The Trip (2010)

Sometimes when I am on social networking sites I notice that two people I know for completely different reasons are also friends with each other. How does someone I know from Virginia know someone I know from Rhode Island? It happens pretty often, actually. Anyway, that's how I felt when this video went viral about a year ago. How did all of my Facebook friends discover Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan, both of whom are famous in Britain but are practically unknown in America?

"YOU WERE ONLY SUPPOSED TO BLOW THE BLOODY DOORS OFF!"

Actually, Steve Coogan has gotten some attention in the States. He made a couple of movies that did well with critics...and he was blamed for Owen Wilson's suicide attempt back in 2007. Courtney Love (of all people) called Coogan out in the press for his hard-partying ways, which apparently rubbed off on Wilson and caused the unfortunate episode. Really. Coogan and Brydon did get the Internet's attention with this video, too. It's actually a clip from their television show, The Trip, in which they play themselves on a culinary tour of the north of England. That's right, they play themselves. They both are known for doing impressions, and they exploit that ability multiple times in The Trip. 

"I do this for a living, now get out your textbooks."

I could happily watch Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon do impressions for six episodes, but that's not all there is to The Trip. It is often quite poignant. Steve Coogan-the-character comes off as kind of tragic. He is lonely and deeply self-conscious, especially about his image in the UK and his lack of an image in the US. He cannot escape the awkward character that made him famous, and dreams about people chasing him and yelling a particular catchphrase to him. He doesn't really have any friends besides Rob Brydon-the-character, who comes off as silly and adorable, especially in the scenes with his onscreen wife. 

Instead of being shown on BBC America, The Trip was released in the States as a movie. The trailer might just be the best celebrity impressions clip show ever.

The trip is available to watch instantly on Netflix and Amazon. It is also available on DVD.

The It Crowd (2006-2010)

I used to work for a local Parks Department, and I am often reminded of the experience when I watch NBC's Parks and Recreation. A lot of my friends work/used to work with computers, and they feel the same way about The It Crowd. The It Crowd revolves around Jen Barber (Katherine Parkinson), Roy Trenneman (Chris O'Dowd), and Maurice Moss (Richard Ayoade). They make up the IT Department at London's Reynholm Industries. Jen, Roy, and Moss make for an unlikely trio. Best friends Roy and Moss are "standard nerds" while Jen is a computer illiterate girly-girl who fakes her way through the job interview for department manager.

A typical interaction between Roy and Jen.

It doesn't take long for the guys to realize that Jen has no idea what she's doing, and they make a plan to  oust her. They are even prepared to rat her out to the boss until they realize they will all lose their jobs if they cannot work as a team. Eventually, the become good friends and start to socialize outside of work. They even go to the theatre together!

Roy, Moss, and Jen go to see Gay: The Musical.

The IT department is located in the basement, but Roy and Moss occasionally go upstairs to unsuccessfully flirt with women. When Jen goes upstairs, she is frequently sexually harassed by Reynholm Industries' odious boss, Douglas (Matt Berry). This is usually ends badly for Douglas.

Douglas makes the mistake of trying to drug Jen.

The It Crowd was renewed for a fifth season in 2011, and the show's creator, Graham Lineham, intended for it to be the last. In October, Lineham announced that the fifth season would not be happening. Instead, there would be a one-off special to wrap the story up, but I don't know whether or not that's still happening. Fortunately, Chris O'Dowd and Richard Ayoade have been keeping themselves busy in America. I mean, remember a little movie from last year called Bridesmaids? Look who played Kristen Wiig's love interest!

Annie (Kristen Wiig) and Rhodes (Chris O'Dowd) in Bridesmaids.

Also, Richard Ayoade has a new movie coming out with some random guys named Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, and Jonah Hill on Friday, June 27.

The cast of The Watch.

I'm looking forward to seeing their careers continue to flourish in the States, but I hope they won't be too busy to return to Reynholm Industries.

The IT Crowd is available to watch instantly on Netflix and Amazon. It is also available on DVD.

Downton Abbey: Emmy and Season Three Buzz

This post contains major spoilers. This is your cue to leave if you have not watched Downton Abbey's second season or the 2011 Christmas special.

I, like the seemingly the rest of America, love Downton Abbey. I'm not above a soapy costume drama, people!  So I was very excited by the fact that Downton Abbey racked up a nice handful of Emmy nominations last week. Michelle Dockery (Lady Mary Crawley), Hugh Bonneville (Robert, Earl of Grantham), Maggie Smith (Violet, Dowager Countess of Granthan), Joanne Froggart (Anna), Brendan Coyle (Bates), and Jim Carter (Mr. Carson) all received nominations for their performances. Downton was also recognized in the writing and directing categories. The most exciting news of all, though, is that is was nominated for best Drama Series!

All of this Emmy buzz has gotten me worked up about the upcoming next season. It won't air in America until January 2013, so until then I'll just have to speculate on what's to come! These are the story lines I'm most looking forward to getting back into:

1. Lady and Mr. Sybil Crawley

Lady Sybil and Branson informing the Crawleys of their engagement during the Series Two finale. 

Lady Sybil (Jessica Brown-Findlay), the youngest Crawley daughter, and Branson (Allen Leech), the family's longtime chauffeur, married and moved to Ireland sometime between the Series Two finale and the Christmas special. Lord Grantham made it pretty clear that the newlyweds weren't welcome at Downton, so they were absent from the Christmas special. Well, mostly. Sybil did send a letter to her mother (Elizabeth McGovern) revealing that a little Sybil or Branson was on the way. When Lady Grantham dropped this bomb on her husband, she made it clear that she would not be kept away from their first grandchild. Hopefully this means that Sybil and Branson will be back in a major way in Series Three. They are both such independent and passionate characters, so their married life is guaranteed to be an interesting one. I only hope it's not quite as dramatic as Anna and Bates's, which brings me to...

2. FREE BATES

Anna visiting Bates in prison during the Christmas special.

Anna, Downton's head housemaid, and Bates, Lord Grantham's valet, were the couple I cheered for from the very start of the show. They had to deal with a lot of complications that kept them apart, most of which had to do with Bates's mysterious past. I cried when they (finally!) snuck off and got married during the Series Two finale. Unfortunately, their happiness was short-lived: Bates was arrested for the murder of his ex-wife, Vera (Maria Doyle Kennedy). 

Bates's innocence was hotly debated by Downton's upstairs and downstairs residents, but Anna obviously always believed that her husband was innocent. The cry she let out in the courtroom after he was found guilty and sentenced the death was totally heartbreaking. The good news is that Bates's sentence was reduced to life in prison, but a lot of difficulties are inevitably ahead for him and his missus. Hopefully we'll see a free Bates by the end of the season.

Hugh Bonneville (Lord Grantham) showing his support at a press event in Beverly Hills on Saturday.

3. Shirley You Jest

Shirley MacLaine on the set.

A new face is coming to Downton Abbey this season, and what a face it is! Oscar winner Shirley MacLaine will be playing Lady Grantham's mother, Martha Levinson. I'm really looking forward to the scenes between mother and daughter. However, the main event is sure to be MARTHA LEVINSON VS. THE DOWAGER COUNTESS. There's no way those two legends won't be going head to head this season. 

To hold us over until then, here are some of the Dowager Countess's best moments from the last season:

Violet's greatest hits.

The third season of Downton Abbey will premiere on PBS on January 6, 2013. The first two seasons are available to watch instantly on Amazon, as well as on DVD and Blu-Ray.

John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show (2010-present)

One of my favorite ways to waste time on the Internet is to read Nerve.com's "Sex Advice From" series. It must be the most random advice "column" ever. You can get sex advice from "People with Old-Person Names," "Extremely Tall Women," and "TV Comedy Writers," as well as Aubrey Plaza (Terminally deadpan April Ludgate on Parks & Recreation) and motivational speaker/musician Andrew W.K., among other strange people. 

I always get excited when I see a new "Sex Advice From," but I was practically beside myself when I noticed that the most recent one is with John Oliver. I love, love, love John Oliver. I find him to be totally dreamy. His answer to the question "What's the best way to seduce John Oliver?"is "I think the old Victorian way: a firm, firm handshake." Swoon! When asked to "Describe a John Oliver groupie," he said he doesn't think he has any! Lies! I'm a John Oliver groupie! 

Just in case you have no idea who I'm talking about, John Oliver is a comedian who has made a name for himself on this side of the pond as a The Daily Show correspondent. 

You know, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart?

Jon Stewart behind his Daily Show desk

Mr. Oliver also hosts John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show...which is not a British TV show. Neither is The Daily Show! But John Oliver is a real live British person!

John Oliver on stage hosting his NewYork Stand-Up Show, adorably.

I don't know if Mr. Oliver would appreciate the comparison, but he's basically a grown-up Harry Potter. What's more dreamy British than Harry Potter? Well, maybe the University of Cambridge, which J.O. conveniently attended! He studied English and was a member of a little amateur drama club called the Footlights. Some other former Footlights members, just for your information: Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; Oscar-winning actress and screenwriter Emma Thompson; Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes; novelist Salman Rushdie; Hugh Laurie, master of the American accent; and HALF OF MONTY PYTHON. Yeah, John Oliver is a part of a significant British comedy "family." He just so happens to be working in America these days. 

Here's my favorite bit of John's from the previous season, and it is rather Not Safe For Work:

Jokes.com
John Oliver - A Footballer's Penis
comedians.comedycentral.com
John Oliver Comedians Stand-Up

"How am I, as a British person, the least repressed human being in this room?"

The third season of John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show premieres on Comedy Central on Friday, July 20 at 11 PM.

Pulling (2006-2009)

So far in my blogging experience, I've mentioned about a dozen actors but only two actress. This seems like a great opportunity to talk about Pulling. Pulling was co-created by Sharon Horgan (a woman!) and Dennis Kelly, and starred Horgan, Tanya Franks, and Rebekah Staton as best friends who move in together after shallow Donna (Horgan) ends her engagement to Karl (Cavan Clerkin). Donna's new "flatmates" are Karen, a foulmouthed, promiscuous teacher and Louise, a naive waitress.

Here's a classic Donna moment:

Apparently Donna does not have a future as an art critic.

Now one from Karen:

Karen mistakes a student's parent for an old one night stand. Easy mistake.

Finally, Louise and Carl:

Louise stalks a restaurant patron and Carl has sex in the kitchen.

 If there's anything I think you can get from those three clips, it's that Pulling is secondhand embarrassment, I-can't-stop-cringing funny. Also, none of these characters seem to have any redeeming qualities. Is it bad that I find them immensely relatable? They have normal jobs, wear normal clothes, and live in normal houses. That's not something I see a lot in American TV. I mean, Carrie Bradshaw couldn't have afforded all of those shoes on a freelance writer's budget. Donna, Karen, and Louise don't live fabulous lives, but they sure are interesting!

A night out on the town turns into a morning in a primary school classroom for Karen and her ex, Billy.

You can watch Pulling on Amazon Instant Video. It is also available on DVD.