Giving opinions for several years and showing like a fine vintage
Giving opinions for several years and showing like a fine vintage
Member since:11.07.2000
Reviews:625
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Pure joy and elation come close to describing what I felt when I heard that Vic Reeve's Big Night Out was coming to DVD. After sprinkling some golden grahams on a shrimp's eye that night I instantly put it on my Christmas list. And thanks to bearded one I was in possession on a garish orange coloured dvd on that holy day.
Vic Reeves Big Night Out started life in a room above a pub in London. Slowly it grew a fan base as people turned up to witness the mayhem of a show unlike any other. After moving to a bigger venue, the show got a lot of recognition and subsequently got snapped up by Channel 4.
The show captured the zeitgeist of student culture at the time because it was different from anything else. To this day it remains original, very funny and incredibly bizarre.
The concept of the show had Vic Reeves presenting a variety show. He would sit behind a desk bedecked with all manner of things. Coming in and out would be various characters usually played by Bob Mortimer and Vic. Assisting them was the silent bald headed scientist known as Les, a man who loved the spirit level but had a fear of chives.
The show had some great recurring characters and none better than The Man With The Stick. Every week the audience would cry "what's on the end of the stick Vic?" as the character marched around the stage with a large stick with something on the end of it. But that was only the beginning for the character. Everyone looked forward to his conversations with Vic and his tales of his mate Terry. Man With The Stick was incredibly naive and never realized that Terry was being a complete shit to him.
Another highlight of the show was Novelty Island. A talent show constantly upstaged by Lister, an angry man who wore a raincoat and Wellingtons. Acts included Judith Grant who would display such talents as electrocuting a shrew and introducing a singing mound.
The thing that made me laugh was the fact that the show was incredibly stupid and you would often wonder who on earth would come up with the material. After all, where else would you see Morrisey the consumer monkey.?
Big Night Out was a show that wasn't for everyone. Certainly there were a lot of people who just didn't get it. But there were a lot who did and still love it after all these years.
-The DVD-
This is a two-disc set featuring both seasons of the show. The show itself was first broadcast back in 1990, fifteen years afterwards it still looks pretty good on DVD. Each episode is presented in full frame and generally the transfer is as good as you'd expect. There's a little softness in some of the image but then the show was never a large budget production.
The stereo sound is perfectly adequate for the show and doesn't suffer from the hiss you've probably experienced with your worn out VHS copy.
-Extras-
There is only one extra on the release. It's a 30-minute documentary on the show and it's pretty good. Little Britain's Matt Lucas interviews Vic and Bob on how the show got to television and how some of the characters came to be. I liked the fact that this doc went back to the origins of the show in a small pub room and how it evolved from there. Participation also comes from the likes of Paul Whitehouse, Charlie Higson and Jools Holland.
It's an extra that serves a purpose and answers a lot of questions for the fans. Perhaps I'm greedy and would have liked more but what you get is good stuff.
-Finally-
This DVD is now available for well under a tenner online and that's a complete bargain in my opinion.
Don't 'let it lie' on the shelf.
For more Night Out info this is probably the best site out there.
http://www.vicandbob.net/
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![The Original Vic Reeves Big Night Out [DVD] [1990]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78483705.jpg "The Original Vic Reeves Big Night Out [DVD] [1990]")
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