The Goes Wrong Show
It has been a long, long time since I genuinely fell in love with a comedy show, but that has all changed thanks to the Goes Wrong Show from the good people at Mischief Theatre.
When the second series recently appeared on BBC’s iPlayer, with very little fanfare, I was absolutely delighted. Could it possibly be as good as the first series? Oh yes! And then some.
The premise of the show is a straightforward one. The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society put on plays of questionable quality and everything that can possibly wrong, goes wrong. Clashing egos, collapsing sets, mistimed sound-effects, missed cues and random accidents all sound like the ingredients of a simple slapstick formula. And there is certainly no shortage of prat-falls and physical comedy.
What makes great slapstick is, of course, timing, and GWS absolutely excels at this. The delivery comes with the Swiss-clock precision of a Chuck Jones cartoon or a prime Laurel and Hardy short. The inevitable events become every bit as surprising as the unexpected ones. It really is that good.
Throw in some brilliant scripts, unspeakably good sight-gags and a great ensemble cast and crew, and you really do have something rather special. It compares very favourably to my all-time favourite episode of Frasier in which our favourite psychiatrist turns his hand to producing radio drama with utterly hilarious results. This is comedy for the connoisseur and it’s right up there with Les Dawson at the piano.
The burning question on my mind is that of why the BBC don’t have more faith in such a magnificent series. Why is it not given the sort of the prominence that is reserved for the third-rate Arthur Lucan tribute that is Mrs Brown’s Boys? This is precisely the sort of production that Auntie should be waving around every time that somebody questions the license fee. A jewel in the crown hidden away in a trinket drawer.
If you haven’t seen it, I implore you to treat yourself. But please don’t make the same mistake that I made with the first series and binge-watch it. This is a fine wine, and it should be savoured.
The first series is available on Amazon.
