Spaced

Do you love good sitcoms that don’t involve the words: “Hello darling, I’m home.”

Or to put it another way, do the likes of As Time Goes By and Office Space make you feel tired and listless by their predictability?

What you want is something that reflects your love of cult TV and cinema. Good comedy penned by a team of writers that treat you with the respect you deserve without ramming the point home.

Fear not dear reader. You are not alone.

The main problem is: where to find it.

Since Red Dwarf drifted off into infinity, good sci-fi comedies are thinner on the ground than Captain Picard’s hair.
Think of The Strangerers, last year’s woeful offering from Sky if you want further proof.

For a generation weaned on Star Wars and Star Trek, many writers have either been too consumed with their own in jokes, or have treated the much maligned genre which has left millions turning off in their droves.

Luckily in 1999 there came a new hope which pushed back the final frontier of sitcoms.

After a welcome re-run of series one, Spaced is resurrected for the 21st century and the gags are sharper than Luke Skywalker’s lightsabre.

If you like The Matrix, Pulp Fiction, Mission Impossible II and hated The Phantom Menace, then Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson have written a show just for you.

The series follows the continuing voyages of confused twenty-somethings, Daisy and Tim as they attempt to navigate life at a time when they should be getting serious but somehow are not.

Together with their ragbag assortment of co-conspirators — tortured artist Brian (Mark Heap), would-be soldier Mike (Nick Frost), fashion fascist Twist (Katy Carmichael), rock casualty landlady Marsha (Julia Deakin) and Colin the dog — they tackle the big questions the 21st century poses: who are they, what do they mean to each other and who should switch on the kettle?

In episode one, Daisy is back from her trek round Asia and finds little has changed. That shopping trolley is still outside her house and the lads are still watching the same skateboarding video.

Imagine their delight when she unveils her latest toy: a video camera with hours of footage of her travels.

Instant cure for insomnia?

I should say so.

Many of the gags in Spaced may not be new but as Frank Carson would say: It’s the way they tell them.

A team of editors have been working round the clock to give the show a fresh and vibrant feel, from making the film stutter like a malfunctioning tape stuck in your VCR to wobbling the camera about a bit.

However they do it, one of the reasons Spaced works is the chemistry between its lead players.

Simon Pegg has proved himself to be one of the hottest British comedy talents of the last few years with Hippies and Big Train both doing little harm for his reputation.

Even the woeful movie Guest House Paradiso didn’t stop his star from rising.

He recently worked on the forthcoming Steven Spielberg World War Two drama Band of Brothers with David Schwimmer and in the film Morality Play, alongside Willem Dafoe.

Jessica Stevenson won the 1999 British Comedy Award for Best Female Newcomer for her work both in Spaced and as neighbour Cheryl in The Royle Family.

She recently worked on the film Born Romantic and is about to appear in the ITV comedy drama Bob and Rose.

The new series also features cameo appearances from John Simm (The Lakes), The Sixth Sense's Olivia Williams, Mark Gatiss and Reece Shearsmith of The League of Gentleman, Bill Bailey and Ricky Gervais.

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© 2001 Roger Crow

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