All About Me

Hi

I have been watching this programme from the first episode. I am grateful to the writer for including within the family unit a person who has a disability. In doing so you are raising awareness of disability issues in a way that is inclusive and portrays,with humour, the `normalness' of family life. Respect!

However, As this particular sit com developes, I am becoming very interested in the writer for one reason. The characters portrayed are beginning to eclipse my own family, with the exception that we are not a divorced couple with children and neither are we of different cultural backgrounds. The uncanny similarities lay primarily with the disabilities portrayed.

Our eldest son had a rare metabolic illness which meant he had no co-ordinated movement or speech but was intellegent and communicated, like Rhaj through facial expression. My youngest son has, yes, you have guessed it, Aspergers Autism. I watched this evenings episode and the script unveiled explaining to my `Builder' husband that I suspected that the youngest boy had autism. At that point my daughter rang me to ask if I was watching the programme and if I had been instrumental in providing the plot. As she is a script writer she was mortified to think I had given away a potential story line which she could have used.

So my question to the writer is this. Out of pure curiosity who did you base the script on and what research did you undertake?. Is this co-incidence or it there some divine explanation for the similarities. Scaaaarrrrry or what!

P.s Has Ruvinda got a job and if so what?. (hopefully she hasn't or if she has, is it the same occupation as mine!)pass me the garlic please!

Regards

Sandra Duncan

STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All Costs

I was interested in giving this show a glance 'cos it's set in my home city of Birmingham and,of course,who better to headbill it than that legendary stelwart of our comedic prowess,Jasper Carrott.But I have to say,the results are certainly not very encouraging.Jasper was fantastic in The Detectives,which I happen to regard as one of the finest comedy series ever created by the BBC,but here he just can't seem to help matters at all.

The premise rests around Colin the Builder (Carrott),his three children from his previous marriage,new wife Rupinder (Nina Wadia) and her disabled son (Jamil Dhillon) and the various mis-adventures they get up to in each weekly episode.

It opens to various shots around Birmingham (i.e.,the BT tower,the Brindley Place canals) shot in a cheap,almost camcorder esque fashion,which plays to a rather unappealing opening soundtrack.It also sets the tone for the rest of the series.Indeed,as one IMDB reviewer already pointed out,it feels more like one of those videos they might have played to you as a class back at primary school as opposed to a professionally made BBC production.Such shoddy,see through production values are complimented by poorly executed gags,with dire delivery and almost non-existent comic timing from the mainly inexperienced younger cast members.Jasper merely seems trapped by such a witless,dire script that even the greatest comedic expertise in the world probably could not save.It's no wonder,in fact,that Meera Syal appeared to have walked out by the second series.

The high notes lie in it's ingenuitive plot angles,that of the problems and adversities that may lie in a mixed-race family,and of having a child with a disability as one of it's main characters.These are certainly very inspired angles to explore.Unfortunately,this dismal series is never able to exploit them to their full potential,and ultimately emerges as a waste not only of some creative ideas,but of the talents of one of our finest funnymen ever to hit the big time.*

It seems to me that for a lot of people writing reviews on this show on here are upset about the representation of Asian and people , and those with disabilities representation rather then the apparent poorly written , and executed script.

I commend the show for such representation , however I feel that the subpar comedic punchlines, the emphasis on race at every point in turn , and the overall poorly written storylines that stem away from the characters personalities made this show somewhat painful to watch .

Do more diverse shows need to exist ? Yes absolutely; especially as you will see from the below reviews, views about political correctness seemed to be more geared towards the fact that they did this . However I think the way to go about this for such shows , is represent a formula consisting of about 60 to 70 percent familiarity with white and able bodied audiences, and 30 and 40 percent representation of cultural practices and behaviours specific to such minorities .In other words, rather then have such shows represent showcase something 'exotic' and alien to the majority, being the main point of interest , use it as a subplot.

BIG Jasper Carrott fan. I loved The Detectives (BIG FAN) and have most episodes on tape. BRILLIANT stand-up comic, but sadly only a so/so actor. THE DETECTIVES simply worked because of Jasper's comic timing, the storylines, the guest stars...and of course not forgetting Mr. Robert Powell(!) ALL ABOUT ME...decidedly dodgy. Not very funny at all. I do remember watching just a couple of episodes when it first was broadcast over a year ago. I found it extremely tacky looking. Why was Jasper involved in this. He is the best comedian ever by far, and yet even he cannot save this drivvel. The first series, I'm sorry to say, definately does deserve to be panned good and proper. I suppose the real reason why I am writing this review is because there is a new series of ALL ABOUT ME starting this Friday which doesn't look too bad on the reviews so I'll give it another chance. It'll have to be greatly improved though! MJG

Oh how I laughed....this has it all...an Asian/White family, a disabled Asian boy...everything a healthy person needs to see in the eyes of the BBC.

What utter tribe: This was a total insult to my eyes that viewed this rubbish for one episode and ONE EPISODE ONLY.

When you think of some of the quality the BBC has put out over the years (Fawlty Towers for example) and then this comes rolling in...Its a disgusting disgrace.

Its all geared on political-correctness and is devoid of any humour whatsoever.

This is straight from the bowels of hell: but what would you expect from the ultra left-wing BPC...I mean BBC.