Friday, September 14, 2007

Ranking Frank

Thursday evening telly has received something of a boost lately with the return of Mock The Week. Produced by the same guys that gave the UK Whose Line Is It Anyway? it builds on a similar format to pit various comedians against each other in rounds designed to test their improv skills, stand-up abilities and ad-libbed responses to topical news stories.

It’s effing hilarious and I have yet to watch a single episode where I wasn’t howling out loud with unstoppable belly laughter. That’s no mean feat on a Thursday night; the fag end of the working week.

For me the stand alone star of the show is the formidable Frankie Boyle (though I love Hugh Dennis’s unassumingly dry wit too). With a Glaswegian accent as brutal as a head-butt in your kisser Frankie Boyle is beyond sharp. The man is viciously serrated at an atomic level (but in a good way).

Quite honestly, Frankie Boyle could split a surgical laser beam lengthways with a single quip. One wrong word and Frankie’s tongue could slice off the top of your head like Sylar from Heroes performing an ad hoc lobotomy.

The man is blisteringly funny. But even better he’s blisteringly intelligent. Week after week I watch in awe as he pulls topical news stories out of the air and reconnects them in ways that seem so damned obvious once he’s done it. After I’ve finished laughing my guts up the same thought constantly reoccurs in my head: why the hell didn’t I think of that?

The man is quick. 0 to 187mph in under 2 seconds. I actually feel sorry for the other guys he’s pitted against. They look clumsy and amateurish by comparison. It’s like racing a Bugatti against a Skoda. No contest.

Best of all the man is real. There’s utterly no bullshit with Frankie. He tells it like it is; he’d rather kick you in the teeth with the truth than sprinkle a load of Canderel lies over your tongue.

The man is absolute comedy royalty.

In fact forget Forest Whittaker as Idi Amin: Frankie Boyle is the last king of Scotland!


P.S. This is my 200th post. Huzzah!

10 comments:

Rol said...

Happy 200th, long may you reign.

Steve said...

Thank you Rol, long may it not rain on your coming holiday!

Andrew Glazebrook said...

200th post,f**k the drinks are on me...er no you actually I'm broke !! I love Mock the Week also !!!

TimeWarden said...

Congrats on your 200th post, Steve! Here's to the next 200 and beyond!! That's a lot of writing/typing!!!

Haven't seen "Mock the Week" as I've been watching P. D. James's "Death of an Expert Witness" in double episodes on ITV3 over the last three weeks on Thursday evenings!

Steve said...

Cheers Andrew - I'm broke also but I'll be glad to quaff a virtual pint with you!

Thanks TimeWarden, it is a lot of typing! My Bog's first birthday is 13 days away too: can't believe I've churned out so much guff in one year!

The Sagittarian said...

Well done! I'm having a virtual cider as I type. This could get messy, might be best if i leave the rest to you!!
I've gotta stay up late tonight, am a thugby-head you see and am thoroughly into the Rugby World Cup altho' given that in the work sweep I was allocated Japan, this could be short lived enthusiasm! (Go the All Blacks!!)

Steve said...

Thanks Amanda, I might join you in a virtual cider!

Good luck with the sweepstake though, as you've pointed out, I think you might get more satisfaction by cheering on the All Blacks!

MOTHER OF MANY said...

I think Hugh Dennis is hilariously funny,he is brilliant in Mock the Week but I also thought Outnumbered was really funny.

-eve- said...

The man sounds a genius. ;-)

Congrats on reaching 200! :-)

Steve said...

Hi Ally, sadly I missed Outnumbered but do have fond (fond??) memories of Hugh in The Mary Whitehouse Experience - "milky milky" anyone?

Thanks Eve - I feel I ought to have a grey beard and a staff like Gandalf... (my usual Friday night gear, in fact!)