.

Thirty Greats

22 Jun

© Avalon Productions

It may be hard to believe for some of our older readers, but Channel 4 hits the big 30 this year, and as we’ve previously mentioned, there’s a whole host of comedy content to savour during their anniversary.

Part of that collection of comedy old and new looks set to be a countdown of The 30 Greatest Comedy Shows – and predictably, a number of shows with an Onion connection are in the running.

Shows with a TVO connection on the list include Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace, The IT Crowd, Brass Eye, Father Ted, Star Stories, Spaced, Black Books, and Friday Night Dinner, whilst the list also contains healthy competition from The Comic Strip Presents, Vic Reeves’ Big Night Out, The Adam & Joe Show,  Da Ali G Show, Trigger Happy TV, Pheonix Nights, Bo’ Selecta!, Peep Show, Green Wing and The Inbetweeners to name but a handful.

It’s a stellar list, which viewers can impact upon by voting for their three favourites over yonder.  Voting closes on 4th July.

Usually, these shows feature new interviews with members of the cast and crew, so we’ll undoubtedly be watching this one very closely.  As soon as we hear of a confirmed transmission date we’ll be sure to keep you peeled.

Stop/Start

12 Jun

© imdb

Katherine Parkinson stars in a new radio sitcom Stop/Start. Written by and starring Jack Docherty it follows three couples as they do their best to get on with their lives. The twist is, when the situations get a bit complicated, the characters can stop the show to explain things to the audience then re-start and continue.

The rest of the regular cast are Kerry Godliman, Fiona Allen, Charlie Higson and Steve Edge. The first episode is available on BBC iPlayer until Thursday 14th June.

From Geek To Glory!

20 May

Anyone with the remotest interest in the comedy we cover on The Velvet Onion will be aware of Chris O’Dowd’s recent Hollywood ascent. Today Chris was interviewed in The Guardian – about his move to LA, his A-list movie credentials, and his relationship with Dawn Porter.

© Empire

He’s asked if he feels overwhelmed about the success he’s enjoyed off the back of the $300M grossing Bridemaids: “Not really,” he says, “I’m never overawed by a situation and I think that’s because I’ve always looked several years older than I am. So because people were treating me like I was 40 when I was 29, I’ve always felt in control of a situation. People used to say, when you’re 32, you’ll look 32. I’m still waiting for that moment, where my age catches up with my appearance.”

IT Crowd fans can also enjoy the rosy glow that the mention of a one-off special gets in the article, with the interviewer saying that Chris, “hopes at some point to return to The IT Crowd, if not for another series, then at least a special.”

Chris adds, “It’s just everyone’s schedule is kind of crazy. Richard [Ayoade] is planning his next thing to direct; Katherine [Parkinson] is broody. But between those things, we’ll work it out.” We live in hope!

To read the interview in full visit The Guardian here.

Resistance On Radio 2

12 May

© Zimbio

Katherine Parkinson  is set to star in a new sci-fi sitcom pilot for BBC Radio 2.

The show, called The Resistance, follows the story of Katrina Lyons (Parkinson), who inadvertently finds herself in the middle of an alien invasion in the small English village of Cresdon Green, while visiting her parents for the weekend.

The village is soon controlled by an alien race called The Geonin, who have decided to start their invasion with a single English village instead of the standard all-at-once approach to global domination. The pilot follows Katrina’s attempts to establish a resistance movement against the invasion.

The seminal Alison Steadman and Dr Who star Peter Davison will  play Katrina’s parents in the show. As yet no airdate has been confirmed, but we’ll let you know as soon as we hear anything.

The pilot will be recorded in front of a live studio audience at the BBC Radio Theatre on Wednesday 13th June 2012. Unfortunately the recording is already fully-booked (boo!), but if you’ve managed to bag a ticket already, we’d love to hear all about it after the event!

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