Director: John Henderson
Cast: Steve Coogan (Tommy Saxondale), Ruth Jones (Magz), Rasmus Hardiker (Raymond), Morwenna Banks (Vicky), James Bachman (Alistair), Darren Boyd (Jonathan), Greg Davies (Dunc), Simon Greenall (Malcolm), Matt Berry (Geoff), Rosie Cavaliero (Penny), Sebastian Cardinal ("Freddie Mercury"), Dustin Demri-Burns ("Brian May") & Marianne Levy (Caroline)
When one of Tommy's old friends moves into the area, Tommy becomes nostalgic about their hedonistic days, with help from a Queen tribute band...Steve Coogan's latest creation didn't soar to Alan Partridge heights during its first series last year, but did anyone really expect it to? However, there was no denying Coogan's consumate skill in crafting a three-dimensional character with Tommy Saxondale, a former Roadie still clinging to memories of the 70s, now living in humdrum suburbia as a pest controller.
The first episode of the second series is business as usual. Tommy is again reminded of his former life when Dunc "The Skunk" (Greg Davies) arrives in town, informing Tommy that another of their Roadie mates, Malcolm (Simon Greenall), is living nearby as a media exec.
Needless to say, social worlds collide when Tommy's rose-tinted bravado over the "good ol' days" is met with embarassed politeness by high-flier Malcolm, a businessman who has defiantly moved on from a "ten year period that ended thirty years ago." As always, Tommy can't understand anyone's recluctance to embrace their youth, leading to cringe-making comedy when Tommy offers to help a Queen tribute band ("Ready Freddie") at the local Pantheon Of Rock... not realizing these young men wear wigs and view their gigs as a light-hearted frolic at the weekends.
Last year, the main deficiency in Saxondale was its freewheeling plots and total emphasis on Tommy himself. Morwenna Banks, as poisonous receptionist Vicky, was the only character able to puncture Tommy's bravado and spit out some neat one-liners of her own, while everyone else just became window-dressing to Coogan's admittedly superb performance.
There are signs of a balance here, particularly from a next-door neighbour character called Jonathan (Smack The Pony's Darren Boyd), a man who clearly wants to endear himself to Tommy, but has little musical knowledge of the 70s. Boyd's one scene, where he's tested by Tommy for the name of a Pink Floyd or Genesis album title, is brilliant handled by both actors. I certainly hope we see more from Jonathan.
Unfortunately, Rasmus Hardiker still hangs around like a third wheel as Tommy's pest control assistant Raymond. It was frustrating to watch last year, but is particularly disappointing now as Hardiker seems to have grown into himself and would likely handle some comedy very well. Can't he be thrown a few scraps now and then? For now, he's only required to linger at Tommy's hip and look withdrawn.
The real delight in the episode comes from the wonderfully quirky and witty dialogue, written by Coogan and Neil Maclennan, which is utterly believable, multi-layered and crisply asembled. Coogan clearly delights in characters able to converse in a grandiose or pernickity way, and Tommy's injokes, turns of phrase and verbal mannerisms are all wonderful.
Overall, while Saxondale is mostly unchanged from last year (ignoring Tommy's scruffier appearance), it's certainly helped by including a mix of character actors who aren't overshadowed by Coogan's big performance. Simon Greenall has obviously had years of practice in I'm Alan Partridge (as Geordie Michael), but Greg Davies and Darren Boyd also leave lasting impressions. The excellent fruity-voiced Matt Berry (Garth Marenghi's Darkplace) also appears in this episode's opening anger management meeting, so I hope he returns in a bigger capacity.
It's an entertaining start to the new series, but with no huge shifts in tone, style or humour. If you didn't like Saxondale last year, I doubt this will change your mind. You can't pick fault with Coogan's characterisation, or the beautiful writing (its Jeremy Clarkson-style metaphors are particularly good), but Saxondale still hangs loose when it comes to plot and rarely contains laugh-out-loud moments.
23 August 2007
BBC2, 9.30 pm
