Look Around You

I didn't realise this comedy series spoofing the golden era of TOMORROW'S WORLD was first broadcast in 2002 and looking at this site's info on the show it originally started off as a series of nine minute sketches . This was probably the right format for the show because watching the 2004 series with episodes that last for 30 minutes I instantly became aware that the novelty out stays its welcome as a large chunk of an episode's running time is taken up with say an operation on a presenter by medibot ( Don't ask ) which drags pace wise and stretches a one trick pony into an unnatural length

A lot of people have spoken on the flaws of DIRECTOR'S COMMENTARY especially the point that the show may have been a good idea as a five minute feature in a sketch show . These flaws are identical to the ones seen in LOOK AROUND YOU which bizarrely started off in a format that suited it best . I have to repeat that 30 minutes an episode is too much time for this comedy series to be successful

With the United States churning out more garbage per minute than ever before by way of TV and cinema, this debut from Robert Popper and Peter Serafinowicz is a refreshing change.

Some might call it the greatest show of the last few years. Others might say the greatest show of the decade. I would say this is the funniest show ever to air on BBC2. Ever.

Eight ten-minute episodes in the style of the Open University programs we all know and love serve as nostalgic reminders of 'the way things were', sticking to the dean-pan formula to provide constant entertainment and never-ceasing hilarity.

Popper and Serafinowicz, who will no doubt continue to flourish, provide excellent comic timing, with this perfect parody.

With a second series in the works, things can only get better!

10/10, *****/*****, fabuloso!

------------------------------------------------------ Review by Sam Baron.

Wonderful show - both series.

Series one is based on Schools programmes of the seventies while Series two does Tomorrows world.

Series 2 wins for me as it has Olivia Colman looking stunning.

Look out as well for The Peter Serafinawitz Show - all should be more well known.

Although Series 2 was a large let down, series one contains all you need, whether it is the largest number so far, intelligent calcium's death, the Jean Grey making whisky, igloo building ants, brain flakes and the fact that Imhotep is invisible you can't go wrong with stupid science. To watch this series is to listen to the nineteen forbidden notes with the sound up, only your ears will bleed with stupidity and comedy. If you thought you knew all about water you were wrong, I mean what is water? We ask the same about birds, what are birds? The only thing that we can learn easily is that if you are to do an experiment with iron, in which a pound of it weighs about tonne, than you need to use AC/DC as it is heavy metal.

For those of you that haven't ever seen any British schools' TV, especially that of the golden 1970's-1980's period, Look Around You is a send-up of some educational programmes that were, and still are, shown to school children in the UK in order to augment their classroom experience. In the 1970s-80s, having the treat of a TV show to break up the day was a looked-forward to experience for most, as it meant you didn't have to actually do any work whilst the programme was on, not to mention it was about the maximum interactivity availbale at that time (no PCs in the classroom until about 1983!) others seem to think it's an OU send-up actually it's probabaly closer to a 1970's/early 80's school's programme called "Experiment", dangerously close in fact. I think the guy who narrates the series may even be the same one that narrated the proper educational programme.

Look Around You is superb, keenly observed from its source material and surreal in execution. Well worth a watch, especially in the 25-40 age group who witnessed it all for real, but others may well enjoy the silliness of it all as well.