“It’s a good cause [Comic Relief]…..I just don’t want to have to join in with someone else’s idea of wackiness. It’s the wackiness I can’t stand.”
Tim Canterbury, Episode 5, Series 2, The Office

After 10 years of saying he would never bring back The Office or David Brent, Ricky Gervais did ten minutes of Brent, and a video for his character’s political reggae song ‘Equality Street’, for BBC’s Comic Relief on 15th March. The laugh, the look-to-the-camera, the attempt to be 15 years younger – the Brentisms were all there for everyone to enjoy.

There was a huge amount to hold sacred in The Office and David Brent, mainly because we were originally left with only twelve episodes and a special. A friend described to me how the ending’s strength owed a lot to the viewer being able to make up their own mind about what would follow, just as with The Sopranos. Would Tim and Dawn stay at Wernham Hogg? Would Gareth continue to be the boss? Part of us really believed Brent had found a long-term partner in Carol, his Christmas party date; he wanted to try her Thai food, and she laughed when his jokes weren’t funny.

Now we’re told exactly where he is and what he’s doing. But Brent would not have lost weight and got into shape, or got a tan, as Gervais has. If you’re going to do one of the greatest characters in television, do him properly. And as we are treated to the full meaning of his song ‘The Serpent That Guards The Gates Of Hell’, we learn Brent had a fiancée who cheated on him, and we’re suddenly meant to believe that Brent had been through a failed engagement pre-Office, which doesn’t really fit with what we had previously seen of him.

Gervais had been developing his ‘Seedy Boss’ character since the mid-1990s, and with Stephen Merchant he spent years writing and perfecting the character into the finished article of David Brent. They spent three years casting the supporting characters, just to surround him with the perfect team. This ten-minute sketch, on the other hand, was clearly hashed together at the last minute in no time at all, with what seems like no contribution from Merchant, whose input to both The Office and Extras should never be underestimated.

And all for Comic Relief, an institution that does great charity work but, in comedic terms, is an expert in the lowest common denominator. It has Michael MacIntyre observing us into oblivion, and lauds James Corden as a comedy icon. Nick Grimshaw getting into a bathtub full of beans is surely the best indicator of the level at which the organisation aims. Why is Gervais even associating with this institution, let alone in the form of his best and most prized creation?

Of course the new segment had lots of funny moments – Brent is the funniest character in British comedy after all. But none of the jokes were new: shouting ‘Charlie’ to the pensioner in the pub and getting no reply just as he shouted ‘Taffy’ to Glyn in the warehouse; shouting outdated, awkward show catchphrases such as “Feck” and ‘Arse’ (Father Ted) just as he did The Muppets’ catchphrases to Dawn; getting out the car and trying to look sophisticated as he holds cleaning products, just as he did in the Christmas Special.

He even reused “sue me”. All these things together have brought Brent closer and closer to a catchphrase character the like of which Gervais demonized in his Extras’ creation, Ray ‘Are You Havin’ A Laugh?’ Stokes. How could you improve on The Office’s reputation? Certainly not by making the same jokes again, ten years on, all for the enjoyment of the BBC1 Friday night crowd.

Brent was funny because of his relation to the other Office characters, and, even when he had been fired in the specials, he spent much of it in the office (tragically), his natural comic environment. The monstrosity of the character Brent put on for the cameras was painstakingly obvious, but the characters (Tim, Dawn etc) couldn’t say so because he was their boss and they had to respect him – they could only let the camera know what they really thought with a simple look of bemusement.

But the studio manager in the new sketch is making explicit Brent’s buffoonery by calling him the “middle aged man in a polyester suit”. He says “horrendous, absolutely horrendous’” to end the sketch, which The Office, written properly (with Merchant), would have left obvious but unsaid. Lower levels of subtlety and sophistication were required, as heaven forbid the Comic Relief crowd might be at risk of not understanding the joke.

The YouTube video of the sketch ends with “Click To Subscribe For More Ricky Gervais”, making clear his quest for as much exposure and as many hits as possible. Gervais asked Twitter whether they’d want a series of free YouTube sing-a-long tutorials with Brent, going through his favourite songs. Of course, the overwhelming response was positive, and now Gervais has agreed to do them, with ‘Freelove Freeway’ the subject of Episode One. The Brent character is dying a death of a thousand YouTube hits, reduced to nothing but a meme, to stand alongside the Sneezing Panda and Charlie Bit My Finger, ruined by over-use.

Gervais realizes each project he does is popular, and this self-awareness doesn’t help – his first two presentations of the Golden Globes were hilarious, but the third time he just knew he was funny. Unlike Daniel Kitson or Stewart Lee, he doesn’t curb this popularity to retain a cult following and a critically pure status, but he pushes for more exposure, more hits, until we are all retweeting him in unison.

A parody Chris Finch twitter account last week tweeted to Gervais “Brent you fat bastard it’s yer good friend Chris Finch” to which Gervais replied “I thought I told you to fuck off”. In sending that line to his four millions followers, ripe for trending and being made into a hashtag, Gervais is trivialising one of the greatest lines in television.

The YouTube videos will bring us to a sadder and sadder saturation of Brent, just as with the animated shows of Gervais, Merchant and Karl Pilkington’s podcasts and audiobooks for Channel 4. We didn’t need a cartoon monkey on a screen to find Karl Pilkington’s Monkey News funny. And we don’t need Brent saying “Guilty, sue me” again, ten years on, to laugh at it. It was Comic Relief wackiness, and as with a lot of things, this is an issue on which we should stand with Tim Canterbury.

Every now and again a film comes out that sounds good, looks good and has a solid idea, but somehow doesn’t quite manage to translate onto the big screen. Welcome to the Punch clearly has the essentials of an action thriller: pace, suspense, a smattering of chase scenes and some cockney geezers to carry it off. So why is it still lacking?

The movie starts by plunging the audience into the world of Max Lewinsky (James McAvoy), for whom things aren’t going too well. He goes it alone in his pursuit for justice and winds up on the floor of a tunnel, having received a bullet in the leg from the mysterious Jacob Sternwood (Mark Strong of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Sherlock Holmes). So far so good. We then meet Sarah (Andrea Riseborough of Made In Dagenham, W.E.), who adds a touch of comedy to proceedings, showing clear disdain for Lewinsky’s disillusionment with his work for the police. In the course of all this we meet Daniel Mays (yet another Made In Dagenham alumni) who plays Nathan, a corrupt police officer embroiled in…well actually it’s not that clear what he’s embroiled in. It’s from here that things start to go awry.

From the very beginning we’re geared to hate Sternwood, who ruthlessly shoots poor Lewinsky, however the focus shifts to the point where we see the two adversaries collaborate with little trouble. Sternwood’s son Ruan turns up (albeit briefly to try to help make the plot at least semi-intelligible), then Riseborough’s character breathes her last in a storage container at the rather brutal hands of Warnes. Warnes appears to be a key player in the mess of plot lines and unexplained events, however his lack of screen time at the beginning of the movie fails to convey this. To top all this off, neither the police nor the various unsavoury characters in Sternwood’s circle seem to be able to shoot. As a result, we experience extended shoot-out scenes, disconnected dialogue and James McAvoy running around quite happily, despite supposedly sustaining a leg wound in scene one and a further shot to the arm later on.

The main problem is whilst on paper this movie is packed with ingredients set to induce cinemagoers to perch on the edges of their seats, ironically, it lacks punch. McAvoy is obsessed and consumed by a vendetta, we get that, the policemen are all corrupt because they’re aiding an election bid, we get that, but what we don’t get is anything new. There are no surprises, just a different combination of well-used elements. It’s a disappointing turn from McAvoy and Strong who are both involved with huge movies set to hit our screens: the next X-Men instalment is in pre-production for McAvoy and Strong is currently filming Before I Go To Sleep alongside Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman. Hopefully these projects will be more successful, as despite the good intentions of those behind Welcome to the Punch, it’s a far cry from the knock-out that was promised.

3 stars

★★★☆☆
Three Stars

Wiley may be known as “the Godfather of Grime”, but it’s a certain Dizzee Rascal who has had the biggest impact on the genre, an impact evident on Wiley’s latest album, ‘The Ascent’. Grime is a genre with notably humble origins. Pirate radio, homemade mixtapes and beats made on PlayStations — its roots couldn’t be any more underground. Going from ‘I Luv U’ to ‘Dance Wiv Me’, Dizzee was the first to cross over to the mainstream, creating a career template for ambitious grime MCs everywhere. Wiley, Tinie Tempah and Tinchy Stryder all followed suit. Of course, accusations of “selling out” will follow them for the rest of their careers, but it’s hard to condemn them for wanting a slice of the big time. Putting grime’s internal politics to one side, the important thing is whether the music is good, right?

While he is clearly aiming for chart success with ‘The Ascent’, it’s also clear that Wiley wants to maintain his position at the top of the grime game. The first three tracks are an energetic and promising start, culminating in ‘Skillzone’, a straight up banger with Wiley and seven other MCs showing off their impressive rap tekkers.

Unfortunately when Wiley heads into chart-friendly territory, things often get a bit, well, rubbish. That’s not to say Wiley can’t pull it off; he can. ‘Heatwave’ is a perfect example of precisely how to do chart friendly music well. Uplifting strings and hand claps accompany a catchy vocal hook, which then drops into an outrageously bouncy bassline. It’s fun, unique and enjoyable, the kind of song that makes Park End more than just bearable.

However this is in stark contrast with ‘Lights On’. Generic, boring and extremely forgettable, it’s everything that’s wrong with current chart dance music. I’m talking sub-Guetta levels of quality here. Listening to it, I can almost feel the carpet, sticky from spilt VKs. I can almost smell the mix of sweat, farts and Lynx Africa. It’s not just this song. ‘Reload’ is a similarly uninteresting drum and bass tune. ‘Hands In The Air’ has some slightly more interesting production elements, but the main chorus is still pretty dull.

Wiley is known as one of grime’s greatest MCs, and while his skill and technique is as impressive as ever on the album, the lyrical content falls flat. There isn’t enough of his trademark wit and wordplay, and a bit too much of “let’s go out, drink, find some girls, and have a good time”.

It’s not all so bad though. ‘My Heart’ is a reasonably enjoyable pop tune with a shuffling beat and melodic piano, featuring the omnipresent Emeli Sande and US rapper French Montana. On ‘Humble Pie’, Wiley is at his most personal and reflective, a downbeat and absorbing end to the album.

Overall, ‘The Ascent’ is a fairly average album, but Wiley is capable of so much better. His recent Step Freestyles 1-20, released as two free mixtapes, show Wiley at his brilliant best — funny, engaging, exhilarating and hooking up with the most innovative producers around. In the main, the attempts at mainstream appeal on ‘The Ascent’ smack of desperation. Call me a purist but I can’t help feeling that he could find more lasting success by bringing classic grime back to the forefront.

★★★★★


Five Stars

In an interview with Cherwell last term Brian Briggs, Stornoway’s lead singer, promised a more mature second album “about growing up” and with an extra sense of escapism, where the band name “seems to fit even better, [compared to first album ‘Beachcomber’s Windowsill’] in a more remote and slightly wilder place.” Bold claims from the frontman of the Oxford based band, but ones that are most definitely met.

From the opening whirling organ chords and the loose and slightly psychedelic drum groove of ‘You Take Me As I Am,’ — outlining Briggs’ wedding day and reminiscent, for myself at least, of Bruce Springsteen’s second offering The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle — the album instantly implements the sense of escapism Briggs alluded to at the band’s homecoming show at the Oxford Town Hall on February 15^th.   

Jonathan Quin, the keyboard player/multi-instrumentalist for the band and ex-Oxford postgraduate music student, creates complex yet seemingly infectious arrangements to accompany Briggs’s heartfelt delivery of his sincere lyrical content which effortlessly floats above the musical texture, never dominating yet somehow also never intruded upon. The chorus of the first single, ‘Knock Me On the Head’ showcases these infectious arrangements in all their glory with the syncopated musical undercurrents being supplemented by four-part vocal harmony that is in direct contrast to the driving, and almost motoric, verse keyboard synth and drum accompaniment.

Stornoway are a band firmly rooted in Oxford, with Briggs and Quin having met at Wolfson College during their time as postgraduates there. Briggs was researching bird activity on the Thames whilst Quin was interested in Russian folk song. They spoke of “zorbing through Cowley” during their first album and subsequent hit single. Whilst there are no obvious direct references to Oxford in Tales from Terra Firma, song titles such as the stripped back and acoustic ‘The Great Procrastinator’ (performed on the balcony of the town hall on February 15^th) with lyrics such as “I’m a scientist with far too many metaphors and far too little data to conclude in time” seem to coincide with the predicaments and day-to-day life of the Oxford student particularly well!  

Although, as previously mentioned, the complex and stylistically interwoven arrangements of earlier tracks such as ‘You Take Me As I Am’ and another infectious pop-hit ‘The Bigger Picture’ are particularly enjoyable, and induce a certain amount of uncontrollable foot-stomping and embarrassing head-bobbing, the stand-out track award for me would definitely go to the final offering of ‘November Song.’ A simple folk tune comparable to some early Bob Dylan or Simon & Garfunkel perhaps, it offers the perfect closure to a great album with pure simplicity. Sang microphone and amp-less live, the silence throughout the crowd on each performance speaks volumes (link below) and for me, perhaps, it is the memory of the Town Hall on that February night and the sense of electricity that was present during ‘November Song’ which leads to my claiming that a simple folk-song, the dregs of the album if you like, is a “stand-out track.” Nonetheless, it offers the perfect reflective end to an escapist and reflective album, ambitious as a second offering but completely justified without falling into the “second album trap.” Definitely worth a listen.