I'm Alan Partridge

I was fortunate to get a copy of the first season on DVD and just watched it with friends here in the States. And yes, I pretty much agree with everyone else who makes comparisons to Blackadder and Basil Fawlty and Gervais' boss character in The Office. Partridge is simply one of the funniest and pathetic characters ever to appear on TV. American TV would never have a character like this - they always make the sitcom people likable and "we have to want to root for them" and all that other bland stuff. A classic U.S. sitcom in the 80's - Buffalo Bill with Dabney Coleman was so outside the box from what had appeared on broadcast TV that they didn't know what to do with so they axed it. (His character too was a local Morning Show host in Buffalo, NY with an ego the size of Earth and total scum to everyone around him) and of course Larry David tries to pull it off on Curb Your Enthusiasm - and yes, even though the show is funny - David is very limited as an "actor" and Coogan is not. In fact, it is his performance and the fact that he adds dimension to this guy that truly makes it special and heartbreaking and hysterical. I loved it and I thought the rest of the cast was wonderful too.

Alan Partridge is up there with Basil Fawlty as one of the finest comedy characters ever created.

In some ways the series, "I'm Alan Partridge", goes beyond comedy. It's often painful to watch the indignity heaped on Alan. However, such feelings are always negated in the end, because Alan is an unspeakably vile little man, and the show never misses a chance to demonstrate that.

Alan Partridge is a former TV presenter (ground covered in previous series such as "Knowing me, knowing you") who lost his job because... well, because he is dreadful, not to mention totally insensitive and overly literal when dealing with guests. After his sacking from TV, he loses his wife and ends up living in a desperate little travel hotel where he's the only guest - and all the employees hate him (with good reason). The series covers his attempts to get back on TV, via the radio Norwich 5 a.m slot... various corporate videos... and a hilarious village fete.

It is so difficult to pick out favourite moments... there are just too many of them: Alan's comments about farmers, and their subsequent retaliation; His crass behaviour at the funeral of the man who kicked him off TV; The special bigger plate he keeps at the travel hotel, just get get a bigger portion... and so on and on. I'm giggling just remembering this stuff.

If you *ever* get a chance to see this series, do not pass it up - it doesn't get much better. I don't know whether this has reached the U.S yet, but if it hasn't then shame on U.S TV stations.

The comic genius that is Steve Coogan has done it again. This series is certainly as good as the previous which had some genuine laugh out loud moments. Excellent! The First episode being the best, followed by the fourth, an absolute classic BRITISH gem of a comedy

It was much anticipated by us Partridge fans, Knowing Me Knowing You on both radio and television had been comedy gold. The Christmas Special saw Alan's Television career collapse. How could 'I'm Alan Partridge' possibly keep up with such high standards?

It did and a whole lot more. The hilarity of Alan's misguided belief that he is still a major player in the industry and the meaningless conversations with the hotel staff combine to make his series essential watching. And the indignity of his prolonged stay in a 'one night stop venue' Travel Tavern adds to the tragic hilarity of the series.

Steve Coogan delivers his finest work to date and is ably assisted by a cast whose strongest delivery is the varied reactions their characters display when in the company of the failed chatshow host.

Perhaps the ultimate magic of Alan Partridge is that to fans his barrowload of catchphrases and inane comments are never forgotten and are always liable to be joyfully relayed in the company of a fellow fan.

And to think there are people out there who still don't get the joke.

as Alan might say,

'who, who, who do you think you are?'

Like Fawlty Towers in the '70s and Blackadder in the '80s, this is British comedy at its very best - a handful of episodes, all of them tighter line-for-line than Alan's shorts ("the boys are back in the barracks"). Partridge may well be the most ingeniously unsympathetic character ever created - every time you start to feel sorry for him, he manages to do something truly unspeakable. Painfully funny.