Topic: Nathan Barley - It's Well Rubbish

[Neil]

Oh dear.  First, though, we should explain why the site went off-line for a couple of weeks right before Xmas, and what the current situation is with our downloads.  Unfortunately someone posted our On The Hour page on the hugely popular Metafilter site, and a poster there advised everyone to "grab them all before they pull them because of the bandwidth!"  This resulted in stupid bastards grabbing every single episode at once, meaning that our host had to step in and disable the whole site.  When we got back up and running we thought it best to take the precaution of keeping the downloads offline for a while.  Realistically though, we need to reduce the bandwidth usage anyway.  Positive Internet  have been exceedingly generous to us over the last few years, and we really don't want to put them in such a position again.  So the downloads will remain offline for the forseeable future, and we are looking at making them available by other means.  Before I get onto that, we want to reiterate that we are always looking for Morris stuff that we don't have.  There is a list on the Rarities page which we will work on updating, but the main things we are after are the likes of shooting scripts (we have an interesting DogDaze/My Wrongs one for you next update), the Chris Morris Christmas Show he did for Radio 1 in 1990 (not 1994!), more Radio Bristol stuff, any of the Feedback Reports he did for BSB etc.  If you have something you think we might not have then please don't hesitate to email us at waynecarr@gmail.com .  We are particularly looking for scripts and rushes, and will do our best to offer you something nice in return, so get digging!

Anyway, the downloads, to start with I have been packing the downloads up into torrents and putting them on UkNova.  If you read this thread then you will find more info, and we'll post the details of new "releases" to it.  Unfortunately UkNova have recently restricted their total number of members, so if you don't have an existing account then you might not be able to join until they enable registrations again.  If they are going to keep the registrations closed for much longer then I will try and seed the shows on an open torrent system where you are not required to sign up.  You will need to help keep the mp3s seeded if this happens though, as I don't have much upload and it would be impossible to look after all of them.  If we're going to do this then we'll put an update on here, and fire out an email to one of our mailing lists.  So please join the announcement list if you want to be notified as soon as the next set of torrents goes up, because Bit Torrents don't tend to have much of a life anyway, and you will need to jump on them as soon as possible.  

If you can't use Bit Torrent, well, it's not difficult and you should seek out one of the many FAQ's on the net if you are interested in learning how it all works.  If you are still on dialup or just can't use Bit Torrent at all, then we are also trying to get mirrors set up so that people can once again download from web sites in the usual manner.  We would ask that you don't take the piss with these web downloads though!  Forum member Timmay has already kindly set up a mirror for On The Hour and the R1 Music Shows, and has noticed people grabbing four shows at once.  Please don't do that, you'll spoil it for everyone and give us yet more work.  Timmay is already having to seek alternate hosting, but if you check this site in a few days then you should find a new working mirror.  We are currently trying to get another one set up and will edit the address into the bottom of this update when it is ready to go.

On to Nathan Barley, the new six-part sitcom from Chris Morris and Charlie Brooker, a spin-off of the Cunt column from Brooker's TVGoHome site.  We've always had reservations about this, principally because Brooker is clearly influenced by Morris's style.  Morris also tends to produce his best material when he works alone, the GLR shows are my own particular favourite Morris work. Even in early collaborations like On The Hour and The Day Today stories would circulate about Morris locking himself away to obsessively work on his own material.  Richard Herring has said as much about Morris's On The Hour contributions, and Rok TV from The Day Today shows what he's capable of when transferring this work ethos to the telly.  So how does he fare when he's working on a project which is clearly someone elses' baby?  On the evidence of the (unfinished) first programme the answer is: badly.  

Reviews are already drawing comparisons between Nathan Barley and The Office, but are they justified?  Unfortunately so.  Barley himself comes over as a mixture of David Brent, Alan Partridge and Ali G.  At least three of the scenes from the first episode reek of The Office.  Back when Ricky Gervais was only known for his 11 O'Clock Show contributions and dreadful chat-show we were all writing him off as a 'young Bernard Manning.'  That Morris is now playing catch-up with Gervais is a perfect example of the continuing slump in the quality of his work.  A slump which is so apparent that even the sycophantic press are starting to question the quality of Morris's work!  Some of the reviews are just as damning.

The problem is that Chris Morris increasingly relies on collaborators.  These days you have to wonder if he battles with his co-writers half as much as he does with the people who are in charge of putting his shows on the air.  What you expect from a new Chris Morris show is something bursting with originality and inventiveness, not lame mobile phone gags, unfunny background details and tired old sitcom cliches.  There also needs to be some progression in his style, are we ever going to get that when he's working with people who have copied his own style?  It's artistic BSE.  

The first episode is lacking in the subtlety and imagination that you'd associate with the best of Morris's past work.  In fact, the lack of subtlety - along with Morris's dreadful directing - are the major problems.  The show is very badly directed, shots are woefully framed with wilfully crap camera-work, and there are needless flashy zooms everywhere.  They could have been employed sparingly to add some much-needed dramatic tension to the proceedings, but instead they are scattered liberally throughout the programme.  In one crucial scene - which could have been lifted wholesale from The Office - any tension is lost because the camera-man seems intent on zooming out to catch the (unfunny) poster on the wall.  If you had the misfortune of watching Peter Kay's recent "Max & Paddy" sitcom then you will know what to expect here.  Background details aren't just glossed over for the eagle-eyed to spot, they are zoomed in/out on to make sure everyone sees them!  

The result is that your eye and attention is taken away from the main proceedings at a crucial point, and all for a background gag that's not actually worth the bloody effort.  The preview episode also contains some extremely sloppy editing/continuity errors which we seriously hope are smoothed out for the actual broadcast.  Frankly, they've not much time left...  The preview tapes were continually delayed (not that this stopped magazines and newspapers reviewing it anyway), and the excessive Big Brother-style marketing campaign suggests a certain amount of panic on the part of those associated with the programme.  On the basis of the first episode, the panic is certainly and lamentably justified.  Even the promotional site was thrown together in something of a rush according to the webmaster.

Moving away from the shoddy direction and camera-work, there aren't exactly a host of stellar performances to transform the ropey material into something worth loving.  Remarkably, the bloke from The Boosh is the least of my worries.  Richard Ayoade, Spencer Brown and Oliver Chris all deliver stinking performances.  Spencer Brown stops just short of dragging his knuckles along the fucking ground to let us know that he's an "idiot."  Again, it's this lack of subtlety that kills the show and any attempts at humour therein.  The preview of episode one has a natural ending which they steamroll right through in order to further patronise the viewers.  If you thought the song at the end of the BES was the most embarrasing thing Morris has done then the pub scene at the end of the first episode of Nathan Barley will likely introduce you to new depths.

In closing:  If you find the idea of character development taking place via a perverted "rock, scissors, paper" game called "cock, muff, bumhole" anything other than dreadfully embarrasing then you may find something in this show to like, if not love.  On the other hand, if you think that sitcoms should contain actual jokes and well-drawn characters you'll almost certainly be woefully disappointed.  Bear in mind that this review is based on the first episode, we've yet to see the rest of the series.  There could be a gear-change as the series progresses, but then again this isn't an American 22-episode sitcom.  So regardless of how the rest of the series shapes up, they have still pissed away a decent chunk of the series on this first show.  We can only hope that the rest of the series greatly improves on this wasted and sub-standard opener.  To be honest though, as a long-time fan of Morris I find it hard to believe he even had anything to do with the writing of this show.  The inept direction and dodgy word-compounds are the only evidence of his input.  There is a distinct lack of actual jokes.

If you're interested in reading another fan review of the preview episode then please have a look at Lauren's review.

The first episode of Nathan Barley will be shown on the 11th of February on Channel 4.

UPDATE: Horza has very kindly offered to mirror some files for us, so I've spent the last few days uploading the Music Shows and all of On The Hour. Please do not take the piss when downloading or you'll shag it up for everyone.  You can find the mirror here: http://cab.puffpastryhangman.com  Many thanks to Horza for all his help with this, and please do try and use the torrents on UkNova where possible as you'll be helping everyone else get the files quicker.  We've also been adding Nathan Barley articles to the Articles Database so you may want to have a read of those.

[mayer]

Hmmmm, despite my respect for many people on here's opinion, I'll be waiting till after the 12th of February when I watch my Nathan Barley tape before I vote.


As far as I'm aware, only two VWs have seen Morris's latest show, so the four people voting already has surprised me slightly.

[Neil]

As far as I'm aware, only two VWs have seen Morris's latest show, so the four people voting already has surprised me slightly.

The poll is probably badly worded mayer, but it has to be short so it doesn't fuck up the layout.  It's not saying "Do you think he's not as funny because of Nathan Barley."  It's just asking "Do you think he's not as funny as he used to be."

[mayer]

Ah, fair enough... I'll still wait till the 12th myself (though I can well imagine voting "No" then)), because Morris has done fuck all for so long, that if NB were fantastic I'd have to say "Yes".

I know I'm being silly. I still have this faint hope in my heart that Arsenal could win the title....


(though, I have to say I did enjoy the much maligned BES, My Wrongs and, my introduction to all things Morris, Jam, so god knows what I'll make of NB...



Bushwhacked was shit though).

[bishbosh]

seem to remember you've done this before with a new morris project....saying its going to be rubbish and it turns out not to be (BES!). but then those newspaper columns aren't great reading, so maybe you arent...hmmmmm
i do wish the first proper material from CM would have been his own project, but i'm still looking forward to watching the whole series and wont be writing it off after the first episode if it doesnt live up to expectations....could he do anything that did live up to the expectations of the people that have followed his work so far? i think we have very high expectations!
even if it isnt  that good, look at peter kay's max and paddy. not the best project, had its moments, but there weren't enough to rescue the series. i dont think anyone has written off peter kay  just for producing something that wasnt as good as phoenix nights, i put it down to an ill conceived idea that must have seemed like a good idea at the time but with hindsight....
the problem with a chris morris project is that once its finished, good or not, you have to wait a bloody long time for the next one.
in short, fingers crossed...i've still got that 'ooh, a new chris morris tv programme is on soon' feeling. damn my expectations.

[A Passing Turk Slipper]

Nice review Neil. I'm still looking forward to the show but again, it isn't looking  as promising as it was a couple of weeks ago when we were all excited about a possible biographical aspect to the show. I answered 'no' on the poll not because I'm writing off NB before I see it but because I think that My Wrongs, BES, Smokehammer etc is nothing on the Radio 1 shows, The Day Today or Blue Jam. I still enjoyed the BES it's just simply not as good as the other shows in the series. But that subject has been covered lots so I won't go on. One thing I am really looking forward to is the discussion after the show. As someone rightly said that big Nathan Barley thread is brilliant, and I just hope there is more talk like that in the coming couple of months rather than annoying people using the old 'don't watch it then' cliches.

[FraggleShock]

I based my No vote on bushwacked but lets hope N.B turn it back into a yes! :( *gulp*

[InfiniteFury]

seem to remember you've done this before with a new morris project....saying its going to be rubbish and it turns out not to be (BES!). but then those newspaper columns aren't great reading, so maybe you arent...hmmmmm

Neil, I'm quite sure can speak for himself but just to address your first point.
If you believe that BES was a much-maligned programme that was eventually roundly applauded by some very sheep-faced naysayers then you'd be much mistaken. Some like it for many reasons, true, but a trawl through the Comedy Chat section will make it's shortfallings (to some) clear - the BES - A Detailed Analysis Thread would be a good start.

We do have high expectations. I haven't seen this programme and acknowledge that leaves me less than ideally placed to comment on it. Having said that, the people who have seen the programme share those same high expectations and there's a difference between "not as good as Brass Eye" and "worse than DareToBelieve".

bish bosh....Boosh? Sorry, couldn't resist :-)

[Godzilla Bankrolls]

Of course, we should have high expectations. As we should with all comedy.

[Timmay]

I haven't voted yet, because I'm going to base my decision on NB. Seeing that it's so close, it'd be rude not to wait.

[Sadness]

I think the beauty and genius of Chris Morris is that he doesn't just do Comedy/Satire/Spoof the right way.....! He does it the fucking WRONG WAY TOO!!

This will make sense.

I think each and everyone of us have our views on what's funny/not funny when it comes to comedy , and more often than not we end up in the middle liking something as a whole and forgeting it's shortfalls. With Chris Morris he brings out the polar opposites in our opinions and usually we hear or read comments such as ".....How could a man who's done this (GLR/On The Hour) do this (BES song , Bushwhacked). No other comic MAKES us look at his failings in such detail as Mr.Morris , that is why , regardless of NB's quality , the man will still be a genius come the 12th of Feb.

I don't bow down to EVERYTHING Morris , I just treat him like a McCartney album....."That song/sketch was a bit shit , but fuck it , there'll be another beauty along in a minute....."

By the way , I LOVE the BES song AND Bushwhacked.


S.

[Robotron]

You said there were rumours of morris locking himself in an office and working alone?

Where did these rumours originate?  I want to know everything I can bout this solitude compulsion.. anyone?

[Joy Nktonga]

Thanks for the news about the upcoming shooting script. I'm looking forward to that. Good review, Neil. It's nice to see the thoughts that have been coming through in the main thread finalised and put together. Good job. I'm still looking forward to the show though, in spite of the feedback from those who've seen it, partly because it's simply put, a new Morris show, and also because it's a new show in general.

[Bongz]

Do you think it's possible Morris was selling out on this 1 in order do what he wants next? David Lynch did it with Dune, after which they let him make Blue Velvet.

[Anonymous]

Nathan Barley- it's partially a commentary on sites like Cookd and Bombd?

[slim]

Yes, yes. I can see that. It's like, we're all so... well, weapon, aren't we? You'll find many of us talking loudly into mobiles as we wander round fashionable parts of London, pretending we don't like to not like Abba when we really secretly don't like to like the concept of the liking of the Abba and the like.

Oh, I'm sorry, I seemed to have Barleyed myself into a corner there.

[InfiniteFury]

Nathan Barley- it's partially a commentary on sites like Cookd and Bombd?

Funny you should say that, you should have been here just before the BES went out...:-)

[jutl]

I'm going to wait and see. I'm not even sure I'll know what to think then... Recently I've been getting into repeats of Rhoda on Paramount, so I've stopped trusting what used to be my critical faculties. Just wanted to say that

It's artistic BSE.

is very funny .

[TJ]

Nathan Barley- it's partially a commentary on sites like Cookd and Bombd?

Are you still stirring up trouble under assumed names?

It's more of a comment on people who make up 'wacky' internet-based news stories parodying real-life tragedies and accidents with a bit of unreconstructed homophobia thrown in for good measure, I would have thought.

[slim]

parodying real-life tragedies and accidents

Talking of which, whatever happened to that bloke who had his leg chopped off and was out of hospital by the next morning?

[mayer]

Do you think it's possible Morris was selling out on this 1 in order do what he wants next? David Lynch did it with Dune, after which they let him make Blue Velvet.

Such a myth.

If Lynch wanted to "sell out", I'm sure he would've made Return Of The Jedi, which he was offered, and passed up to make Dune instead. Dune is indeed a load of gash, and that's in part to the studio cutting it to peices, but even in full it'd be rubbish, and that's Lynch's resoponsibility.


Dune wasn't seen as a sop so he could do Blue Velvet, he got lucky that he could make another film, and one that fantastic and different after the mess that was Dune.

[axel]

In that Telegraph article linked to on Neils post the writer say the funniest bit of My Wrongs was the credit sequence. Which bit does he mean?

[Dr David V]

In the credit sequence there are some 'hilarious' spoof credits as seen similarly in The Day Today and Brass Eye.

[TJ]

Blah

[Anonymous]

It's more of a comment on people who make up 'wacky' internet-based news stories parodying real-life tragedies and accidents with a bit of unreconstructed homophobia thrown in for good measure, I would have thought.

Like this one

Morris is still a genius.  Now he's taking the piss out of his own fanbase with a new sitcom, which they don't like, highlighting that now his own fans don't even understand him.

Considering he is still gaining fans on the strength of 10 year old comedy, to say that Morris isn't funny anymore is just plain daft.

Episode One of Nathan Barley was great. A logical way to attack the one remaining class he had left to humiliate.

[Neil]

Morris is still a genius.  Now he's taking the piss out of his own fanbase with a new sitcom, which they don't like, highlighting that now his own fans don't even understand him.

Why is it that you presume I "don't understand" it?  I understand it just fine, have you actually read what I wrote?  I didn't have any complaints about not understanding it, I was moaning about the direction and camera-work being sub-standard.  I also complained about some of the performances, Spencer Brown is dreadful and from memory he manages to slip out of character once or twice.  I suppose that's all intentional and I just don't understand Chris's genius, though, eh?  I also find the characters to be badly-drawn and imposible to believe in.  Perhaps they'll be fleshed out in future episodes.

Considering he is still gaining fans on the strength of 10 year old comedy, to say that Morris isn't funny anymore is just plain daft.

How does that work?  You're saying that he was good ten years ago and is therefore still good now.  That doesn't make much sense.  I wouldn't argue with you about the quality of his work ten years ago, it's bloody great stuff!  His last few projects have seen increasingly diminishing returns though.  

Episode One of Nathan Barley was great. A logical way to attack the one remaining class he had left to humiliate.

Yeah, sock it to those mobile phone owners, Chris!

[TJ]

It's more of a comment on people who make up 'wacky' internet-based news stories parodying real-life tragedies and accidents with a bit of unreconstructed homophobia thrown in for good measure, I would have thought.

Like this one

Hey! Don't turn my admonishment of a persistent troublecauser abusing their forum privileges into a springboard for a defence of Nathan Barley, please. They're two very different things.

[Hoogstraten'sSmilingUlcer]

Robotron wrote:

You said there were rumours of morris locking himself in an office and working alone?

Where did these rumours originate? I want to know everything I can bout this solitude compulsion.. anyone?

 I reckon they originate 99% of the time from Morris himself or his agent. In one interview he called himself a loner, which can be interpreted in several ways - either he prefers to write alone, or he has to be careful who he makes friends with, or he's just damn anti-social. All these rumours of him being a lone genius and bollocks are self-perpetuating rubbish, I suspect. I think he probably just prefers to write on his own and distance himself from the smug comedy coterie. He's not a Romantic post-modern Prometheus who hides away in a mountain lodge chasing the Sublime....or at least, I don't think he is.

TJ wrote:

 

with a bit of unreconstructed homophobia thrown in for good measure, I would have thought.

 Hooray! He's satirising the gays at last! Nathan Barley is Bo'Selecta for the university class.

[Purple Tentacle]

It's funny, sometimes I feel that the "Morris is God" stereotype is taken literally by some people.

"Whatever strange misfortunes and apparent shittiness he makes is all part of His plan, we must have faith in His greater scheme for the media world."

[TJ]

with a bit of unreconstructed homophobia thrown in for good measure, I would have thought.

 Hooray! He's satirising the gays at last! Nathan Barley is Bo'Selecta for the university class.

No, not him. Mr Troll Pants up there, I meant.