The
show: 'Still Game' is a BBC Scotland comedy starring Ford Kiernan
as Jack Jarvis and Greg Hemphill as Victor
McDade, two old-age pensioners
living in a district of Glasgow called Craiglang. The series follows the
adventures and misadventures of Jack, Victor and their friends, including
fellow pensioner Winston Ingram and Boabby the Barman. It
is similar in style to 'Last
of the Summer Wine', so if you enjoy that show you should enjoy 'Still
Game', although the
Scottish accents take some
getting used to. The characters of Jack and Victor first appeared in a
stage play (also called
'Still Game') before making
regular appearances in a sketch comedy show called 'Chewin' the Fat'. The
first series of 'Still
Game' aired on BBC One Scotland
in September and October 2002, but it was not until the fourth series that
it was shown
across the UK on BBC2. Christmas
and Hogmanay specials were broadcast during the 2007 holiday season, on
both BBC
One Scotland and BBC2.
The
episode: 'Oot' was the fifth episode of the third series, and
was first broadcast on BBC One Scotland on 4 June 2004.
It features Sylvester McCoy
as Archie, a contemporary of Victor and Jack who has lived as a recluse
since the mid-1960s.
However, his home is being
demolished for redevelopment, so he is forced to go into the outside world
for the first time in
decades. Archie's coming
'oot' causes a big stir in Craiglang, and his old friends help him to settle
into his life, including
introducing him to modern
marvels such as the McDonald's cheeseburger and the microwave oven. However,
Archie soon
tires of the outside world
and soon retires to his new flat where he resumes his life as a hermit
(but with a brand-new wide-
screen TV). The episode
also features Winston's efforts to build his own TV, with predictably disastrous
results. Sylvester
McCoy is superb and was
perfectly cast for the role of Archie, and a highlight is the scene where
he explains just how he
became a hermit in the first
place.
The
verdict: 'Still Game' is a very funny and very entertainining
comedy that has not surprising become popular throughout
the UK, and it has also
won BAFTA Scotland awards for the last four years. Don't be put off by
the Scottish accents or the
fact that episode titles
were in the Scottish vernacular for the first three seasons - the show
reverted to standard English
titles from the fourth series,
although most of the Scottish titles are merely Scottish pronunciations
of English words - Oot,
Cauld, Faimly, Waddin' and
the like. If you enjoy British comedies you will find much to enjoy in
'Still Game'.
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