Paul Merton
The Fringe, Fame and Me is the story of how a small Scottish arts festival that began 75 years ago this year became a national institution – a crucible where new stars are forged, careers made, and sometimes, dreams dashed. Told by the stars who first found fame at the Edinburgh Fringe, this is the inside story of what it takes to make a name here, from those who enjoyed overnight success to those who slogged for years to make it. Through their triumphs, favourite jokes, and sometimes painful failures, we’ll discover a hidden history of British comedy – revealing how the gags we find funny and the comedians we love reflect our changing culture.
More than 150 of Britain’s railway stations are request stops. You have to put out your arm to get the train to stop at the platform. In this series, Paul Merton will travel around the country by train, only getting off at request stops. He’ll explore the history of the stations, and meet the people who live and work around them to learn more about at these unusual and often-overlooked stations.
The making of The Beatles' controversial 1967 film, featuring previously unseen archive footage.
Just a Minute is a BBC Radio 4 radio comedy and television panel game chaired by Nicholas Parsons. Its first transmission on Radio 4 was on 22 December 1967, three months after the station's launch. The Radio 4 programme won a Gold Sony Radio Academy Award in 2003. The object of the game is for panellists to talk for sixty seconds on a given subject, "without repetition, hesitation or deviation". The comedy comes from attempts to keep within these rules and the banter among the participants. In 2011 comedy writer David Quantick ascribed Just a Minute's success to its "insanely basic" format, stating, "It's so blank that it can be filled by people as diverse as Paul Merton and Graham Norton, who don't have to adapt their style of humour to the show at all."
Paul Merton's Birth of Hollywood is a 2011 BBC documentary series written, directed and presented by Paul Merton. The three-part series traces the rise of the American film-making industry in Hollywood through from the early years of film-making to the foundation of the major motion-picture studios and the new class of the film star.
Paul Merton in Europe is a six-part television series airing on Channel 5 from 11 January 2010 onwards. The series is a follow-up to Paul Merton in India. It follows presenter Paul Merton as he travels around several countries in Europe including Germany, Ireland, Italy, France and Spain. The series was released on DVD on 8 March 2010.
Paul Merton goes in search of the origins of screen comedy in the forgotten world of silent cinema - not in Hollywood, but closer to home in pre-1914 Britain and France. Revealing the unknown stars and lost masterpieces, he brings to life the pioneering techniques and optical inventiveness of the virtuosos who mastered a new art form. With a playful eye and comic sense of timing, Merton combines the role of presenter and director to recreate the weird and wonderful world that is early European cinema in a series of cinematic experiments of his own.
Directed and animated by Run Wrake, a one minute illustration of Paul Merton's words on Sudoku commissioned by the BBC for the Radio 4 website.
Paul Merton looks at the British films of Alfred Hitchcock, the silent films and the early sound films.
A retrospective of Colin Baker's turbulent three-years as the Sixth Doctor in Doctor Who (1963), covering his casting, the 1985 hiatus, and his sacking on the orders of BBC One controller Michael Grade.
Paul Merton in India is a television show broadcast on Channel 5 in the United Kingdom and Fox History & Entertainment in India. The first episode was aired on 8 October 2008. It follows comedian Paul Merton as he travels around India. The series was commissioned after the success of the previous series Paul Merton in China. Merton travelled around various places in India, sampling various offbeat and out of the normal aspects of India. It was broadcast on Fox History & Entertainment in India. AXS TV broadcasts the program for American TV viewers.
Paul Merton profiles some of the great stars of silent comedy, examining their lives and works, and uncovering seldom-seen material
Paul Merton in China was a four-part television series broadcast on Five commencing from 21 May 2007. It follows the journey of Paul Merton, comedian and writer, and his interpreter Emma, as they voyage across the country, exploring Chinese culture, expansion and change from Mao Zedong's reign. The series was a hit for Five and Merton confirmed on Michael Parkinson's show that a second series entitled Paul Merton in India had been commissioned. The theme music from Channel Five's advertisement is Michel Legrand's Di Gue Ding Ding, which was also used as the theme music to Heston Blumenthal's series In Search of Perfection aired concurrently on BBC Two. All four episodes were released on DVD in late October 2008.
Based on the week’s news and fronted by guest hosts, this extended version of the satirical news quiz features more of the stuff that wouldn't fit into the regular programme.
Compilation of classic moments and unseen outtakes from the first 23 series (1990-2002) of the popular BBC comedy show.
An adaptation of the folktale about a lonely boy, his beloved cat, and the hard decisions that come with their adventures.
A televised pantomime of Cinderella featuring various celebrities.
A televised pantomime of Aladdin with characters played by well-known celebrities.
Steve is married and has a dog who seems to not be enjoying life. Steve is unaware of his wife's boredom with their monotonous life. Steve and his wife get a little fun when they decide to go to the fair. Whilst he is having fun, his wife and dog turn against him.
A televised pantomime of Jack and the Beanstalk featuring various celebrities.
The gang journey to the North Pole, and drill a hole to find out "What's at the center of the Earth?"
From their 1991 stageplay An Evening with Gary Lineker was adapted for television in 1994 by Arthur Smith and Chris England. The action takes place against the backdrop of the 1990 Football World Cup semi-final, between England and West Germany, which is taking place in Italy while Monica and Bill are on holiday in Ibiza. Bill desperately wants to watch the match; Monica wants to talk about their relationship.
Richard Briers plays Godfrey Spry, who, having been hit on the head in a freak accident, ends up with an attention span of just 30 seconds. As a result he begins to obsess over TV commercials and begins to take advertising claims literally, causing erratic twists in his behaviour and complicating the lives of all those around him.
Paul Merton: The Series is a British sketch show that aired on Channel 4 from 1991 to 1993. The main star was Paul Merton, who co-wrote it along with John Irwin. It is not currently available on DVD but every episode is available for viewing free via Channel 4 service 4od and YouTube in the UK. It can also be purchased in the UK via iTunes.
Hilarious, totally-irreverent, near-slanderous political quiz show, based mainly on news stories from the last week or so, that leaves no party, personality or action unscathed in pursuit of laughs.
Over 2½ hours of the award-winning topical news quiz, featuring previously unseen footage. Team captains Ian Hislop and Paul Merton are joined by a different guest presenter each week.
More than 160 minutes of the best moments from the top TV comedy news quiz, with a different guest presenter in the chair each week. Includes the uproarious episode hosted by Boris Johnson together with specially extended versions of the shows presented by Martin Clunes, William Hague, and Bruce Forsyth.
