Helen Lewis

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How healthy is British satire?

A discussion with John Oliver of The Daily Show about UK and US humour.

By Helen Lewis Published 21 July 2011 14:29

I was on BBC Radio 4's Today programme this morning to talk about satire with John Oliver of The Daily Show (the link is here -- it's about 2 hours 38 minutes in).

We hopped around a few issues but one of the most interesting was whether big broadcasters such as the BBC and Channel 4 are too hemmed in by corporate and public pressure to do satire -- as opposed to topical comedy in the vein of Have I Got News For You or Mock The Week. (My feeling is that the difference between them is that satire is a call to action, highlighting a wrong to be righted. There's a difference between a joke that says, in effect, "Isn't Eric Pickles fat?" and one that says "This person is a hypocrite," or "Our political system is broken.")

Although their importance in the grand scheme of things can be overstated -- their audience is small, if influential -- the US has a couple of beacons of satirical telly that I really envy -- The Daily Show and The Colbert Report -- and, when it's on form, South Park.

In a bit of the discussion that didn't make it to air, Oliver talked about the fight that the Daily Show anchor Jon Stewart has faced for editorial independence, which dented my belief that he and Stephen Colbert were given fairly free rein by their channel, Comedy Central, and its parent company Viacom.

That makes the boldness of their shows all the more commendable. Colbert has recently called out Viacom for its efforts to stop him exposing the iniquities of American political campaign finance by forming his own "Super PAC", the opaque funding vehicle beloved of Sarah Palin et al. (More on that story here.)

There aren't any TV shows doing something similar in Britain at the moment, as far as I know -- although 10 O'Clock Live did gesture towards the idea. Of course, Private Eye does a fantastic job of exposing "unsexy" corporate malpractice. The interesting thing about the Eye, though, is that the campaigning bit -- the "In the Back" section -- is separate from the news and skits, rather than rolling them together in the way that, say, Colbert's "The Word" section on his show does.

John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show is on tonight (21 July) at 11.05pm on Channel 4.

Tags: comedy

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22 comments

Mon, 2011-07-25 16:12 — la potenza della speranza (not verified)

@Mr Divine

The bubble boy episode is classic Costanza! Yeah Putty's a great character. I love the episode where Jerry needs to get he and Elaine back together so he doesn't screw him on the price of a Saab. It's just too funny!

Tue, 2011-07-26 17:37 — fdfdfd

@Tom

Stephen Colbert doesn't want to be in politics - he created a Super PAC to raise awareness of what they are (secretive vehicles for large donations) and how that might be distorting the US electoral system.

Fri, 2011-07-22 10:04 — swatantra

Its not at all great at the moment because we've got a bunch of comedians pretending to be satirists.

Sat, 2011-07-23 10:47 — andyg (not verified)

Get John Sullivan back on the telly. He knows how to write about those on the sharper end of everyday life with the wit that accompanies it.

Fri, 2011-07-22 10:13 — Mr. Divine (not verified)

It's fantastic at the moment because we've got a satirist not pretending to be a comedian.

Fri, 2011-07-22 11:13 — la potenza della speranza (not verified)

@Mr Divine.

I concur 100%! Seinfeld is the funniest "sitcom" ever. The characters have no morals, there is not one single serious storyline in 9 seasons, continuity, running jokes and the greatest finale ever by a country mile it's just fabulous. I've seen the whole thing about 8 times.

Fri, 2011-07-22 11:49 — Mr. Divine (not verified)

Yea it's probably the only sitcom I can watch more than once and still laugh. I love the way things come back and bite people especially when they think they've initially 'fooled' someone. It's like weird karma at times. And it's really silly. Remember that scene when George visits the bubble boy. "No it says Moops, it's not Moors'.

I find George the funniest and I'm in love with Elaine ... her eyes and mouth are just so devilishly sexy. What about the time she was breaking up with Putty and she had to give Jerry all that money!

The interplay and story lines are amazing.

Tue, 2011-07-26 19:45 — earlydawn

"I find it really hard to take someone like Colbert or Stewart [...] seriously"
Um, yeah? And your point is? They are comics, not serious commentators. The fact that the rest of the US media is in such a state that the points they make are not being made anywhere else is the worrying bit. At least here we do have Newsnight and C4 News which often find an interesting line to take on otherwise predictable stories.

Thu, 2011-07-28 09:02 — kingfelix

As long as there are posh Cambridge graduates, there will be UK satire, it's a law of nature. It will never particularly be funny, but that's ok, because it's mostly on Radio Four and whether people are tuning in or not doesn't matter, really.

Thu, 2011-07-21 18:07 — Paul McCrystal (not verified)

Judging by the cartoon in today's Times, it's in very ill health.

Thu, 2011-07-21 18:12 — amandacraig

I don't know about anyone else but I really miss Spitting Image. There's nothing like it on TV now.
As one of the few satirical novelists who has had a novel cancelled due to a libel threat in the past, thanks to the present Literary Editor of the Evening Standard, you can probably work out just how bold and brave the 4th Estate is.

Thu, 2011-07-21 18:52 — PysFeesh (not verified)

Well. Us Brits don't need to cueing of fake laughter to indicate a joke has taken place.

British all the way baby.

Tue, 2011-07-26 07:12 — Colin Sloss (not verified)

I saw some Seinfeld and found it really funny. I thought Mr Divine was good too.

Thu, 2011-07-21 19:41 — Willard van Omnomnom Quine (not verified)

There's always 2SUNS magazine.

Thu, 2011-07-21 20:33 — sasasaaa

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Mon, 2011-07-25 00:29 — Tom (not verified)

She missed a few key points in this story.

First, if an actual activist (Chris Hedges, Daniel Ellsberg and others) tries to protest in front of the White House, it's censored by the MSM. They know it's there. But saving your corporate job is far more important than actually doing it. However, if Colbert, Stewart or some other comedian is there, instantly thousands who couldn't be bothered to protest suddenly have an opening in their incredibly hectic schedules. Are they there because they care about the issue? Or, do they just want to hang with a celeb?

Why does Colbert have to have his own PAC (Political Action Committee)? If he really wants to be in politics that badly, why not quit the TV gig and get on with it? By not quitting TV, he's actually making the problem he says he's trying to solve worse than it is.

I find it really hard to take someone like Colbert or Stewart (who both had Tony Blair on, who many say is a war criminal)seriously.

Thu, 2011-07-21 23:18 — Mr. Divine (not verified)

I reckon Seinfeld is the best comedy program ever.

Sun, 2011-07-24 03:10 — Phil Daniels (not verified)

Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert present truly magnificent programmes, which I think you can watch on the Comedy Central website. (Another satirist Bill Maher has good days and occasional ones.)
If you'd like to see Colbert at his finest, I know of nothing better than his performance at thew White House Correspondents' Dinner in 2006. His sharp tongue has something for everyone.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSE_saVX_2A