It's a telescope with a mouse in it... (Young Ones, The)

Member Name: salgirl

Product:	Young Ones, The
Date:	17/05/01 (78 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The genesis of really funny comedy

Disadvantages: Limited amount of episodes available

Ah, take me back to those days when alternative comedy was really that. An alternative to the bland niceness of sit coms, where there was no over-the-top gratuitous violence or swearing and certainly no tampax jokes. Who can forget the scene, ..."Hello Rhiannon, are you glad you've come to the party?" as Rick playfully bounces the tampon up her arm.

Oh yes, they were the days. Settling back in the armchair to marvel at the adolescent humour with adult overtones, giggling at Mike, empathising with Neil, grudgingly admiring Vivien and detesting Wrick (as I used to call him, or Rick with the silent P as Vivien once referred to him).

Set around the lives of four students living in the same house, this was a mix of slapstick, carry on and something we'd never quite seen before - unless you were a Saturday Night Live fan and remember Rick and Ade as the Dangerous Brothers.

It was anarchic enough to be seriously considered anarchic, but it never crossed any major social barriers offensively. Everything was a pee-take.

The series has spawned some fantastic lines, such as:-

"Coo,It's a laugh, innit?"
"What is?"
"That funny noise you make at the back of the throat."

"May your seed be fruitful in the belly of your woman." (Has to be said with fingers raised in the peace sign).

"You can bet that Cliff Richard didn't write Devil Woman sitting on a clean lavatory."

and my personal favourite

"Neil, Neil, orange peel."

Now for those of you that have never seen any of this show, for a start, Where have you been? and secondly, you've missed some of the best English comedy to struggle out of the 80's which is now considered the staple diet of most successful comedy shows. The above quotes will probably have left you cold, not understanding the jokes at all, but for those of us who can remember th
ese scenes like when a remorseful Wrick is hugging his panda thinking he's murdered Neil and wanders down the stairs wailing the Neil-Neil-Orange-Peel line, it will hopefully have set you off on wistful reminisences with a silly grin slapped on your face.

The four characters each represented something about the yoof of the day.

Neil - The hippie. Unwashed, lank hair and dressed in sloppy clothes, Neil represented the caring and naive individual who held firm beliefs about the sanctity of life and nature in general. Oh and the occasional joint. I'd like to think he made being Vegetarian acceptable.

Mike - The older student. Sunglasses were almost a permanent fixture on the smooth-talking, cool-walking dude, as he smarmed his way through the series. A secret failure, he never let the lads know and manipulated them for his own selfish gains. Once made it to the position of El Presidente.

Vivien - Total bastard. Orange spikey hair, fearsome zits, facial piercings and lacking in any social graces, he was frequently seen carrying out unjustified violence against either Neil or Wrick, whoever was closest. Had a deep passion for his hamster, SPG.

Wrick - The Gimp. Fancying himself as the People's Poet, Wrick has tickets on himself and harboured some very disturbing sexual habits. Behaves like an obnoxious 11 year old because he basically still is one. Fantasises about Felicity Kendall.

Around these main characters, you have guest appearances, usually by people like Steven Frost, Keith Allen, Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders who played various bizarre characters, whatever would fit into that week's theme.

Alexie Sayle was the most regular of the guest, and he would usually appear as Uncle Jerzy the Landlord.

He also made a guest appearance with his band and sang the great "Dr. Martens Boots". Other guest artists who have contributed to the weekly musical interlude have included
, Rip, Rig and Panic, Nine Below Zero and Madness.

I would like to thank Christopher (Mike), Nigel (Neil), Ade (Vivien) and Rik (Wrick) for giving me some right good belly laughs, a collection of suitably stupid and puerile phrases that are still occasionally trotted out, and the knowledge that life really can be that difficult when you're a moron.

Ooooooooh Heavy heavy heavvyyyyy!

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