Saturday, August 28, 2010
Sir John Betjeman: A Rebuttal by David Brent
Actually, that's Ricky Gervais as David Brent, from BBC2's smash hit sitcom The Office, offering a typically naff rebuttal to Sir John Betjeman's immortal poem Slough. Oddly enough, The Office holds a couple of unique distinctions here at the Pop Culture Institute; not only is it one of the few Britcoms I can't abide, it's also one of the rare shows whose American version I like better. The main reason for this is that I've worked for people like David Brent, and so each episode is like a queasy trip back in time for me, to a place where my work life was dominated by a ghastly twat.
To be fair, Slough only came 42 out of 50 in the book Crap Towns, meaning places like Oxford, Brighton, and even London rated worse.
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Sorry, Master PCI, but we're of different minds when it comes to The *original* Office. I re-watch it again and again and still can't get enough. Mind you, my boss of the past decade is the polar opposite of David Brent.
ReplyDeleteYou're lucky. I've had a David Brent for a boss on a couple of occasions, and watching the show made me physically queasy.
ReplyDeleteIt's been a couple of years, and I may have been in a weird head space when I watched it. Maybe I'll give it another try.