Britcom Goes To The Movies

Film Stories
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Guy Walker and Rob Heath are on a quest to find out if successful British TV comedies should make the jump to the big screen. A proud part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: www.filmstories.co.uk

  1. 3d ago

    Just My Luck (w/ At The Movies in the Noughties)

    To round off our BritPop Goes to the Movies mini-series, we jump to 2006, a simpler time when fledgling British pop-rockers McFly and their management could force themselves on an unsuspecting Hollywood. Lindsay Lohan (at the height of her fame) and Chris Pine (who Rob would argue is the best of the Chrises) on the come-up, star in an all-American, by-the-numbers romcom, which was sold in this country largely based on the already successful McFly's appearance. However, in America, Tom, Dougie, Harry and Danny were complete unknowns, and this was their only shot to crack the US market.This film differs in many ways from the previous two in the series, not least because it is a fully American production, but also because the band is very much the B-plot to a high-concept convolution in which Lohan and Pine continue to switch luck and status. There's still plenty of British pop music in it, though. Lots of McFly tracks but a lot of repetition of Five Colours in Her Hair.Joining Guy and Rob is fellow Film Stories Podcast Network host Dev Elson of Chucky Vision and At The Movies in the Noughties. He did more than his fair share of superfluous research by listening to every McFly album. Is this film as bad as we are making it sound, though? Well, you’ll just have to finish the trilogy to find out. Five Colours In Her Hair - McFlyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h76uVRSJ5bcObviously - McFlyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JiyF3K7hFqMHarry Judd Wins Strictlyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb_s2RHVBdYChris Pine in Smokin' Aceshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-tGV96ceBM&t=148sChris Pine - The Otley Runhttps://x.com/CapitalOfficial/status/1641409178387324934Just My Luck Trailerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ClDQ4SLDDOwJust My Luck - Central Park Scenehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZz6l8MCFFY Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  2. 3d ago

    Spice World (w/ Catrin Lowe)

    Episode two of BritPOP Goes to the Movies sees Guy and Rob joined by Catrin Lowe to discuss Spice World: The Movie. Kim Fuller, brother of the mogul behind the Spice Girls, Simon Fuller, wanted to make a genuine homage to our previous film A Hard Day's Night, and to do that he wanted to make this just as cynical and rich with meta-textual, self-referential craziness. Cramming in celebrity cameos (too many for his script editor) and musical set-pieces.Spice World certainly had that and a whole lot more. The film was put in motion before the five-piece had properly blown up worldwide, but by the time shooting had wrapped, they were truly a worldwide sensation. This movie broke all kinds of box-office records; despite being critically panned, it now sits as the most financially successful film about a real pop group ever.To believe the critics' initial reaction would do this subversive, bonkers and surprisingly well-acted film a disservice. Yes, there's the odd "what the hell were you thinking?!" moment, but for every Michael Barrymore and Gary Glitter (yes, Gary Glitter!) there's an Alan Cumming and Bob Hoskins. Sit back and listen to the gang wax lyrical and get all nostalgic about the era of Spice. With clear dividing lines about what the Spice Girls meant to their teenage girl and teenage boy fan clubs! There's even a little inside scoop from a familiar voice who appeared in the movie. So Stop! Say you’ll be there with us for a cracking episode that hopefully you won’t find Too Much……..Goodbye! Spice Girls - Wannabehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJLIiF15wjQSpice Girls - Say You'll Be Therehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ro0FW9Qt-4Spice Girls - Too Much on Top of the Popshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iyQBxSbvqgSpice World - Teaser Trailerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1Ne8oBpQQYSpice World - American Trailerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmSBtOHzGPMSpice World Alienshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yzxxc5KnBOESpice World - Boy in comahttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_8fYanJk88Peter Sissons on Ann Robinsonhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7PuKPiTT_4Geri - A Film By Molly Dineenhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8bnx0YcFBoSpice World - Gary Glitter deleted scenehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYRHoQP75-gLoaded: Lads, Mags and Mayhemhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbAWc_pQDjkAll Spice Girls Advertshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zw54uEniaZgWaynes World - Sponsorhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjB6r-HDDI0 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  3. 3d ago

    A Hard Day's Night (w/ Goon Pod)

    As we eagerly await Series Seven in the autumn, how about treating ourselves to a mini-series during the bank holiday? What could be more fun than watching British pop groups trying to crack the movies? In our new mini-series, BritPop Goes To The Movies, Rob and Guy will be diving into exactly that over the next three days! We kick off our series with a huge first episode, featuring a returning friend of the show. Tyler Adams from Goon Pod is back for his third appearance, ready to help us explore a film that truly changed everything. Who better to guide us through how a business-savvy soundtrack tie-in became a cinematic masterpiece? Tyler helps us to start things off with A Hard Day’s Night. Originally commissioned by United Artists to get a Beatles soundtrack album, director Richard Lester and writer Alun Owen took a modest £189,000 budget and a tight schedule and turned it into something sharper, funnier, and more influential than anyone could have imagined. By moving away from the usual vehicles of Elvis and Cliff Richard, John, Paul, George, and Ringo really shine on screen, playing heightened versions of themselves. They are supported by a fantastic cast of British character actors, including Wilfred Bramble, Victor Spinetti, and Norman Rossington, who add a sharp edge to the film’s satire on age, class, and authority. Come along with us as we get stuck into Beatlemania and the birth of the modern music video as we explore A Hard Day’s Night! Running, Jumping, Standing Still film - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScwV_yIGZ5Y It’s Trad Dad (trailer) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jk8ad0u0URw A Hard Days Night Press Conference - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9VJ7GZYcWU George Harrison funny scene - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QREeweMWTZk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  4. Jun 9

    S06 E10 - Fackham Hall (2025)

    Is the art of parody the sole reserve of Americans? Well, us Brits have had a few jolly good cracks at it. Most recently, Fackham Hall. The star-studded Downton Abbey send-up from 2025, written by the Dawson brothers (one of whom is an Inman) and the Carr brothers (one of whom is the UK’s biggest stand-up of the 21st century).To round off the sixth series of BritCom Goes to the Movies, Rob and Guy tackle their most recent film to date and have paired it with the other most valiant BritCom ZAZ-style attempt, A Touch of Cloth. The gloriously silly spoof of the police procedural dramas of the BBC and ITV. A programme that started life in creator Charlie Brooker’s spoof TV listings website TV Go Home.Series six has had our most guests ever, so it's only right to finish it with the original lineup. For this one, Guy and Rob go it alone. There’s also the matter of the Series Six quiz champion to decide, as scores are all level at 24-24 going into this episode. Join us for the last in the series at Fackham Hall!TV Go Homehttp://www.ntk.net/tvgohome/190399.htmlA Touch of Cloth - It was 1996https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrOnQG-ZYyMA Touch of Cloth - I cam As Soon As I Heardhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4RKGels8Wo&pp=ygUQYSB0b3VjaCBvZiBjbG90aA%3D%3D&pbjreload=102Fackham Hall - Trailerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWrZCkL8KqsFackham Hall - Jimmy Carrhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XhP-mmIPDY Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  5. Jun 2

    S06 E09 - The Death of Stalin (w/ Eleanor Morton)

    At BritCom Goes to the Movies, we are dipping back into the world of Armando Iannucci. Last we heard of him on this show, he’d just adapted his hit sitcom The Thick of It into big screen success In The Loop, and eight years later was turning his attention to a farcical retelling of an actual moment in history with The Death of Stalin.Based on a French graphic novel telling of the Soviet dictator’s demise, Iannucci reassembled some of his most trusted writers and performers to tell this story in a very Thick of It way, without the need for comedy Russian accents. Ian Martin and David Schneider, longtime Iannucci collaborators, would help write, and while the cast had familiar Britcom faces, there would also be a sprinkling of Hollywood with Steve Buscemi and Jeffrey Tambor as well as the cream of theater in Simon Russell Beale as the terrifying Beria.We dip not only into this 2017 movie but also the critically acclaimed 2001 sketch show, The Armando Iannucci Shows, which was one of the few TV series that Armando wrote and produced, which he also took the lead in performing. This is a second episode in a row in which we feature a TV show written by Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley (amongst others), and (spoiler alert) we enjoyed their work here much more than we did Hyperdrive.Joining Guy and Rob is the brilliant comedian, writer, and historian Eleanor Morton, who jumped at the chance to talk about one of her favourite films of the 2010s. But would Rob and Guy be quite so effusive? This episode would also represent Guy’s chance to put the quiz competition to bed with one episode remaining. Going into episode nine, Guy had a two-point lead. If he could extend this into episode ten, it would surely be curtains for Rob.Armando Iannucci - OJ Simpson on the Saturday Night Armisticehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKfEtYYqSl4The Armando Iannucci Shows - Hello Hughhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqmjWCk36C8The Armando Iannucci Shows - Chronic fatigue syndromehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDhoM_vhIeoDeath of Stalin - Trailerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9eAshaPvYwDeath of Stalin - Rupert Friendhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EN-mq2RPAtoDeath of Stalin - Best of Zhukovhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNbvepjd46A Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  6. May 26

    S06 E08 - Cuban Fury (2014)

    Get on your dancing shoes and join Guy and Rob (because it only takes two to tango) for 2014’s Cuban Fury. Something of a passion project for Nick Frost, who basically wanted to learn how to dance and probably wanted to be the main character in a wish-fulfillment Rom Com. There’s some transatlantic crossover here as Rashida Jones of The Office, Parks and Rec, and being the daughter of famous people, joined the mainly British and Irish cast.We’ve covered Nick Frost before, of course, but never as a leading man, and while he teamed up with Nira Park and Big Talk once again, there was no trace of Edgar Wright here, but just the tiniest bit of Simon Pegg. To pair a TV show with this, it made sense to pick the first time Frost had a lead role in a sitcom as well, the divisive Hyperdrive. Starting in 2006 and running for two series, this was Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley’s (them again) venture into the unknown, for a space set sci-fi sitcom with just a few echoes of the two big hitters that came before it.To find out if Rob and Guy liked either Hyperdrive or Cuban Fury, you’ll need to tune in for episode seven, which, in a series laden with guests, stands out as one for the purists. Can Rob claw back the quiz deficit? Will Guy mention The Beatles? Will we have a challenger for the upper or lower places in the league table? Only one way to know for sure!Hyperdrive Series 1https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rz-1c2o1Dxw&list=PL2907664D333F4F02Hyperdrive - Starting Therapyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNbKr4cm1-8Cuban Fury - Trailerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFSP9iO71AECuban Fury - Kayvan Novakhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrllJthntlECuban Fury - Al Pacino Impressionhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVaVICJF_gQ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  7. May 19

    S06 E07 - The Young Poisoner's Handbook (w/ Tim Worthington)

    Episode Seven began life as a thread on Bluesky by our guest Tim Worthington. The font of all obscure pop culture knowledge was discussing with followers what the most obscure BritCom they'd seen at the cinema was. Needless to say, a lot of the answers were on our long list, but not Tim's choice.The Young Poisoner's Handbook is the darkest of all the dark comedies we've covered so far. Based on, but the filmmakers must stress, not a biopic of The Teacup Poisoner Graham Young, who killed several people in the 60s and 70s.A film full of familiar Britcom faces, including Roger Lloyd Pack, Charlotte Coleman, John Thompson, and Simon Kunz. Still, it's the central performance from Irish actor Hugh O'Connor that really stole the show.Co-writer Jeff Rawle was at the height of his Drop the Dead Donkey fame when this film was released in 1995, so the topical newsroom sitcom by Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkin was the obvious choice for our "source material" and was a joy to revisit. Join Rob, Guy, and Tim for the Young Poisoner's Handbook. Damien Gets High On The Field - Drop The Dead Donkey https://youtu.be/JfeQyp0PihM?si=t0cIRk2zFHKVfNZq Teddy Bear Disaster - Drop The Dead Donkey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ip0sLEMCEdY How To Announce a War - Drop The Dead Donkey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErktQhN6TvM Episode One - Educating Marmalade https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGeHsjfVptk Marmalade Atkins joins MI5 - Danger: Marmalade at Work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHBCxewUANM The Young Poisoner's Handbook - Trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7_e79Ik3Vs The Young Poisoner's Handbook - Full Movie https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ndiGKuUkt0&t=1012s Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  8. May 12

    S06 E06 - Bloodbath at the House of Death (w/ Kat Hughes)

    Last time Kat Hughes joined Rob and Guy, the horror writer and critic had the misfortune of dissecting the Christmas family mess Nativity! This time she’s much more in her wheelhouse as we discuss Bloodbath at the House of Death. A vehicle for Britain’s best loved DJ Kenny Everett to take his brand of spoofing, innuendo and larger than life characters to the big screen after the success on both ITV and BBC with his Video Show/Television Show.It cannot be underestimated just what a huge cultural phenomenon Kenny Everett was. As one of Britain’s most popular Radio and TV personalities in the early 80s, he could make careers of pop stars and bands and was able to attract some of the biggest names to guest on his TV shows. However, just when it looked like Kenny might hit the big time on the big screen, a controversial incident at the Young Conservatives conference of 1984 was publicity suicide for Bloodbath and it crashed and burned at the box office.However, as was often the case in the mid-80s, VHS came somewhat to its rescue, and now the film is even on Netflix…but was it any good? Could a supporting cast of such huge BritCom names as Pamela Stephenson, Don Warrington and John Fortune elevate this film beyond Everett’s more disposable TV sketches? Could Vincent Price give it some Hollywood clout and horror credibility? Writer Barry Cryer and writer director Ray Cameron had been working with Everett for years, but the big screen was fairly new to them as well.We discuss all of the above and more in episode six, so join us as we take a trip to The House of Death.Kenny Everett Video Show - Best of VHShttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HeX1CPQf9kKenny Everett Television Showhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ecqQBG9q3OkCharley Says Always Tell Your Mummyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDu7yYHxZr0The Prodigy - Charlyhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSTBFZ-To2EPamela Stephenson - England My Leotardhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SMXIro1P_7gPamela Stephenson - Shrink Wraphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZodTyEoFRZQBloodbath at the House of Death - Trailerhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6zmvE-uEu0Bloodbath at the House of Death - Best of Vincent Pricehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyLWS_CjI1M Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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About

Guy Walker and Rob Heath are on a quest to find out if successful British TV comedies should make the jump to the big screen. A proud part of the Film Stories Podcast Network: www.filmstories.co.uk

Information

  • Creator
    Film Stories
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    78
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2023 All rights reserved.