The funny side of London 2012
Sometimes life imitates comedy. Earlier this week I was at a showing of the new ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ sitcom "Twenty Twelve" - the first episode of which is about the unveiling of a London 2012 icon.
Then last night I was at St Pancras Station where London's first giant Olympic rings were being unveiled by Boris Johnson and Seb Coe.
One of the gags in the sitcom is about the launch of 2012's countdown clock; and, sure enough, we can expect the real countdown clock to make an appearance soon.
"Twenty Twelve" the show launches on ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Four on 14 March, and its genesis is in the normal business of ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Comedy.
It was conceived, written and delivered independently of the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ 2012 project team - and our role has simply been to liaise on some of the logistics.
One of the things we were able to help on, for instance, was the appearance in episode two of the real Seb Coe who performs a cameo role with some aplomb.
London 2012 Chair Seb Coe make a cameo appearance in the show. Picture: ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳
You can watch a short piece about how the show was made on the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ London site, including an interview with Lord Coe.
But the key point about any comedy, of course, is whether it's funny - and here I have to proceed with a degree of caution.
I think it is. In fact, I love the show - as do almost all the people who've had sneak previews, including some of our friends from Locog who are on the receiving end of the satire.
The only qualification, of course, is that we do our jobs in a London 2012 world in which the characters seem eerily familiar and there are situations we've experienced.
The challenge is whether that plays as strongly to audiences way beyond this website for whom London 2012 is only just creeping onto their agenda.
I hope and believe it will. Partly that's because it's beautifully played by the cast.
Hugh Bonneville is exceptional as the harrassed leader of Olympic deliverance, but there isn't a weak link in the performances; and you can get a flavour of them in the trailer here.
It's also because it's quite a warm show - written by John Morton who did "People Like Us" - and it's not as much of a shark tank as "The Thick Of It", brilliant though that is.
I haven't yet seen the whole series, but I want to know whether the lovelorn PA ever finds happiness and how the compulsive pizza-eater solves London's traffic problems.
The characters work even if you've zero interest in the 2012 scenarios.
We'll know how many people share that view as the six parts play out each week; and this will be just one of a range of Olympic-related shows that will appear on the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ between now and the Games.
But I'm pleased Comedy is off the blocks early because it would be a shame if there weren't some humour to be had from the Olympics as well as the sport and the ceremonial.
Locog rightly took the view when they agreed Seb Coe's appearance that it's a good thing if we can be seen to laugh at ourselves; and though most of what they and we do has a serious purpose, a joke or two should make the next 18 months even better.
I'm Roger Mosey, the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳'s director of London 2012. That means I'm overseeing all the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳'s 2012 preparations including not just sport but the Cultural Olympiad, our Olympic news and information services and everything that will bring the story of the London Games to audiences at home and abroad. I want to share here what we're planning - and debate some of the big issues. You can also follow me on .
Comment number 1.
At 4th Mar 2011, expat-spur wrote:Just watched the trailer. While I was hoping for it to be funny, unfortunately this was not something I could hook into or relate to. Maybe it was too many short snippets and no story links, or maybe as time gets on and we get closer to the reality of the games, it may kick in, but maybe it is a few months too early.
Now a mockumentary about the royal wedding being scheduled with beach volleyball rehearsals in Horseguards Parade as the after wedding entertainment, with [Olympic] West Ham United being sued by Leyton Olympiads for the right to use the name ..... that might ring true enough. Or maybe that is in the script already so I will watch and wait...
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Comment number 2.
At 4th Mar 2011, FoxesofNuneaton wrote:Looks good, cant wait to see it, hopefully it wont be praised too much to come crashing down. Any chance we can have one focused on the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Olympic Team with presenters having to be two places or a camera failing there or the rain coming down causing no-ends of Problems.
But Twenty Twelve looks good, cant wait to see it and hopefully, the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ can do one that mocks your Olympic Team.
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Comment number 3.
At 5th Mar 2011, Genirobin wrote:This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.
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Comment number 4.
At 5th Mar 2011, Roger Mosey - ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Director, London 2012 wrote:Expat-spur in #1: I sometimes think the worst programmes make the best trails - and vice versa. So I hope you'll give it a try anyway.
Foxes in #2: good to hear from you again. People from Comedy come to some of our meetings so I've no doubt they've picked up the odd idea about the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Olympic team. You may remember it rained into our studio in Beijing and Hazel Irvine did one presentation shift alongside a bucket collecting the water.
Genirobin in #3: the show has devised its own logo for 2012. Jokes about the real one are left for you...
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Comment number 5.
At 11th Mar 2011, Brekkie wrote:Will give it a shot.
Back to the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ and Sport, and I'll apologise in advance Roger as I guess this probably isn't your call any more, but despite live coverage on 5 Live Sport Extra and limited highlights on the red button (very limited on Freeview - indeed I caught it one night by accident!) it appears the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ can't find a slot to round up the British Swimming Championships a year out from the Olympics at a time when British Swimming has some fairly big names around and genuine Olympic Champion prospects - plus genuine British battles in many events too.
So often now the 1pm Saturday slot is an hour of filler (though this week it's Olympic Dreams) - it would be perfect for an hour of highlights (next Saturday instead of Question of Sport/Outtake TV perhaps!). Instead we'll probably get footage in a few months time through the eyes of just one swimmer via Olympic Dreams.
And though I didn't expect it on the main networks, was pleasantly surprised to find live coverage of the Short Track Speed Skating World Champs from Sheffield on the red button when I got in this evening, followed by frustration that it's the first and last coverage we get on Freeview this weekend.
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Comment number 6.
At 12th Mar 2011, Roger Mosey - ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Director, London 2012 wrote:Some pleasing previews of "Twenty Twelve" in the Saturday papers. The Times says "Like a latter-day version of Dad's Army, it's all gloriously recognisable" and the Daily Telegraph writes "deliciously skewering everyone... (it) appears both painful and probable."
Meanwhile, back in the real world with Brekkie. I know ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Sport are planning quite a lot of swimming coverage including the World Championships - and we have some aquatics ideas in mind in the run-up to London 2012 too. But it's obviously important we cover a wide range of Olympic sports - hence British Olympic Dreams on ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ One at 1pm today and a well-deserved re-run for Matt Pinsent's documentary about the Iraqi rowers.
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Comment number 7.
At 12th Mar 2011, Brekkie wrote:Unfortunately British Olympic Dreams today feels more like a Newsround special than a ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Sport special.
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Comment number 8.
At 15th Mar 2011, Southerntracks wrote:It is certainly not funny that anyone who wants a ticket is being forced to get a Visa card in order to do so - and that the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ is endorsing this scandalous form of blackmail. Even when the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ news is informing the public that that is what they have to do it means that they have to give the company constant plugs. Of course I understand that sponsorship helps pay for the event but in a time when the country is mired in deep debt it seems like a bad pythonesque dream to force us to apply for new debit cards just to watch the event that we have already paid for through our taxes and TV license.
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Comment number 9.
At 15th Mar 2011, Brekkie wrote:I agree, and I don't get how they get around the usual competition rules to allow that. The ticketing system is somewhat flawed in that it encourages you to apply for more than you want and spend more than you can afford, with difficulties ahead in returning and selling unwanted tickets. To me it would make sense to have a confirmation period after tickets are allocated where people are informed of what tickets they've got and given 30 days to confirm they wish to purchase them or to return them, after which unsold tickets go into a second ballot.
Back to Twenty Twelve - unfortunately I'd given up on it by 10:12. To be honest I'm probably too much of an Olympics fan to give it a chance.
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Comment number 10.
At 16th Mar 2011, Roger Mosey - ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Director, London 2012 wrote:Southerntracks in #8: we can't avoid simple factual descriptions of how you can buy tickets online, but Seb Coe's interview on Breakfast made clear there are other ways of purchasing - as confirmed on London 2012's website:
"London 2012 also welcomes personalised cheques and postal orders with paper applications only. Paper application forms can be found in the Official Ticketing Guide which can be collected from your local Lloyds TSB branch (or Bank of Scotland in Scotland only) and your local library in Northern Ireland."
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Comment number 11.
At 16th Mar 2011, londonoptemistic wrote:Roger - thank you for that information, but that merely underlines the failings of ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ News all day yesterday. I had Radio5Live on for much of the day and, especially on Breakfast, the broadcasters were regularly mentioning the Visa issue and listeners adverse reaction but at no time did I hear them tell us about the other options. The same goes for James Pierce on the TV news bulletins - he also mentioned that an issue was that people had to have Visa cards to purchase tickets but did not mention the others. I am sure that was an editorial line as a news editor would not have wished to list all the rest, but it did mean that the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳, and other broadcasters, failed the audience in a big way whilst giving a disproportionate level of publicity to one of the sponsors and leaving the viewers and listeners firmly under the impression that that Visa is the ONLY option.If you look at the 2012 ticket page you will see that they only advise you that you can buy tickets online with Visa. The Main About Tickets page does not offer other options unless you look in the Ticket Sales Timelines section, which is not exactly an obvious place. It is very clear that they want to steer everyone to Visa but have some kind of legal obligation to offer an alternative route - so it has been effectively hidden, and the ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ have neatly gone along with it all. I wont mention it again and it will make no difference anyway but it made me angry enough to actually register on this site and make my first posting.
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Comment number 12.
At 17th Mar 2011, David Kelly wrote:This comment was removed because the moderators found it broke the house rules. Explain.
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