When he finds out that a man has claimed an abandoned platform built in former international waters and called it Sealand, an independent country, Danny Wallace is inspired. He decides to get shot of the UK and set up his own country where he is the king. Despite initial problems finding a piece of the earth not already claimed, Danny eventually settles into his own home and sets up borders. As he tries to grow his land he deals with other politicians, policy setters and colourful characters around the world.
The concept is a good one and it sets up the series to be a funny and insightful look at the idea of nations and the various aspects that they have to decide upon (immigration, crime etc). By thinking about these things in regards his own country, Wallace could have made this a very interesting programme with plenty to say about the country we live in. However it never manages to push the boat out this far and instead is all rather nice and fluffy, producing an amusing product but almost always missing the potential it had to be interesting and useful. The quick pace and very gentle comic air don't help it because it does just feel like it is full of air and nice-thoughts rather than being full of debate, commentary or thought.
Wallace matches this approach perfectly though, because he is such a woolly guy that one cannot fail to like him. The influence of Dave Gorman's shows are very clear on both the material and on his own style but, as per my criticisms above, this isn't always a good thing. He carries the show well enough but his delivery is one of the reasons that it doesn't stick in the mind or turn out to have any real substance to it. The "experts" and interviews are rarely given much time to make an impression and most often they are used to drive the show forward rather than provide anything interesting or useful; examples are evident from the very start when the sole resident of Sealand is barely allowed to speak I wanted to know more about him and Wallace just wasted it.
Overall then, this is a nicely comic little show but one that lacks any real substance or consequence. The potential was there to make points, generate debate and make it a real talking point between viewers but instead it is all a bit fluffy and focuses on being warm and amusing instead of cutting and funny. Hard to dislike but certainly not a series that will stick in the memory for very long after you finish watching it.
