The best television show on a Sunday (The Sunday Night Project)

Member Name: yackers1

Product:	The Sunday Night Project
Date:	28/01/09 (287 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The Alan/Justin relationship is great, good guest presenters, very funny

Disadvantages: It's now aired late on a Sunday and I have to work the next day

The Sunday Night Project (previously the Friday Night Project so called for obvious reasons) is a channel 4 comedy show hosted by Justin Lee Collins, Alan Carr and a guest presenter. The guest presenter varies each show but it is always some celebrity. Past guest presenters include Charlotte Church, Billie Piper, Mariah Carey and Mischa Barton amongst many others. Obviously some guests give more memorable performances than others but whoever the guest this show is always funny as Justin and Alan are always at hand to ensure the audience keeps laughing.

The show includes many different elements including short comedy sketches, a quiz show, an opportunity for the audience to ask the guest presenter a question and a review of the news section. This format is the same each episode although it does not get boring or too repetitive.

During the week before the show is recorded the guest presenter will go out in the public domain to do a bit of a 'Beadle's about' prank on the general public to be aired on the show.

****My opinion****

Channel 4 has discovered an absolute gem in the Sunday Night Project as it really is great entertainment, although it may not be to everyone's taste.

Justin Lee Collins and Alan Carr make a great comedy duo, a bit like the modern Laurel and Hardy, even to the point of a large man accompanied by a smaller partner. Their on screen relationship is electric and they really appear to be two peas in a pod, well in mannerisms anyway. They are just two mates, sharing the same 'warp' sense of humour out for a laugh.

The sketches the duo perform are very good, although sometimes they are a bit risqué and not too PC. I think one the best sketches they have done is where they accompanied Mischa Barton (Marissa Cooper out of the OC) to the premier of the Pirates Of The Caribbean and where they starred as some of the Spice Girls a remake of the video of Wannabe with Emma Bunton. These guys just don't seem to have any hang ups about their bodies (some of the clothing they wear is not that flattering and neither of them are toned) or shame (regularly dressing up). This is a great thing as it is all done in the name of comedy, and it is good that they don't want to conform to the 'skinny or toned' ideals.

In my opinion the content of the show is just right. Whilst they are not always PC it is not so extreme that it is really offensive, although I appreciate some people may find it too much.

The language can be a bit blue but it is not that bad. I think that there is a fine line when using foul language and this show has got it spot on. The obscenities are sufficient to get the point across in an emotive, but humorous way, but not so much that it mimics the Seth Rogan genre of films, whereby every other word seems to be an obscenity. That said, I don't think it is suitable for younger viewers, nor do the producers hence it is way after the 9.00 pm watershed.

The choice of guest presenters is great, mainly due to the fact that they are normally ladies. All of the guest presenters have got in to the spirit of things and jumped in with both feet. Two of the guest presenters that are memorable for me include Charlotte Church and Mischa Barton. Both were really good and it would not surprise me if an appearance on the Friday Night Project helped her get her own chat show.

The part of the show where the guest presenter plays a prank on a member/s of the general public is really great and is British comedy at its best. Whilst this concept is really old people still fall for it, and this never ceases to amaze me. It just shows how gullible the British public are. One of the best pranks is where a young bloke was asked if he would go and request Mischa Barton's autograph. He duly obliged, where he was accused of being a stalker and a pervert and got arrested by a fake policeman. It really was good viewing.

During the show the audience have an opportunity to ask the guest presenter 'any thing'. Whilst there is scope to ask some really personal, dirty, obscene etc questions the audience seldom do. Personally I think that this part of the show is 'staged' and the people asking the questions are planted in the audience and the questions are vetted in the first instance, even though this part is really dressed up.

The quiz section, called "Who knows the most about the guest host?", is where Justin goes head to head with Alan, although both have a celebrity team mate, in answering questions about the guest presenter, who incidentally is the quiz master. Whilst the questions are serious, both Justin and Alan come up with witty (some may see it as immature school boy humour) responses. I find this section hilarious and there is usually full audience participation.

The winner of the quiz gets to wear a jacket that is full of £5 notes and then run in to the studio audience to get man handled as the notes are ripped off the jacket. I find it strange that it is the winner that gets molested and not the loser, but I guess that is the Justin and Alan twist.

Overall this is a brilliant show and one I find really funny. There are a lot of laugh out loud moments and even though some of it is a bit risqué and not always PC I don't think it is overly offensive. If you enjoy school boy humour, and gorgeous guest presenters that really get in to the spirit of the program, then this show is definitely for you and it is one I cannot recommend highly enough.

Summary: Sunday night's television at its best