I've never understood the school of thought which says all prime time comedy is 'bland' whilst anything post-watershed is 'dark' and 'original'. 'The Brittas Empire' was enjoyed by a family audience, yet also managed to be 'dark'; people got shot, electrocuted, decapitated etc. Chris Barrie played 'Gordon Brittas', manager of a leisure centre, a man whose incompetence is matched only by his delusions of grandeur. His put-upon staff include the odious handyman Colin and emotionally overwrought receptionist Carole. Brittas' wife Helen is neurotic and who can blame her for being so? Richard Fegen and Andrew Noriss have not received nearly enough credit for their cleverly constructed scripts, which carefully balanced 'slapstick' with 'black comedy'. They had the sense to include normal characters such as Laura. Comedy shows peopled entirely by loonies get tiresome very quickly. Not regarded as one of the comedy classics of the '90's, but funnier than many of the ones that are.
Review of The Brittas Empire
