SPOTLIGHT ON: KEITH BARRETT

"Here's my report.
It's a bit of fun."
Keith Barrett
"The Keith Barrett Show"

Having only the one pair of eyes (and I still have my thumbs, so back off, Twiloites!), I can't see everything in the cause of Toobworld. And it triples in difficulty whne it comes to new additions for the TV Universe from other countries. I visit a lot of websites geared towards shows from Great Britain and Canada, a few from Australia and Ireland. I'd visit others, but I'm usually hampered by language barriers.

But it's never too late to add crossovers as soon as I finally do discover them. And I have one from the U.K. - 'The Keith Barrett Show'.

Here's a description from Ryan's British TV Show Reviews:

'The Keith Barret show' is a hilarious spin off from Rob Brydon's 'Marion and Geoff', where Keith Barret comes out of his car and onto a chat show.

Keith Barret interviews celebrity couples like Richard and Judy and Ronnie and Anne Corbett and the show works really well.

The comedy style is more accessible and less dark than 'Marion and Geoff', but its still really good. There are a few moments in the series that can be a little dull but there aren't many. Also, his constant use of his catchphrase 'It's a bit of fun' gets a little bit annoying after a while. Lets hope this series gets a DVD treatment.

Overall this is a great show, and its great to see the character Keith again. Its very funny and its worth checking out. As Keith would say, it's a bit of fun.

Here's what he thought about 'Marion & Geoff':

Ten minute shorts chronicling the story of a minicab driver inside his car recounting the breakup of his marriage to Marion (who remarried Geoff), which for some deluded reason he thinks there is still hope for.

Sad clueless gits have always been a mainstay of British comedy, and your tolerance for this will depend on how much masochism you can see a character inflict on himself in this one-man show.

And then for the prequel, 'A Small Summer Party':

A BBC one-off that is a prequel to 'Marion & Geoff', the ongoing saga of sad sack Keith (Rob Brydon) who can't get over his wife's new relationship. At last it is revealed the events leading up to their marriage breaking up, and we get to see the heretofore unseen Marion and Geoff, as well as Keith's children.

Still told in a semi-documentary style using camcorders and no laugh track, this deadpan comedy tests the viewer's patience to tolerate no-hope losers who don't see the obvious in front of them (in this case, Marion's flagrant affair with Geoff).

Of note is producer Steve Coogan's appearance as Geoff who, judging from appearances, might be worse off now that Marion is with him.

If you want to check out more of Ryan's views on Brit shows, here's the link to his site:
(http://www.eskimo.com/~rkj/brit.htm)

Like Ryan said in his review, with this new offering Keith joins the trend of trend of "Anybody can host a talk show" which gained popularity with 'The Kumars At No. 42'. And like the Kumars, as well as with Larry Sanders and Barth Gimble, there were plenty of real-life celebrities burnishing their memberships in the League of Themselves. (As a matter of fact, Keith and the Kumars share plenty of guests in common, like the husband and wife team of Richard & Judy, Ulrika Jonsson, and the great comedy legend Ronnie Corbett.)

Most of Keith's guests are presenters themselves in the world of British TV, - talk show hosts, game show emcees, music veejays. They help to expand the environs of Toobworld, but those types of links aren't very exciting.

But there are those who have appeared as themselves in fictional versions on sitcoms and drama series and those get my attention!

Here's a rundown of a few of his guests who helped to expand the TV Universe with the connections made by their tele-versions:

Episode: #1.1 - 5 July 2004
Judy Finnigan .... Herself ('The Kumars' & 'Absolutely Fabulous')
Richard Madeley .... Himself ('The Kumars' & 'Absolutely Fabulous')

Episode: #1.2 - 12 July 2004
Kerry Katona .... Herself (as Kerry McFadden) ('Bo Selecta')
Brian McFadden .... Himself ('Finbar's Class' & 'Bo Selecta')

Episode: #1.3 - 19 July 2004
Peter Stringfellow .... Himself ('Footballers' Wives')

Episode: #1.4 - 26 July 2004
Darren Day .... Himself ('Bob Martin')

Episode: #2.1 - 7 January 2005
Leslie Ash .... Herself ('Get Fit With Brittas')

Episode: #2.2 - 14 January 2005
Richard Whiteley .... Himself ('Emmerdale Farm' & 'My Family' & 'Fat Friends')
[Mr. Whiteley appeared in January of this year and just passed away at the end of June. As he was a legend in British broadcasting, tribute was paid him in the halls of government there.]

Episode: #2.5 - 4 February 2005
Eamonn Holmes .... Himself ('Give My Head Peace')

That guy Ryan has his own sources for getting tapes of British offerings, so I don't know if 'The Keith Barrett Show' is available for the rest of us. I suppose we have a shot to check it out if it was a BBC offering; then it might one day show up on BBC-America. For all I know, maybe it has already.....

At any rate, Keith Barrett is now qualified for entry into the Toobworld Crossover Hall of Fame!

BCnU!
Tele-Toby