Thursday, July 15, 2010

David Quin's "Top 5 List of Shows that Defined My Sense of Humour"

Mr. David Quin
enjoying the pleasant environs
and people of his native Scotland.

It's been awhile since THE FUTURIST! has posted a friendly correspondent or FRIEND OF THE FUTURIST! Top 5 List. Today, another list comes your way directly from Scotland from the always whimsical Mr. David Quin, who has appeared on this blog before ... regarding NUT CRACKING.

Mr. Quin came to THE FUTURIST!'s attention through quite a circuitous route. For some odd, but perfectly splendid, reason THE FUTURIST! has many correspondents from Ireland and Scotland. Mr. Quin came way of the wonderful Amber Wilkinson who writes for EYE FOR FILM. Ms. Wilkinson encountered THE FUTURIST! through Twitter and this led to Mr. Quin.

Discovering Mr. Quin is akin to the sensation that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle must have felt tingle through his portly body after he received those sepia tinged photographs of forest fairies ... photos supplied by a sweet little English girl in 1917. Those photos were proven to be a hoax, but the same can not be said concerning Mr. Quin.

He is the real deal ... a Scottish (over 6 foot) slightly bearded bespectacled sprite who dashes about the streets and green hills of Peebles (his town of residence) living an inexplicable life of carefree shenanigans. His work as a some kind of theater office promotions employee occupies most of his week, but each day he draws a bewitching breath bears mystery to THE FUTURIST! ... what else does he do? He writes of insomnia, his love of Doctor Who, his new cardigan, World Cup Soccer (or football, as he calls it) and his excursions taking jaunts climbing hills ... and photographing the hills. He has the kind of life THE FUTURIST! dreams about ... no cares ... frolicking ... visiting pubs ... wearing cardigans. Yes ... dreams about ... only dreams. And his town of Peebles seems to be the anti-Utter Despair, N.J. Just read this wikipedia description:

Peebles is a burgh in the committee area of Tweeddale, in the Scottish Borders, lying on the River Tweed ... The town is surrounded by hill country on all sides and is therefore an attractive centre for the hillwalker ... In 2005, a study by the New Economics Foundation ranked Peebles as the best town in Scotland (second best in the UK, after Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire) for range of independent shops and 'home town identity.

Mr. Quin is an enigma. A man who seems to live Life with joyous abandon. Yet, oft times, THE FUTURIST! detects some melancholy ... a tinge of loneliness in his later evening writings. This happens to the best of us ... but unlike THE FUTURIST!, who takes sadness to bed at the end of each day and awakes to find it took most of the blanket during the night, David Quin greets each day with wide eyed wonder. He is a very funny fellow with a kind heart and below you shall find his list of comedic influences. THE FUTURIST! especially likes his inclusion of ALAN PARTRIDGE. It is very very funny.

DAVID QUIN'S TOP 5 LIST OF SHOWS
THAT DEFINED MY SENSE OF HUMOUR

(that's the European way of spelling humor)


(In descending order)


5) Peep Show

Following in the deeply British tradition of sitcoms
about reprehensible, self-loathing characters failing at life,
Peep Show took me a while to get into (I hated it at first)
but it's a wonderful show.

(Clips from THE PEEP SHOW all have disabled embedding barriers.
David wished to show a clip, so THE FUTURIST! will post
the link so you may enjoy a sampling.
CLICK PLEASE!)


4) I'm Alan Partridge

Before trying to break Hollywood, and nearly driving
Owen Wilson to suicide in the process, Steve Coogan was very funny.
His greatest creation found his ideal vehicle in this magnificent sitcom.




3) Brass Eye

I can't think of a blurb for this. It's Chris Morris, he of Four Lions fame, spoofing current affairs with utter perfection, culminating in the-most-controversial-thing-ever, his special on pedophilia.

(Clips from BRASS EYE are, also, *sigh * disabled from embedding.
Please
CLICK HERE for a peek at the show.)


2) This Morning With Richard Not Judy

Richard Herring and Stewart Lee's last whack at the mainstream was this glorious Sunday morning (!) TV sketch show thing, which I discovered at about fourteen. Very set in British 90s culture, but consistently wonderful. See also their previous show ‘Fist of Fun.’




1) The Armando Iannucci Show

Having spent the last ten years or so mocking British TV and politics, Armando Iannucci, recently of In the Loop acclaim, decided in 2001 to have a relaxing time off with this less ambitious project, which satirises the very nature of being alive. Totally sublime.






3 comments:

Dara said...

Good choices, especially Alan and Peep Show.

"Mmm, a nice, big, thick slice, of Thin Lizzy."

THE FUTURIST! said...

Alan Partridge is magnificent. So very funny.

Duncan C said...

Sounds very close to my favourite comedy shows too. The Armando Iannucci shows are very underrated. I hope he does something in that vein again, some day.

I loved TMWRNJ, too. In fact I was lucky enough to get to go to the taping of two episodes.