Review of Dame Edna Experience, The: The Complete Series

Introduction

Who can resist Dame Edna Everage, the lavender haired, horn-rimmed Australian mega-star housewife? Barry Humphries creation is so much more than just a man in drag. In fact, very little of the humour comes from the `man dressed as a lady` angle, but rather the pomposity puncturing dry wit, delivered remorselessly in that same distinctive back-handed way. That and the universe that Humphries has created around his character, with all the unseen bit-part players including Kenny, her possibly `gay` son, and Norman, her perpetually sick husband.

I caught a bit of the Dame on TV last night, twenty years on from the recordings contained in this fine set, and was pleased to see that she/he had lost very little of the sparkle. When interviewing Matt Lucas and David Walliams of `Little Britain` infamy, she mentioned that she had caught a little bit of one of their live shows. Intrigued, Matt Lucas asked `Did you arrive late or leave early?`. With barely a nano-second`s pause, Dame Edna came back with a dry `Well darling, I did arrive late - but I left early as well`.

This set draws together all the episodes from the Dame`s previous talk-show outings (described by Humphries as `monologues interrupted by total strangers`) from 1987, including one or two seasonal specials, and they capture Humphries at peak performance. He / she glides through each show, wittily ad-libbing and out-classing each and every one of his guests for sheer wit and outrage.

I remember one or two of these shows as if they were aired just a week or two ago, though they do look curiously aged. There is the very real and lavish stage set for starters, with its huge lit staircase, an expense that no one would be prepared to make these days with so much virtual staging available. Then there`s the non-digital three tube video recording with its very basic palette and its cruelly literal (non-glamorous) look. And finally, there are the guests. All big in their day, and certainly impressive in most cases, though some have less prominence now or have sadly passed on.

Highlights include encounters with two Bonds (Connery and Moore), Mel Gibson, Charlton Heston, Cliff Richard (who seemed to think he was on a children`s show), Joan Rivers, Larry Hagman, Zsa Zsa Gabor and Sir John Mills.

But there are also a series of support acts, clearly hand-picked to provide Humphries with free reign to ridicule. Jeffery Archer (in more popular days), the controlling Mary Whitehouse, and Germaine Greer all get Dame Edna`d and seem to take it with reasonably good humour.

Humphries other alter ego, Sir Les Paterson, Australian Cultural Attaché, also makes a brief appearance as a guest on one of the specials, which is all highly amusing.

It`s a generous set with up to four 45 minute shows per disc so there`s a lot of Dame Edna to get through. I found that one 45-minute session was enough at a time and as a consequence it took me a couple of weeks to wade through it all.

I think its fair to say that I laughed aloud at least once each episode and though its pretty much a one-trick horse, Humphries quick and intelligent wit enables him to comfortably sustain the character across the entire series.

Video

These were recorded in front of a live audience in 1987, probably on 1" or Betacam with three-tube non-digital cameras. As a consequence they look like television shows from twenty years ago - fine, but different, with washed out blacks and occasional bleeding on the reds.

Audio

Though video recorded pictures look dated in series from twenty years ago, the audio is often superior to that of live recorded TV today, with experienced audio engineers at the helm, rarely relying on auto-levelling features used by so many in broadcast today. As a consequence, you can crank this up and, despite this being analogue sound, you won`t hear any hissing. Top-notch engineering.

Features

There are two `specials` contained on the discs; `Christmas Experience` and `A Night on Mount Edna`. Though these have an added sparkle (and a bit of extra expense) they are essentially more of the same.

Conclusion

I defy anyone to watch a whole 45-minute Dame Edna show without laughing aloud at least once. This set gathers together Dame Edna in her prime, hosting a lavish talk show with an impressive array of guests.

Despite the show being necessarily formulaic, and featuring (in the main) just a single character creation from Humphries, the show remains tremendously watchable throughout.

Dame Edna may be a drag act, though this is completely peripheral to what makes this work. Humphries allows himself to completely become Dame Edna, full of vanity with her tactless and barbed comments and her completely transparent prejudices.

Maybe this paved the path for the cruelty of television today, where embarrassing (even humiliating guests) has become the name of the game. But Dame Edna does it will such sparkle; brilliance and aplomb that you sense her guests (with the exception of the controlling and small-minded Mary Whitehouse) are enjoying the onslaught more than anyone. And that takes talent.

Long may the Dame reign! Well worth adding to your collection.