The Rusting Tardis
Wednesday, October 22, 1997
Tonight I went to a meeting of The Society of the Rusting Tardis. This started off as a group of Dr. Who fans, who would have Who video screenings back when Dr Who was pretty hard to come by. Now they have branched out into all sorts of British TV. One of the leading lights, Jeff Stout, is often seen on the pledge drives of one of the local PBS stations, and I think he works there.
It was fun seeing a bunch of Brit TV that will likely never show in the US. They had selected non-Red Dwarf shows that featured Craig "Lister" Charles, along with a few other odds and ends.
- "Space Cadets"
This was a game show of the British type (like "My Word" used to be on radio) where the game is merely an excuse for smart remarks or hijinks by the regulars and celebrity guests. This one has a science fiction theme, with two teams trying to guess what happens next in a video clip, or identify a mystery object. Not bad! And the set is great.
- "Captain Butler"
Craig Charles on a pirate ship. Kinda lame.
- "The Ten-Percenters"
Sitcom about a group of agents. This has one character doing a fake American accent, which is a bit distracting. Strictly by the numbers, the jokes very predictable.
- "Goodnight Sweetheart"
This sitcom had a very strange premise. The lead has the ability to pop through a time portal to London during the blitz. He runs a shop full of retro merchandise in the present day, so he goes back to the past to get his stuff, and seems to be leading a double life, with a woman in both years. Humor supposedly happens when his 90s attitudes rub up against the 40s people.
- "Game On"
Pretty funny! Three flatmates a la "Friends" but the weirdness and unlikable characters of Seinfeld.
- "Never Mind the Buzzcocks"
Another game show with the same format as "Space Cadets," or is it the other way around? Strange to see all these people who are presumably minor celebs in Britain, and not recognize a one. Lots of unfamiliar music, too. The strangest clips shown were from a group called "Legs, Unlimited" [?] who apparently used to do elaborate dance routines to pop songs of the day. Weird!
Dinner was a Steak Supreme pizza, which was very good! (The venue was a Round Table Pizza.) I wish there had been more of a chance for chatting, but apparently that isn't the format of these events. I'll give them a few more tries, though.
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