James Cary

So who knew it was the Last Supper? Erm...

@MiriamJones @waterandlight

@waterandlight Gareth Davies-Jones, Miriam Jones & Rob Halligan - Heading West @ Holy Trinity Seer Green & Jordans, Nov 22, 8:00PM garethdavies-jones.com/event/5739551/…

@nickmohammed Yup. It relates to the line between/connecting art and entertainment. Art is, broadly, about authenticity/voice. Entertainment is about the audience. Bang the drum of authenticity too hard & the entertainment is diminished. thesitutationroom.substack.com/p/the-mainstre…

Apologies, I don’t often bang my drum about this, but sod it, it’s a Thursday! Here’s my two penn’orth on the need for more nuance in tackling representation in telly, especially when it comes to comedy 🥰

Smart. Writing the scenes you’re excited by is a good idea. If you’re not excited about writing a scene, there might be a problem with it. And it might not even be necessary.

The entire ecosystem for producing mainstream sitcoms has changed, which is why they are now an endangered species… thesitutationroom.substack.com/p/the-lesser-s…

@intrepidia I agree. And it’s always hard to be a freelance writer and be told ‘it’s grim out there’ by someone on a salary.

@sitcomgeek It’s grim out there 😔

You might be wondering where all the sitcoms have gone. The whole TV ecosystem has changed, so we can’t be surprised if some species become rare.

@BillyTweddell What is Rewind TV?! Sounds like something I’d like!

@sitcomgeek Watching it for the first time on Rewind TV just now.

Who made The Cuckoo Waltz which ran for 4 series?

@alanbritton Not rhetorical! Or a trick!

Who made Fresh Fields? (4 Series from ’84-86) #ItsOnlySonia

Who made A Fine Romance? (4 Series from 1981-84)

Anyway, I’ve written all about it over on my blog. I’m sure you’ll find it.

With international markets and streaming, murder mysteries become a MUCH more interesting prospect.

@Floatinginwaves @AlexWattsEsq Yes, all the hits from the 70s, 80s & 90s emerged from an economy of sitcoms, some of which were brilliant, some of which didn’t work - but paved the way for other shows, or gave people their break. The Comedy Connections documentary series was brilliant for showing this.

@AlexWattsEsq This is sort of what I meant. Unless you allow for the possibility that shows might fail you’re not going to be able to make as many new and interesting shows.

From a perspective far outside the industry, by the bins, it doesn't half feel like TV has strangled sitcom and sketch to death with a dearth of budget and commissions and is now holding up its hands asking where all the sitcoms and sketches went

Is there a crisis in mainstream comedy? Yes and no. I think the main problem is that we’ve forgotten the art/entertainment balance. May I explain? thesitutationroom.substack.com/p/the-mainstre…

Basically, there’s Miranda. And there’s Fleabag. I explain more here: thesitutationroom.substack.com/p/the-mainstre… Why not read the whole thing?

Their predecessors learned their craft through music hall, variety and entertaining the troops. Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe, Perry and Croft learned their craft on stages close to the front line, trying to bring joy to tired, working-class men.

Interesting piece in @Broadcastnow about the crisis in mainstream comedy. If I’d been part of the conversation, I’d would have said: We’ve lost the balance between ‘art’ and  ‘entertainment’. Art is about the artist. Entertainment is about the audience.