Comics Britannia #1
The first part of BBC Four's Comics Britannia series was on last night, which I watched avidly. As I've said here a few times before, I've actually been waiting for this for quite some time, as a researcher for the programme, Andy Hall, was asking for opinions on the Moore & Reppion bulletin boards since September 2006, particularly here.
I always felt that the people at BBC Four were going to do a good job of this, for a few reasons. Firstly, BBC Four is a constant source of joy already. If, like me, you're not interested in sport, or soap operas, or the constant scourge of reality TV shows that seem to be everywhere, then there's really not a lot left to watch. I sometimes think if it wasn't for documentaries on BBC Four and repeats of QI on UKTV G2, there really would be no point in having the damn TV at all. Secondly, it was always obvious that Andy was very anxious that the show would actually meet the approval of those of us interested in comics in general, and the history of UK comics in particular. (Actually, we eventually ended up corresponding privately, and have struck up a friendship of sorts, which I'm very pleased about.) I know that the Moore/Reppion site wasn't the only place they were looking for opinions, so those of us who care about these things certainly felt that we were included in the process, and that our opinion counted.
So, that first show: It was always going to be the most difficult to do, as it was pitched the furthest back in time, and would have to attempt to do a capsule history of what had gone before, as well as serve as a general introduction to the rest of the series. What we got were biographies of four men, arguably the most important people to work in UK comics, as they set the tone for virtually everything that would follow, and their influence is still evident in everything from Steve Bell's cartooning to Nick Park's Wallace & Gromit. These were Dudley D Watkins, Leo Baxendale, Davy Law, and Ken Reid. There is no doubt that I would have happily watched a full hour-long programme on any one of them, and was only short of bouncing up and down on the couch with delight at the whole thing. I'm not going to reiterate what the show said, but if you've heard of Minnie the Minx, or the Bash Street Kids, or Dennis the Menace, or Lord Snooty, then you've heard of their work. There were a lot of well-known talking heads on the show, as only Leo Baxendale was alive to appear of the four creators featured, but you could see how much these people genuinely loved what they were talking about. Steve Bell was laughing at a strip in a very old, battered, and much treasured Beano annual, obviously his own, which I found quite charming and moving. All in all, the hour-long show passed like nothing, and I was very exhilarated by what I'd seen. It was well-paced, even-handed, and visually interesting, as they'd cut their interviewees into comics panels, a trick that might not have worked, but did, admirably. It was genuinely exciting to see people like Paul Gravett and Kevin O'Neill, just for the sake of seeing them, never mind that they were very definitely talking my language. The programme was informative for those of us who knew a thing or two, but ephiriel also liked it, and she certainly doesn't know the kind of things I do about UK comics history. We weren't talked down to, and there was none of the 'look at these sad comics geeks' that you would expect if this was made by someone like Channel 4. All in all, it was a deeply satisfying televisual experience!
And, you have to bear in mind, this was only the first show. After this, they really get into the meat of it, with the classic stuff I remember from my comic-reading childhood, like Valiant, Victor, Cor! and many more, not to mention girls' comics like Bunty, which featured the legendary Four Marys. And then there's the last episode, with the darker stuff, inspired by a Thatcherite Britain. Comics reflected the times they were in, and a history of comics in those times is a history of those times themselves. People like Bryan Talbot and Alan Moore turn up, and I really cannot wait for it all.
The show gets very fine reviews from the Telegraph and the Guardian Arts Blog, quite rightly. You can catch it on one of its umpteen repeats, and you really should watch it if you can.
I always felt that the people at BBC Four were going to do a good job of this, for a few reasons. Firstly, BBC Four is a constant source of joy already. If, like me, you're not interested in sport, or soap operas, or the constant scourge of reality TV shows that seem to be everywhere, then there's really not a lot left to watch. I sometimes think if it wasn't for documentaries on BBC Four and repeats of QI on UKTV G2, there really would be no point in having the damn TV at all. Secondly, it was always obvious that Andy was very anxious that the show would actually meet the approval of those of us interested in comics in general, and the history of UK comics in particular. (Actually, we eventually ended up corresponding privately, and have struck up a friendship of sorts, which I'm very pleased about.) I know that the Moore/Reppion site wasn't the only place they were looking for opinions, so those of us who care about these things certainly felt that we were included in the process, and that our opinion counted.
So, that first show: It was always going to be the most difficult to do, as it was pitched the furthest back in time, and would have to attempt to do a capsule history of what had gone before, as well as serve as a general introduction to the rest of the series. What we got were biographies of four men, arguably the most important people to work in UK comics, as they set the tone for virtually everything that would follow, and their influence is still evident in everything from Steve Bell's cartooning to Nick Park's Wallace & Gromit. These were Dudley D Watkins, Leo Baxendale, Davy Law, and Ken Reid. There is no doubt that I would have happily watched a full hour-long programme on any one of them, and was only short of bouncing up and down on the couch with delight at the whole thing. I'm not going to reiterate what the show said, but if you've heard of Minnie the Minx, or the Bash Street Kids, or Dennis the Menace, or Lord Snooty, then you've heard of their work. There were a lot of well-known talking heads on the show, as only Leo Baxendale was alive to appear of the four creators featured, but you could see how much these people genuinely loved what they were talking about. Steve Bell was laughing at a strip in a very old, battered, and much treasured Beano annual, obviously his own, which I found quite charming and moving. All in all, the hour-long show passed like nothing, and I was very exhilarated by what I'd seen. It was well-paced, even-handed, and visually interesting, as they'd cut their interviewees into comics panels, a trick that might not have worked, but did, admirably. It was genuinely exciting to see people like Paul Gravett and Kevin O'Neill, just for the sake of seeing them, never mind that they were very definitely talking my language. The programme was informative for those of us who knew a thing or two, but ephiriel also liked it, and she certainly doesn't know the kind of things I do about UK comics history. We weren't talked down to, and there was none of the 'look at these sad comics geeks' that you would expect if this was made by someone like Channel 4. All in all, it was a deeply satisfying televisual experience!
And, you have to bear in mind, this was only the first show. After this, they really get into the meat of it, with the classic stuff I remember from my comic-reading childhood, like Valiant, Victor, Cor! and many more, not to mention girls' comics like Bunty, which featured the legendary Four Marys. And then there's the last episode, with the darker stuff, inspired by a Thatcherite Britain. Comics reflected the times they were in, and a history of comics in those times is a history of those times themselves. People like Bryan Talbot and Alan Moore turn up, and I really cannot wait for it all.
The show gets very fine reviews from the Telegraph and the Guardian Arts Blog, quite rightly. You can catch it on one of its umpteen repeats, and you really should watch it if you can.