Summer Heights High (DVD)

Rated 15 - Warning, contains very strong language and very adult humour - not for the easily offended. Disc 1 contains 8 30 minute episodes making up the whole series. Disc 2 contains 3 and a half hours of outtakes, the trailer for 'We Could Be Heroes', and subtitles. When this was shown on BBC 3, we first saw it completely by chance. They had obviously just finished showing the series, as they were doing one of those marathons where they show all the episodes at once. We were flicking through for something to watch and this seemed to be the only option. We missed the first couple, and had never heard anything about the programme before, so for a ...  Read the complete review

I initially saw heard about this show when I was in New Zealand and it was spoken of in the same vain as Flight of the Conchords. I caught one episode whilst out there and, perhaps I was in a strange mood, didn't think too much of it. However, on leaving the antipodes I was given the DVD and watching it on the plane flying back I discovered what a true chuckling gem it was. The premise is that of a reality fly-on-the-wall documentary in a secondary school in Australia. This is reinforced by actually filming in a school using the kids and staff as themselves. However, the action centres on three unique characters all amazingly played by the same actor (Chris ...  Read the complete review

** What is it? ** Summer Heights High is a mockumentary comedy that won several Logie awards in its native Australia in 2007. It was then broadcast in the US and UK in 2008. Set in a suburban Australian state secondary school, it follows three individuals over the course of a term: 16-year-old exchange student Ja'mie (pronounced Jer-may), 13-year-old troublemaker Jonah and prima donna Mr Gregson (aka 'Mr G'), a Drama teacher. It's filmed like a real documentary, with a voice-over narration, characters talking directly to the camera and giving interviews (though we never hear the interviewer speak), and subtitles on-screen introducing new ...  Read the complete review

Summer Heights High is a very, very funny show. The 3 main characters are played by the same person, Chris Lilley. Chris plays Jonah, a troublemaker in the school, Ja'mie a exchange student form a private school and Mr G, a dram teacher. Ja'mie is a spoilt brat of a private schoolgirl ("no offence but I seriously hate all fat people") who has been sent to Summer Heights High as a part of the 'It's All About Education' government-sponsored exchange programme. Jonah is the type of pupil that makes teachers' lives hell. He not only fights, bullies and vandalises, but also pulls stupid stunts like crawling under the wheels of a teacher's car ...  Read the complete review