May242006
Britcom Joking Apart Coming to DVD Thanks to Fan
Filed Under Sitcom
From across the pond comes news of the early 90s britcom “Joking Apart” coming to DVD thanks to a fan’s efforts (and money). Created by Steven Moffat, prior to his success with Coupling, the show darkly plays with the divorce of a stand-up comedian and his wife (with one of the issues being, according to a fan website, that his constant attempts at humor have become grating).
Craig Robins, the fan who put up the money for the DVD rights, is apparently a TV editor himself, so the whole package will still be well-presented. Not that a fan outisde of the profession couldn’t put together something equally as well, considering the tools that are available now.
As I’ve never seen Joking Apart, I can’t attest to its quality. But any premise which sounds less than wacky sounds intriguing enough for me to give a go. My theory: if it’s not obvious where the humor is going to come from, the surprise of the jokes will land that much harder. I’ll definitely scour the web to see if I can find a clip or two (or episode) to test it.
I imagined that this would happen eventually, but always expected it would be for a cult sci-fi show first before a comedy. Inspired by this, perhaps a well-to-do fan might want to buy up the rights for making DVDs of The State, The Dana Carvey Show or perhaps seasons 2 and 3 of the Upright Citizens Brigade. Here’s hoping.
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and the South Park collection 
“Joking Apart! is an excellent sitcom. Not as contrived as some of Coupling can be, but with Stephen Moffats unique story sense. Sometimes the situations in the plot are almost as funny and credibel as some of the best Fawlty Towers.
I’ll be sure to buy a copy.
Peter