The Inbetweeners A-Z: The Totally Unofficial Guide to the Hit TV Series
324
The Inbetweeners A-Z: The Totally Unofficial Guide to the Hit TV Series
324Paperback
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Overview
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781843583554 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Bonnier Books UK |
| Publication date: | 08/01/2011 |
| Pages: | 324 |
| Product dimensions: | 5.00(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.90(d) |
Read an Excerpt
The Inbetweeners A-Z
By Matthew Richardson, Mike Dodgson
John Blake Publishing Ltd
Copyright © 2011 Matthew Richardson and Mike DodgsonAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-84358-355-4
CHAPTER 1
a is for ...
Alan Cooper
Alan is the frisky father of Inbetweener Simon. He appears in ten episodes throughout the three series. There's nothing the 40ish-year-old loves more than embarrassing his sexually frustrated son. When Si and his mates actually manage to get invited to a party (or at least to sneak into one), Alan is always on hand to give them a lift home.
On the outside, Alan seems like every other run-of-the-mill father but beneath his responsible exterior lurks the libido of a sexually frustrated teenager and there's nothing he loves more than revealing saucy details about his and Mrs Cooper's goings-on to their son. Although Simon hates his dad's stories, the other Inbetweeners love them – and we do too!
FUNNIEST SCENE
Alan Cooper's funniest scene is when he hands over the keys to Simon's Fiat Cinquecento Hawaii edition, as congratulations for passing his driving test. Simon is appalled at how shit the car is, but Alan plays it cool, just happy that it's too rubbish for his son to be able to speed in.
LOVES
White suits with grass stains
Talking to Simon about his sexual encounters
HATES
Simon's bad language
Buying his son a car ... only for it to be ruined on the first day!
HOBBIES
When Alan's not driving Simon and his mates around, he can usually be found canoodling with his wife Pamela.
Alistair Scott
Alistair appears in the first episode of Series Three; he is a student at Rudge Park Comprehensive, who puts on a fashion show to raise money and awareness for his kidney-failure condition, which has left him wheelchair-bound. Most of Rudge Park's pupils have rallied round to support this more-than-worthy cause, although Alistair is disliked by the four Inbetweeners due to his short temper and attitude. Alistair is played by English actor Steven Webb, a child star who since the age of ten has appeared in many theatre productions and TV shows; his major TV work includes The Magician's House, Holby City, Bad Girls and Doctors. In his other work, Steven appeared as a dancer in the now infamous Michael Jackson performance at the Brit Awards in 1996, when Jarvis Cocker ran on to the stage. Apparently, Webb cracked a rib when Cocker accidentally ran into him on the stage.
Andrew Cooper
Andrew is Inbetweener Simon's younger brother and represents pretty much all little brothers around the country; he is the scourge of Simon's privacy and takes every opportunity to embarrass him in front of his friends and girlfriends, often outwitting him. A prime example of this is during the 'Bunk Off' episode when Andrew begins to tell Simon in front of his friends how the whole school was laughing about him painting 'I love Carli D'Amato' on her driveway: 'He's made you look a right knob' was the comment from Jay. Andrew appears in six episodes altogether throughout the series, often with only a small part.
Andrew Cooper is played by actor Dominic Applewhite. Before appearing in The Inbetweeners, Dominic had one acting credit to his name in the children's TV series M.I. High. After being cast in all three series of The Inbetweeners, he then had a small role in the multi-award-winning film The King's Speech as the speech therapist Lionel Logue's son, Valentine. In 2011, The King's Speech received numerous awards and, after being nominated for 12 awards at the Oscars, the British film went on to win Best Picture and Best Director, and Colin Firth took the award for Best Actor for his portrayal of King George VI.
Around the World
The Inbetweeners has made an impact not only in the UK, but also on international audiences – and it's not just Jay's awful Aussie impressions as 'Bret Clement' that have done the trick. 'Three jars of lager and a pint of Guinness' hardly makes him a Rolf Harris sound-alike, but The Inbetweeners has made it in Australia since the show first began to air in 2010. It's also been broadcast in the US: on BBC America and MTV Latin America.
In fact, The Inbetweeners has made such noise across the pond that MTV has commissioned a full season of a US version of the show. Entertainment Weekly reported that MTV are to make 12 episodes of the sitcom starring Bubba Lewis, Joey Pollari, Zack Pearlman and Mark L. Young as the four awkward teenagers at the centre of the show.
David Janollari, MTV's executive vice president in charge of scripted development, told Deadline, 'The Inbetweeners is one of the best comedies to come out of the UK in years.'
Eager to make the show a success, MTV have brought in some big guns to look over the project. Brad Copeland and Aaron Kaplan will exec-produce the series, alongside Iain Morris and Damon Beesley, original creators of the show.
Copeland's credits as a producer and writer include big US TV shows such as Arrested Development and My Name Is Earl. He has also written for several film productions including Wild Hogs (2007) starring Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy.
Kaplan's credits include exec-producing on Made of Honor (2008) and You, Me and Dupree (2006) starring Owen Wilson.
The four actors signed up to play the US Inbetweeners are more experienced in the world of TV and film than the UK originals were when they first started. Although none of them has 'made it big' as yet, they will all be familiar faces to the US audience.
Before being signed up for the US version of the show, Lewis played guest roles in episodes of Numb3rs and Grey's Anatomy, as well as appearing in several TV movies. Co-star Pollari is best known in the US for his roles in Disney films Skyrunners (2009) and Avalon High (2010).
Young has made numerous one-off TV appearances, including episodes of Dexter, Criminal Minds and CSI:NY, having also had the recurring role of 'Franky' in the third season of HBO's Big Love.
Pearlman's résumé best resembles that of an 'original Inbetweener', thanks to his role in 2010 comedy The Virginity Hit, produced by Will Ferrell and Anchorman director Adam McKay. The movie follows the journey of a gang of four teenagers embarking on sex for the first time (sounds familiar?!).
Despite having some experience in the TV world, it's still a massive opportunity for all four guys, something that can be seen through some of their Twitter accounts. Pollari replying to a retweet on the story: 'Ridiculously pumped for this. Can't wait to start', while Pearlman tweeted his thanks to the show's original co-creator Iain Morris: 'You just made me blush! Thanks for creating such an amazing show and letting us shit on it. Move to the US, we have donuts!'
Awards
The Inbetweeners has been nominated for and won numerous awards since going on-air. After the first series, the show won Best New TV Comedy and Best Male Comedy Newcomer (Simon Bird – for the role of Will) at the British Comedy Awards 2008. The raucous nature of the awards ceremony became apparent when members of the cast and crew were greeted onstage by a barrage of missiles such as bottles and tableware from fellow comedy actors, with Kevin Bishop being the ringleader. At the same event, during Simon Bird's acceptance speech for Best Male Comedy Newcomer, he dedicated his award to the writers of the show and his fellow Inbetweeners. 2008 also saw the show win Best New British TV Sitcom at the Comedy.co.uk awards.
The following year, The Inbetweeners won Best Comedy Show at the TV Choice Awards, an annual awards ceremony where all of the gongs are presented on the basis of votes cast by readers of magazines TV Choice and TV Quick. In 2009 and 2010, the British Academy Television Awards, otherwise known as the BAFTAs, nominated the show for Best Situation Comedy, and in 2010 at the same event, the sitcom was presented with the YouTube Audience Award. While accepting the award, the writers Damon Beesley and Iain Morris dedicated it to all of their friends growing up who inspired the stories in the show. The final award the show won in 2010 was Best Situation Comedy at the prestigious Rose d'Or Festival, an international entertainment awards festival set in Lucerne, Switzerland.
In 2011, The Inbetweeners won Best Sitcom at the British Comedy Awards, as well as the Digital Choice Award at the National Television Awards, based on votes from the general public. Thankfully, the show beat off competition from Glee and Peter Andre: The Next Chapter!
CHAPTER 2b is for ...
Ben Palmer
British writer, producer and director Ben Palmer has worked on many Channel 4 TV and film projects and, in 2011, he directed The Inbetweeners' film.
Palmer seemed the perfect choice for the film, having directed all 12 episodes of Series Two and Three. He has a vast amount of experience in directing many of Britain's best-loved comedies. In 2004, he co-wrote and produced A Bear's Christmas Tail, a TV film comedy following a well-spoken but potty-mouthed bear from the mind of Leigh Francis, the performer who also brought us 'Avid Merrion' and 'Keith Lemon'. During the next few years, Palmer stuck with Francis to co-write and direct much of Bo Selecta, Bo in the USA and Keith Lemon's Very Brilliant World Tour.
In 2008, his directing resumé continued on Star Stories, a Channel 4 comedy series parodying the lives of celebrities such as Bono, Kate Moss and Elton John. After he directed Series Two and Three of The Inbetweeners, in 2010 the show received a nomination for Best Situation Comedy at the BAFTA TV awards.
Sandwiched between the second and third series of The Inbetweeners, Palmer directed two episodes of the TV series Comedy Lab, a series of shows and sketches from various writers and producers. The second of these episodes starred actor James Buckley, who plays Jay in The Inbetweeners.
In 2011, Palmer was due to direct the comedy series Sex and the Chippy until he was offered the chance to direct The Inbetweeners' film. Eventually, British comedy legend Harry Enfield stood in for Palmer.
BIEBER FEVER
Teen-pop sensation Justin Bieber has revealed that he's a massive fan of The Inbetweeners. He told the Mirror that he 'came across The Inbetweeners and, man, it was the funniest thing I had ever seen'.
The teen heartthrob even volunteered to take time out of his busy schedule to make a cameo appearance in the show, if he was ever wanted: 'So many high school shows try to glamorise school, but this was real and that's what made it so funny. If they are going to make a fourth series or a movie, I would make sure I was free to do a cameo. If they want me, I'm there.'
Although it sounds like Bieber would love to be involved in the show, his boyish good looks and millions of dollars may make him stand out from Jay, Simon, Neil and Will!
And he's not the only celebrity fan to have shown an interest in making a special appearance. It was reported that Amanda Holden also wanted to make a guest cameo in the series, along with some of football's biggest names. Blake Harrison (Neil) and Simon Bird (Will) told the Daily Star, 'Apparently, Wayne Rooney and Rio Ferdinand want parts in the show. And Amanda Holden told us she wants to play a sexy English teacher in the next series.'
It's hard to imagine Ferdinand and Rooney playing for Rudge Park Comp's school football team, with Holden heading up the English department. Surely even Gilbert would have cracked a smile at that one!
Big John
BACKGROUND
Big John is introduced in the first episode of The Inbetweeners. A victim of bullying in his previous school, John joins Will and the other 'freaks' on their first day, hoping to make a fresh start. Unfortunately for him, however, any hopes of a new beginning don't pan out and, once again, he ends up often being the butt of the joke. Despite his unpopularity at Rudge Park, Simon Bird (Will) revealed Big John is his favourite character in an E4 web chat with fans.
Big John does have some happier times in the show. When Neil, Jay, Simon and Will attempt to get into a house party after Will's birthday dinner party was a flop, they look through the window to see John engaged in deep conversation while resting his hand on a girl's breast! And his luck with the ladies spurs the lads on to climb over a garden fence just to get into the party.
At the Rudge Park Xmas Prom, John tells Jay that he has been seeing a counsellor. Although it's not revealed why, this is one of the few times in the show where we see a more honest side to Jay, as he opens up to John, explaining that his often ludicrous tales are just his way of getting noticed.
FUNNIEST SCENE
When John helps Will to organise the Xmas Prom, he takes charge of organising the food for the event. This is the biggest-speaking part Big John has, showing his passion for everything related to food. Later, he is caught eating the burgers he's meant to be handing out.
LOVES
Eating two yoghurts at once
Lasagne
Burgers
HATES
Bullies
HOBBIES
There's nothing John loves more than eating, whether it's two yoghurts at once or burger after burger ... after burger.
Blake Harrison
Half-wit Neil Sutherland is played by the actor Blake Harrison. Born on 23 July 1985, in Peckham, South London, he joined the performing arts establishment The BRIT School at the age of 14. The London school provides a platform for aspiring young actors, performers and media producers. It boasts an impressive list of former pupils including Adele, Katie Melua, Leona Lewis and Emily Head (who plays Carli), Blake's co-star in The Inbetweeners.
After leaving The BRIT School, Blake featured in a few low-key productions before appearing in two episodes of The Bill in 2008, playing the character of Pete Monks. In the same year, he auditioned for The Inbetweeners, while working in a Carphone Warehouse store. After landing the part of Neil, and following three extremely successful series, he acquired the nickname 'one-take Blake' from his fellow actors due to his incredibly professional attitude on set.
In 2010, Blake had the enviable job of many men when he worked with glamour model Keeley Hazell and a host of other scantily clad models for an online Lynx film, 'Keeping Keeley'. The short follows his character Jack as he aims to maintain the attention of Miss Hazell and asks the viewer to make decisions as he 'twists' his appearance.
After finishing the final series of The Inbetweeners (which aired in the autumn of 2010), Blake played Barney in a single episode of the BBC3 comedy Him & Her, about a young couple and written by writer and performer Stefan Golaszewski. After Him & Her, he starred in Channel 4's The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret as 'Dave' – a sitcom about an American who bluffs his way into a sales job with his only employee played by Blake. Todd Margaret was written by David Cross and Shaun Pye. Cross is an American writer and performer famous for playing Tobias in the critically acclaimed Arrested Development, while Pye is an English writer, actor and critic, who has written for many British TV shows and also played Greg in Extras alongside Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. Both Him & Her and The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret were successful in the debuts and commissioned for a second series in late 2010 and early 2011, respectively. In 2011, Blake starred in an episode of the BBC comedy White Van Man, about Ollie (played by former Hollyoaks star Will Mellor) and his painting and decorating business.
Away from filming, he is a massive Millwall FC fan and also an avid user of the social network site Twitter, where he was sending updates on filming The Inbetweeners' movie to his 28,000-plus followers. In one tweet, it seemed Blake had become very frustrated at photographers while filming on location: 'real shame paps keep getting shots of good moments of the film. Unfortunately the main people that lose out are fans that won't be surprised'. Towards the end of March 2011, he also toasted the end of filming The Inbetweeners' movie: 'Filming done! It's sad but no time to wallow as drinking is afoot! This way to the finest tankards of ale Magaluf has to offer!'
(Continues...)
Excerpted from The Inbetweeners A-Z by Matthew Richardson, Mike Dodgson. Copyright © 2011 Matthew Richardson and Mike Dodgson. Excerpted by permission of John Blake Publishing Ltd.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Contents
Title Page,Dedications,
a is for ...,
b is for ...,
c is for ...,
d is for ...,
e is for ...,
f is for ...,
g is for ...,
h is for ...,
i is for ...,
j is for ...,
k is for ...,
l is for ...,
m is for ...,
n is for ...,
o is for ...,
p is for ...,
q is for ...,
r is for ...,
s is for ...,
t is for ...,
u is for ...,
v is for ...,
w is for ...,
x is for ...,
y is for ...,
z is for ...,
glossary ...,
Copyright,