SW
This was what struck me the most when it bagn, how cheap and homeley it all was, and having just the four terrestrial channels with their big budgets that seemed very unusual to me. There was loads and loads of live television in those days, like Espresso (and I remember everyone suggesting nobody ever phoned in to their phone-ins) and the breakfast news (which ended at 7.30 so nobody watched it) and Exclusive and 5's Company. And of course all the reversioned fillers for when films ran short, including 5's Company Late Extra.
The original plan was for the news to be at 8pm, it was mentioned in all the publicity. It was only a few weeks before the launch they moved it to 8.30.
Well, The Comedy Store wasn't just a question of turning up to The Comedy Store and filming whoever turned up, it was just a bog-standard stand-up show that happened to be filmed at The Comedy Store. It was doing the same things as The Stand Up Show on BBC1 and ITV had a stand-up show recorded at Jongleurs in the same year. And it was exactly the same as Live At The Appalling which is always on TV.
Actually the one extra bit about The Comedy Store which was a bit interesting is that they interspersed the acts with interviews with established comedians who had performed there, including Jonathan Ross, because just before The Last Resort began he'd never worked in front of a live audience (as of course he was famously a researcher and producer before appearing on screen) so they put together a stand-up act he could deliver at the Comedy Store to get used to it, and he performed several gigs.
They did rehash the Whose Line format, only it was called Fast and Loose!
http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/Fast_and_Loose
It was produced by Dan Patterson and was exactly the same format, but for some reason they made no reference of that in the show and all the publicity said it was "from the makers of Mock The Week". But it was clearly exactly the same show. Was bloody awful too, about as spontaneous as Big Ben.
Indeed it was, we watched it quite a lot because it was enjoyably rowdy viewing, and not actually that bad alongside some of the dull stuff the Beeb and ITV were doing at the time - I remember the first series went up against Whatever You Want and You Bet, neither of which were very interesting (You Bet was on its last legs) and at least Night Fever had a bit of attitude about it. I remember the second series was scheduled to start on the day of Diana's funeral and I was convinced they'd drop it. And they didn't! Quite an alternative to some of the other stuff that day.
The odd thing about Night Fever was that they never tried to find another Saturday night LE show, either between series or when it finished, so it was very much on its own in the schedules.
The 1991 BBC1 quiz One To Win with Andrew O'Connor was indeed a remake of Bob's Full House - http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/One_to_Win_%281%29
One of a number of remakes of that format, of course.
But the Channel 5 quiz we're talking about was a remake of Going for Gold -
http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/One_to_Win_%282%29
Hence the non-appearance of any bingo-related elements in that clip.
The stripped scheduling was revolutary at the time, as was the main news being at 8:30pm., not to mention the hourly snappy news headlines.
Everything was so different and bright and breezy compared to the other terrestrials. Sadly it all faded away, the various unique studio content was axed (very much like BBC Choice in a way) and now they run a normal schedule of mostly documentaries and imports.
Everything was so different and bright and breezy compared to the other terrestrials. Sadly it all faded away, the various unique studio content was axed (very much like BBC Choice in a way) and now they run a normal schedule of mostly documentaries and imports.
This was what struck me the most when it bagn, how cheap and homeley it all was, and having just the four terrestrial channels with their big budgets that seemed very unusual to me. There was loads and loads of live television in those days, like Espresso (and I remember everyone suggesting nobody ever phoned in to their phone-ins) and the breakfast news (which ended at 7.30 so nobody watched it) and Exclusive and 5's Company. And of course all the reversioned fillers for when films ran short, including 5's Company Late Extra.
The original plan was for the news to be at 8pm, it was mentioned in all the publicity. It was only a few weeks before the launch they moved it to 8.30.
The idea of featuring places like The Comedy Store could still be a decent one though. There are plenty of Improv and Comedy venues up and down the country. I'm sure the quality of the acts is variable, but there's a distinct lack of comedy on television these days imo.
Well, The Comedy Store wasn't just a question of turning up to The Comedy Store and filming whoever turned up, it was just a bog-standard stand-up show that happened to be filmed at The Comedy Store. It was doing the same things as The Stand Up Show on BBC1 and ITV had a stand-up show recorded at Jongleurs in the same year. And it was exactly the same as Live At The Appalling which is always on TV.
Actually the one extra bit about The Comedy Store which was a bit interesting is that they interspersed the acts with interviews with established comedians who had performed there, including Jonathan Ross, because just before The Last Resort began he'd never worked in front of a live audience (as of course he was famously a researcher and producer before appearing on screen) so they put together a stand-up act he could deliver at the Comedy Store to get used to it, and he performed several gigs.
To be honest I'm surprised the whole Whose Line format hasn't been rehashed even for a cheaper channel like Dave as it probably isn't that expensive to make - after all there are probably no end of lesser-known stand up comedians around who would love the exposure and can ad-lib just as good as Colin Mochrie.
They did rehash the Whose Line format, only it was called Fast and Loose!
http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/Fast_and_Loose
It was produced by Dan Patterson and was exactly the same format, but for some reason they made no reference of that in the show and all the publicity said it was "from the makers of Mock The Week". But it was clearly exactly the same show. Was bloody awful too, about as spontaneous as Big Ben.
It was actually considered their biggest hit in the early days.
Indeed it was, we watched it quite a lot because it was enjoyably rowdy viewing, and not actually that bad alongside some of the dull stuff the Beeb and ITV were doing at the time - I remember the first series went up against Whatever You Want and You Bet, neither of which were very interesting (You Bet was on its last legs) and at least Night Fever had a bit of attitude about it. I remember the second series was scheduled to start on the day of Diana's funeral and I was convinced they'd drop it. And they didn't! Quite an alternative to some of the other stuff that day.
The odd thing about Night Fever was that they never tried to find another Saturday night LE show, either between series or when it finished, so it was very much on its own in the schedules.
I thought One To Win was a remake of Bob's Full House?
The 1991 BBC1 quiz One To Win with Andrew O'Connor was indeed a remake of Bob's Full House - http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/One_to_Win_%281%29
One of a number of remakes of that format, of course.
But the Channel 5 quiz we're talking about was a remake of Going for Gold -
http://www.ukgameshows.com/ukgs/One_to_Win_%282%29
Hence the non-appearance of any bingo-related elements in that clip.
MA
Blimey, Davina McCall, that must have been one of her first appearances on 'primetime' (so called Terrestrial) telly ?
It was actually considered their biggest hit in the early days.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBzoP0RwV90
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBzoP0RwV90
Blimey, Davina McCall, that must have been one of her first appearances on 'primetime' (so called Terrestrial) telly ?
BH
BillyH
Founding member
As an eight year old in 1997, with only the four terrestrial channels, this felt
huge
at the time, and I watched those opening test transmissions far too much than was healthy. Ironically I missed the launch completely as we spent that Easter at my Grandma's house, who couldn't receive the channel at all until someone gave her a Freeview box in the mid-noughties!
I think the last show on the channel that seemed genuinely popular (to a mass audience) was Fort Boyard, and even that ended over fifteen years ago now. 'Brainteaser' was a fun diversion for a while and that must have ended about ten years ago, I can't think of anything other than the odd film I've watched on it for more than a few minutes since.
I think the last show on the channel that seemed genuinely popular (to a mass audience) was Fort Boyard, and even that ended over fifteen years ago now. 'Brainteaser' was a fun diversion for a while and that must have ended about ten years ago, I can't think of anything other than the odd film I've watched on it for more than a few minutes since.
:-(
A former member
Does anyone remember the teenager block on Saturday afternoons? Daria, the tribe, Harry and cosh, and a strange high school???
IS
This was what struck me the most when it bagn, how cheap and homeley it all was, and having just the four terrestrial channels with their big budgets that seemed very unusual to me. There was loads and loads of live television in those days, like Espresso (and I remember everyone suggesting nobody ever phoned in to their phone-ins) and the breakfast news (which ended at 7.30 so nobody watched it) and Exclusive and 5's Company. And of course all the reversioned fillers for when films ran short, including 5's Company Late Extra.
They had a live Saturday kids show too, but scheduled it in the afternoon so it didn't clash with ITV and BBCs ones. I remember nothing about it except it was presented by Josie Darby and came from Meridian's Southampton studios
That was another thing about the original schedule, a lot of it was made by the companies that owned it - Pearson and United Media. Pearson, who then owned Thames had a shed load of game show formats which were put to good use for example. Anglia did some of their comedy and Meridian some of their sport as well as the kids show on Saturday
Pearson also did their playout with a few old Thames staff involved. I worked briefly at their playout facilities months before launch. Not only was I there when they first started doing test schedules in the suite. One of the first programmes they had to test the transmission suite started with a Thames ident which got a bit of a cheer. I remember chatting to the editor/designer who was working on their break bumper, he showed me the work in progress and other alternatives animations for it.
That was unique at the time, when did they stop using it between every ad?
This was what struck me the most when it bagn, how cheap and homeley it all was, and having just the four terrestrial channels with their big budgets that seemed very unusual to me. There was loads and loads of live television in those days, like Espresso (and I remember everyone suggesting nobody ever phoned in to their phone-ins) and the breakfast news (which ended at 7.30 so nobody watched it) and Exclusive and 5's Company. And of course all the reversioned fillers for when films ran short, including 5's Company Late Extra.
They had a live Saturday kids show too, but scheduled it in the afternoon so it didn't clash with ITV and BBCs ones. I remember nothing about it except it was presented by Josie Darby and came from Meridian's Southampton studios
That was another thing about the original schedule, a lot of it was made by the companies that owned it - Pearson and United Media. Pearson, who then owned Thames had a shed load of game show formats which were put to good use for example. Anglia did some of their comedy and Meridian some of their sport as well as the kids show on Saturday
Pearson also did their playout with a few old Thames staff involved. I worked briefly at their playout facilities months before launch. Not only was I there when they first started doing test schedules in the suite. One of the first programmes they had to test the transmission suite started with a Thames ident which got a bit of a cheer. I remember chatting to the editor/designer who was working on their break bumper, he showed me the work in progress and other alternatives animations for it.
That was unique at the time, when did they stop using it between every ad?
PF
It is. If you watch the majority of the performers, they are always looking down at the desk, when they begin to talk, to read the jokes they have already written down as and when they are needed. Now, I'm sure many shows have panellists that do this but they at least don't make it look half obvious. Once you see them do it, you can't un-see it. It becomes very prevalent.
I'm not sure Mock The Week is as improvised as it seems, though I'd happily be corrrcted. Just feels a bit staged to me.
GO
There was also a short-lived strand with its own idents called NGA (No Girls Allowed) which lumped together shows owned at older boys. Don't know if that came after Shake, it might even have been on at the same time.
The Josie D'arby show was The Mag. I have no idea what it is about, I only remember a short clip from the launch promo, but it was then replaced by The Core, then became Milkshake FM, and eventually Shake.
There was also a short-lived strand with its own idents called NGA (No Girls Allowed) which lumped together shows owned at older boys. Don't know if that came after Shake, it might even have been on at the same time.
LL
It is. If you watch the majority of the performers, they are always looking down at the desk, when they begin to talk, to read the jokes they have already written down as and when they are needed. Now, I'm sure many shows have panellists that do this but they at least don't make it look half obvious. Once you see them do it, you can't un-see it. It becomes very prevalent.
A lot of former panellists have been quite bitter about appearing on the show, and have admitted that the majority of jokes are all prepared in advance. I can still watch the earlier stuff when it was genuinely funny, but nowadays the quality of the guests just makes the whole thing feel... bleh.
I'm not sure Mock The Week is as improvised as it seems, though I'd happily be corrrcted. Just feels a bit staged to me.
A lot of former panellists have been quite bitter about appearing on the show, and have admitted that the majority of jokes are all prepared in advance. I can still watch the earlier stuff when it was genuinely funny, but nowadays the quality of the guests just makes the whole thing feel... bleh.
GO
It is. If you watch the majority of the performers, they are always looking down at the desk, when they begin to talk, to read the jokes they have already written down as and when they are needed. Now, I'm sure many shows have panellists that do this but they at least don't make it look half obvious. Once you see them do it, you can't un-see it. It becomes very prevalent.
A lot of former panellists have been quite bitter about appearing on the show, and have admitted that the majority of jokes are all prepared in advance. I can still watch the earlier stuff when it was genuinely funny, but nowadays the quality of the guests just makes the whole thing feel... bleh.
I disagree, the last few series have been brilliant because they've had a host of new comedians on board who have really brought life to the show and made it a lot funnier. It certainly felt like it was coasting for several years when they were sticking with the same old talent though.
I'm not sure Mock The Week is as improvised as it seems, though I'd happily be corrrcted. Just feels a bit staged to me.
A lot of former panellists have been quite bitter about appearing on the show, and have admitted that the majority of jokes are all prepared in advance. I can still watch the earlier stuff when it was genuinely funny, but nowadays the quality of the guests just makes the whole thing feel... bleh.
I disagree, the last few series have been brilliant because they've had a host of new comedians on board who have really brought life to the show and made it a lot funnier. It certainly felt like it was coasting for several years when they were sticking with the same old talent though.
SW
The Mag was the most generic Saturday morning show you'll ever see (except it was on in the afternoon) with lots of clunky bits where they talked very earnestly about, yes, "issues". The one interesting bit was that it was produced from Meridian in Southampton, as was the sports magazine Turnstyle which was on before it, and they'd regularly pop in and take the cameras between the studios. I think it stopped being live in the studio quite soon, though.
Turnstyle was an interesting one, a live sports magazine on a Saturday morning, obviously with no actual sport in it. The usual Live and Dangrous mob like Dominik Diamond did it, and there was a spin-off on Sunday nights which was a discussion show.
There's some good stuff about it in Giles Smith's book of columns about sport on TV, he said one show started with them promising to keep us up to date with the test match, and Smith ponders how many people might have decided to go with that rather than watch the actual thing live on BBC1. He also mentions one episode featuring an interview with Coventry's David Buust, opposite ITV's coverage of the Monaco Grand Prix, meaning the choice for viewers was literally Monte Carlo Or Buust. It ended after a year or so but, as was traditional with Channel 5, the Sunday night show was replaced by something exactly the same, but now called Sports Talk.
You're right to mention a lot of it came from Meridian, Anglia and Thames. Bring Me The Head Of Light Entertainment was produced in Norwich, as was a series starring the Australian comedians Roy and HG, which was actually shown the night before on Anglia. That was around the time they were on Ben Elton's show as well, they were doing quite a bit in Britain, and I can now only hear their names in Elton's voice.
The Josie D'arby show was The Mag. I have no idea what it is about, I only remember a short clip from the launch promo, but it was then replaced by The Core, then became Milkshake FM, and eventually Shake.
The Mag was the most generic Saturday morning show you'll ever see (except it was on in the afternoon) with lots of clunky bits where they talked very earnestly about, yes, "issues". The one interesting bit was that it was produced from Meridian in Southampton, as was the sports magazine Turnstyle which was on before it, and they'd regularly pop in and take the cameras between the studios. I think it stopped being live in the studio quite soon, though.
Turnstyle was an interesting one, a live sports magazine on a Saturday morning, obviously with no actual sport in it. The usual Live and Dangrous mob like Dominik Diamond did it, and there was a spin-off on Sunday nights which was a discussion show.
There's some good stuff about it in Giles Smith's book of columns about sport on TV, he said one show started with them promising to keep us up to date with the test match, and Smith ponders how many people might have decided to go with that rather than watch the actual thing live on BBC1. He also mentions one episode featuring an interview with Coventry's David Buust, opposite ITV's coverage of the Monaco Grand Prix, meaning the choice for viewers was literally Monte Carlo Or Buust. It ended after a year or so but, as was traditional with Channel 5, the Sunday night show was replaced by something exactly the same, but now called Sports Talk.
You're right to mention a lot of it came from Meridian, Anglia and Thames. Bring Me The Head Of Light Entertainment was produced in Norwich, as was a series starring the Australian comedians Roy and HG, which was actually shown the night before on Anglia. That was around the time they were on Ben Elton's show as well, they were doing quite a bit in Britain, and I can now only hear their names in Elton's voice.