Hungry? C4 to create comedy series...about the famine

Kermit.de.frog

"Hungry" is a new sitcom being developed by Channel 4. Bit bizarre subject matter for a comedy?

http://www.irishcentral.com/opinion/niallodowd/British-TV-orders-up-a-comedy-series-about-the-Irish-famine.html

Jimoslimos

Wasn't this on Alan Partridge before?

whisky_galore

Can't possibly be any worse than Ryantown, Extra Extra or Leave It To Mrs O'Brien.

Gatling

Black adder goes hungry

Mr. Incognito

Wow. As a comedy?

How many potatoes does it take to kill an Irishmans family?

None

Robsweezie

screw it. if us Irish can dish it out about other cultures we should be able to take it as well.

Hande hoche!

Probably pay back for exporting Mrs. Brown's boys.

ballsymchugh

channel 4 haven't had much luck with irish based comedy since Fr Ted. that london irish program they had last year was pure muck.

Frankie Lee

That Lambo thing on the RTE player was rubbish, Travers would need to up his game substantially if he is going to do this right. For it to work it would need the humour to be satirical along the lines of Dr Strangelove which is a big ask I reckon.

petrolcan

No more bizarre than a comedy set during the Korean war. Or WWI.

I actually see it as potentially positive as most in Britain aren't that aware of the famine.

GalwayGuitar

petrolcan wrote: »

No more bizarre than a comedy set during the Korean war. Or WWI.

I actually see it as potentially positive as most in Britain aren't that aware of the famine.

Potentially positive? Are you for real? The English will have a great laugh at the thick Paddies who couldn't grow their potatoes.

fryup

i hear its going to called...............mash

*gets coat

dr.bollocko

Probably based on under the hawthorn tree. Barrel of laughs it was.

citytillidie

Hande hoche! wrote: »

Probably pay back for exporting Mrs. Brown's boys.

BBC Scotland had a hand in that show

lertsnim

I can't wait till someone does a comedy series based on the Holocaust.

whisky_galore

petrolcan wrote: »

No more bizarre than a comedy set during the Korean war. Or WWI.

Or WW2 Nazi occupied France...

Harry Palmr

At least its been written by a Paddy.

the_syco

whisky_galore wrote: »

Or WW2 Nazi occupied France...

Well, Blackadder has already done WW1, so it's about time one was set during WW2...

Gonna keep an open mind about this one; it could be epic, or it could fail badly. We shall see.

pragmatic1

lertsnim wrote: »

I can't wait till someone does a comedy series based on the Holocaust.

Exactly. I'd like to see one done on the Trans-Atlantic slave trade too. Doubt they'd have the balls, but it's alright to slag off auld Paddy.

wilhelm roentgen

Jimoslimos wrote: »

Wasn't this on Alan Partridge before?

"If it was just the potatoes that were affected, at the end of the day, you will pay the price if you're a fussy eater."

fryup

Harry Palmr wrote: »

At least its been written by a Paddy.

and that makes it alright then?????

Harry Palmr

Well you could imagine the fuss if it were by a Brit eh? At least this guy can draw on folk memory to create a clever insightful comedy a la Blackadder Goes Forth.

dya remember when we stole their food and shipped it out of the country. lol. stupid irish people.

Reports concerning English policy towards genuine charity are hard to ignore. One account had the people of Massachusetts sending a ship of grain to Ireland that English authorities placed in storage claiming that it would disturb trade. Another report has the British government appealing to the Sultan of Turkey to reduce his donation from £10,000 to £1,000 in order not to embarrass Queen Victoria who had only pledged £1,000 to relief.

Kermit.de.frog

This is not Channel 4 walking on egg shells like it normally does. Ali G, Benefits Street, Father Ted etc. This is Channel 4 walking on broken glass. Tricky subject to be attempting a sitcom.

Timberrrrrrrr

the_syco wrote: »

Well, Blackadder has already done WW1, so it's about time one was set during WW2...

Gonna keep an open mind about this one; it could be epic, or it could fail badly. We shall see.

Allo Allo,
it ain't half hot mum,
Dads army.

darkpagandeath

Hmm I bet a few complainer's here have had a good laugh at starvin Marvin.

twinytwo

Robsweezie wrote: »

screw it. if us Irish can dish it out about other cultures we should be able to take it as well.

yes because the british making a comedy about something that they helped cause from a british point of view is really a good idea.

Maybe we should make a comedy about british paratroopers shooting women and children.... lets see how well that is recieved

AboutaWeekAgo

This could be brilliant depending on how good the script turns out.

darkpagandeath

Would it be OK if it was not a comedy ? You know like that Viking one or that one about Rome ? They were a great bunch of lads.

wendell borton

I think it could be really good if done properly. Its a theme that lends itself to dark humour with some cutting satire.

the_syco

Timberrrrrrrr wrote: »

Allo Allo,
it ain't half hot mum,
Dads army.

Good point ole boy. Holocaust comedy then! They will nazi that one coming!

twinytwo wrote: »

Maybe we should make a comedy about british paratroopers shooting women and children.... lets see how well that is recieved

I wonder how "71" was received?

Frankie Lee

wendell borton wrote: »

I think it could be really good if done properly. Its a theme that lends itself to dark humour with some cutting satire.

Extremely difficult to do properly though.

Letree

I don't see where the humour will come from. Malnourished starving people arguing over food, families fleeing the country, british indifference to the plight of the Irish. I can't see how it will work.

fryup

i envisage something like this.....

let me set the scene...inside a filthy cottage.....

young boy walks in, and says Ma whats for dinner??

Mother - potatoes!!!!!!!!! *canned laughter

Boy - sighs but we had potatoes yesterday

Mother - well guess what you'll have dem tomorrow too!! *canned laughter

- and the day after that and the day after that *uproarious canned laughter

*boy walks out moaning with cheeky sig tune playing in the background

Next scene - is the big fat proddy landlord having a feast whilst making condescending witty remarks about his silly tenants

and so it goes..........

Jawgap

lertsnim wrote: »

I can't wait till someone does a comedy series based on the Holocaust.

Well, there's already been films involving the Holocaust and comedy......

Life is Beautiful
Jacob the Liar

Then there was Jerry Lewis' film The Clown, although that was never released in its entirety.

Aineoil

the_syco wrote: »

Gonna keep an open mind about this one; it could be epic, or it could fail badly. We shall see.

I agree with you.

Comedy and famine in one sentence - it sounds wrong, but I'd like to see an

episode or two before I could give an honest comment - as you say it could

be epic or a miserable fail.

My parents in their 70's and 80's still fail to see that Father Ted is funny. If in

1995 you told the forum that there was going to be an irreverent sitcom

about priests some people might not have been too happy.

My name is URL

Whatever about how good it might be, it's an insensitive thing to make a comedy about considering how ignorant most Brits are of that part of their history.

It'd be like the yanks making a sitcom about the plight of Native Americans under Andrew Jackson =/

Harry Palmr

My name is URL wrote: »

Whatever about how good it might be, it's an insensitive thing to make a comedy about considering how ignorant most Brits are of that part of their history.

It'd be like the yanks making a sitcom about the plight of Native Americans under Andrew Jackson =/

Maybe it'll enlighten - comedy is a handy way of getting people to watch stuff they otherwise wouldn't.

darkpagandeath

Alright, Lets ban comedy then. either all is fair game or none is something something terrorists win.. :pac:

Allyall

Harry Palmr wrote: »

At least its been written by a Paddy.

No it's not.
It's being written by a guy living in Dublin. But he's not Irish.

mikom

irish central, who named Pope Francis as their person of the year 2014, as he "has transformed the Catholic landscape in a way unseen since the heyday of Pope John 23rd".

Now there is comedy.

Scuse me while I puke.

darkpagandeath

Allyall wrote: »

No it's not.
It's being written by a guy living in Dublin. But he's not Irish.

He's American as far as I can tell. So who do we blame now ?

fryup

irish american ?

goose2005

petrolcan wrote: »

No more bizarre than a comedy set during the Korean war. Or WWI.

I actually see it as potentially positive as most in Britain aren't that aware of the famine.

But it's hard to make a comedy when you don't understand the setting. They could make Blackadder Goes Forth partially because everyone knows the settings, cliches, storylines, character types etc. that you find in a WW1 film. The average person's knowledge of 1840s Ireland is a lot lower.

Highflyer13

mikom wrote: »

irish central, who named Pope Francis as their person of the year 2014, as he "has transformed the Catholic landscape in a way unseen since the heyday of Pope John 23rd".

Now there is comedy.

Scuse me while I puke.

I'm not a religious guy myself but he seems like a very progressive pope. He certainly is making a lot of strides on various issues such as corruption in the church and marriage equality and more

petrolcan

GalwayGuitar wrote: »

Potentially positive? Are you for real? The English will have a great laugh at the thick Paddies who couldn't grow their potatoes.

I'm being perfectly serious. It may show many Britons a history they aren't very aware of, it may even encourage some to do a little bit of research.

mikom

Highflyer13 wrote: »

I'm not a religious guy myself but he seems like a very progressive pope. He certainly is making a lot of strides on various issues such as corruption in the church and marriage equality and more

A dab hand at the ould window dressing too, I heard............ and kissing babies....... don't forget the kissing babies.

Allyall

petrolcan wrote: »

I'm being perfectly serious. It may show many Britons a history they aren't very aware of, it may even encourage some to do a little bit of research.

I doubt it.

Capt'n Midnight

ballsymchugh wrote: »

channel 4 haven't had much luck with irish based comedy since Fr Ted. that london irish program they had last year was pure muck.

Black books ?

lertsnim wrote: »

I can't wait till someone does a comedy series based on the Holocaust.

You could base the series on this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life_Is_Beautiful




This on the other hand... http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/TheDayTheClownCried if it sounds bad , look up the script , it's creepy, just a cynical attempt to get an Oscar. Then you remember that back in 1972 most kids who were in the camps were still alive and it goes beyond creepy.

the_syco

Aineoil wrote: »

My parents in their 70's and 80's still fail to see that Father Ted is funny. If in

1995 you told the forum that there was going to be an irreverent sitcom

about priests some people might not have been too happy.

Esp when you consider how badly the other RTE show with a woman and two priests bombed.

bnt

lertsnim wrote: »

I can't wait till someone does a comedy series based on the Holocaust.

It's been done, kind-of, in the form of a movie. Did OK, won an Oscar.