A pint for the fella...

Introduction

Al Murray has been on the stand up circuit for years. And I mean years. He was first nominated for the the Perrier award in 1996, and for the following three years, finally winning in 1999. The character of the pub landlord has also been around for 15 years. For those who didn't catch the character in early stand up tours, there then followed 2 series of Time Gentleman Please, written by Murray and Richard Herring, and shown on Sky One between September 2000 and April 2002. They made 37 episodes in total, split across 2 seasons and the series was quite innovative, as not many British sitcoms make a 22 episode series and then a 14 episode series. Six or eight half hour shows are the norm on this side of the pond.

Murray has toured several different shows, and also generated an ITV chat show "Al Murray's Happy Hour" that has been on ITV since January 2007. On the back of that he also got a rather hit and miss sketch show "Al Murray's Multiple Personality Disorder", which featured lots of new characters, but didn't really win over the critics.



But the Pub Landlord is just a character, and Murray has done other work too, including a 10 part Discovery Channel series, "Al Murray's Road to Berlin", made in 2004. This excellent series focused on the last period of the war, from D-Day, June 6, 1944 onwards, as the Allies attempted to push through France into Germany and defeat Hitler once and for all. Murray has a degree in history from Oxford, which made him perfect for the series.

This DVD features the latest Pub Landlord show, "The Beautiful British Tour" and was filmed at the O2 during a tour that was extended three times due to demand.

Video and Audio

You get a 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and a DD2.0 stereo soundtrack as you have come to expect nowadays. Nothing earth shattering, and nothing to complain about either.

Extra Features

First up we get commentary on selected scenes. Rather than go for a full length commentary, various sections of the performance have been extracted and Murray comments upon them. This is well worth listening to, as there's some nice background information there.



Next up we have backstage footage, which is a nice look behind the scenes of the show, and all the work that goes into making what looks like a simple stand up show.

And finally we have the "Broken Britain Boogie (Tuesday Night Dance Mix)" which is a new version of the song performed at the end of the show.

Conclusion

It's an act. A character. Satire. It's not real.



That just needed saying, because even after 15 years some people just don't get it. Murray is a very clever man, and the Pub Landlord is a very clever character. A character. Not a real person. And once you've appreciated that, you've got a chance of appreciating the brilliant comedy that's on offer in this show.

Murray's character has various targets in his sights, and hits them all with ease. There's a very well scripted show here, but there's also plenty of time for audience banter and the customary audience name/job opening, where beautiful British names are celebrated and expained (e.g. means born on a council estate), and professions are dissected (almost all women's professions are boiled down to being a secretary). These are not Murray's personal views. They are part of the character. The act. The thing that is being satirised.



A great character, a great show, a great performer.

My only niggle is with the choice of venue. Comedy in massive arenas just doesn't work so well for me. This DVD is probably better than being at the O2 (unless you were in the front 10 rows or so), so that's a good thing. But putting on comedy shows in huge venues often detracts from the performance. Having seen Bill Bailey at a huge arena and then at a nice theatre, the theatre shows were much better. And that probably applies if you were in the audience at one of these shows. The venue is well used by the show, but I just feel there's something lacking...

This DVD is the best way to enjoy comedy at the O2 though, and will certainly find itself in lots of stockings this Xmas.

Recommended.