People Like Us Reviews

This is one of the funniest mockumentaries of the deadpan documentary format I have ever seen. As an avid fan of Spinal Tap I'll say that they have many common elements - awkward silences after thoughtless speech which is taken the wrong way by the interviewee, misunderstandings of ineptly phrased questions and ludicrous situations that are rooted in everyday life.

It's important to listen carefully to the speech to get the densely packed humour - not a single word is superfluous - but it soon becomes a habit and a delight. If you can find the original radio series (which I heard first) from which this TV version was derived, I highly recommend it. All you lose are the visual gags and there are very few of them because the genius is in the writing and delivery.

This is a real gem and a great example of the comedy in life itself. Once you've seen/heard this you may, like me, start to notice the natural comedy in life - but beware laughing too hard when you catch it happening around you or you may get some odd/stony looks, at the very least.

I still get a headache from laughing at the scene where Roy Mallard (Chris Langham) is trying to explain the state of his clothing (which is slowly dissolving from spilled developing fluid) to a gallery owner:
Mallard: "I don't normally look like this only I dropped some acid earlier."
Owner: (disgustedly) "Yes, well I hope it was worth it."

Brilliant. (Also, if you like radio shows, look for The Sunday Format - by the same team.)