[TV Discovery] The Fast Show
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The Fast Show was a BBC comedy sketch show that aired between 1994 and 1997, with a couple of specials since then too. This was one of the most popular comedy show of the late 90s here in Britain, and it's easily my favourite sketch show ever, maybe only rivaled by Harry Enfield & Chums, but that's for another post.
This show has had such an impact on me and my sense of humour, it even appears in one of my regular posts; This week I 'ave been mostly listenin' to.... It's inspired by one of the regular sketches on the show, Jesse's Diets (and later Jesse's Fashion Tips), which you can see an example of below.
The show was loosely structured and relied on character sketches, recurring running gags, and more catchphrases than you could shake a stick at. Its fast-paced "blackout" style set it apart from other sketch shows because of the number and relative shortness of its sketches; a typical half-hour British TV sketch comedy of the period might have consisted of nine or ten major items, with contrived situations and extended setups, whereas the premiere episode of The Fast Show featured twenty-seven sketches in thirty minutes, with some items lasting less than ten seconds and none running longer than three minutes. Hence its name; The Fast Show.
The shows innovative style and presentation has influenced many later comedy sketch shows, including but not limited to Little Britain and That Mitchell and Webb Look. It even had a couple of spin-offs too, with a one-off spinoff, Ted & Ralph and then Swiss Tony himself got his own series between 2003 and 2004, although they aren't as enjoyable.
One of the things which always stood out to me watching it as a child was some of the filming locations, probably mainly down to the fact I was too young to get the humour. A handful of the sketches are filmed in and around Staithes and North Yorkshire, which is where I used to holiday as a kid and later moved there. Things like that can make cause you to be particularly attached to something, or at least for me, but this show really has stood the test of time and is still as funny today as it was over 20 years ago. I recently rewatched it all, and laughed all the way through.
Have you seen The Fast Show? or did you spot the reference in my This week I 'ave been mostly listenin' to... posts? Let me know your thoughts and feelings down in the comments and as always, make sure to follow me for the latest Cryptocurrency, Technology, Internet and Pop Culture updates. If you're a fan of strange YouTube videos, you might want to follow me on Twitter.
Oh, and as a side note, I'm trying to get a new tag started; #tvdiscovery so if you write posts about shows you enjoy and others might too, then add the #tvdiscovery tag to your posts. I often find the #TV tag to be a bit cluttered. Until we meet again, Peace!
Sources:
The Fast Show on Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fast_Show)
The Fast Show on BBC (https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00fn9t2)
Promo image from Radio Times (http://www.radiotimes.com/tv-programme/czkhn/the-fast-show/)
Absolutely love it. So many in jokes in this house from that show. I.e 'you smell nice' 'its gin' ... Im off to check the drainage in the lower field... what the weather like today? scorchio!!!!
I'm so glad I'm not the only one! Brilliant!
ah that sketch with the alcoholic family, cracks me up every single time. What's it cooked in? Cologne, I had a little accident
ahahahahaha....!!!
Aha I wondered where your " This week I 'ave been mostly listenin' to" graphic came from and now I know. Cool! So it's past midnight and since you're talking about British TV I will tell you my guilty pleasure as a tween in the 80s. Back then my household had cable but only one line downstairs in the family room. I had a small color tv in my room but only received the network shows.
FOX channel started in 1986 and I guess they didn't have much to show in the late evenings so there was a lot of shows that no one really heard of at least in the U.S. One of those was Benny Hill and also Monty Python's Flying Circus and Black Arrow(?). I absolutely loved these and would watch them late at night after my parents went to sleep. I remember being surprised at the nudity in Benny Hill it felt so forbidden to watch it haha I became a pretty big Monty Python fan and especially enjoy Terry Gilliam movies. Another show I liked was Keeping up with Appearances .. "it's Bouquet! Not Buckett!" hahahha Then there was I, Claudius I really got into that one as well.
I'll try to remember the #tvdiscovery tag.
You HAVE to watch the Fast Show!
I'm surprised no-one asked to be honest!
Sounds very similar to my household in the early 90s to be honest! Although I think my TV was black and white still but anyway...
Ah, I've often wondered if those kinda things aired in the US. I know Monty Python is fairly international, but Benny Hill? Wow, that's a bit before my time too! Now that I've said that, I just went to look it up and the Benny Hill Show didn't stop until about a year before his death in 1992. I see Benny Hill references in american shows a lot, but honestly, I don't think I've ever seen it, nor could I tell you what channel it aired on. Did you ever watch any of the Carry On... movies? Very similar comedy style, really quite funny too.
I am such a big fan of Monty Python, must have watched the series and movies at least a dozen times at this point. I've only recently started watching some of Terry Gilliam's movies like Brazil.
I haven't thought about Keeping Up Appearances for years! Ha! I did enjoy that one, and there's another one from the same period, One Foot In The Grave. If you ever see that one, it's worth trying. The BBC have made some really quality programming over the years.
Have you seen the Royle Family? If not, I think you might enjoy it. It's about a working class family in Manchester, but it's easily one of the smartest comedy shows ever. Similar in a way to King of the Hill, just not animated, in the sense that it's highly relatable.
Let me know if you do use the #tvdiscovery tag, I'll make sure to give your post a boost!
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