View source for Look Around You

{{Short description|Television comedy series}}
{{Multiple issues|
{{original research|date=April 2024}}
{{Lead too short|date=November 2024}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}}
{{Infobox television
| image        = LookAroundYouLogo.jpg
| caption      = ''Look Around You'' Series 1 logo
| genre        = {{flatlist|
* [[Comedy]]
* [[parody]]
  }}
| creator      = {{plainlist|
* [[Robert Popper]]
* [[Peter Serafinowicz]]
  }}
| director     = [[Tim Kirkby]]
| writer       = {{plainlist|
* Robert Popper
* Peter Serafinowicz
  }}
| starring     = {{plainlist|
* Peter Serafinowicz
* Robert Popper
* [[Olivia Colman]] (series 2)
* [[Josie D'Arby]] (series 2)
  }}
| narrated     = [[Nigel Lambert]] (series 1)
| country      = United Kingdom
| num_series   = 2
| num_episodes = 15
| runtime      = {{plainlist|
* 10 minutes (series 1)
* 30 minutes (series 2)
  }}
| company      = {{plainlist|
* Mivvin Colour
* [[Talkback Productions]]
  }}
| editor       = [[Chris Dickens]] (series 1)<br/>[[Paul Machliss]] (series 2)<br/>[[Jonathan Amos]] (series 2)
| channel      = [[BBC Two]]
| first_aired  = {{start date|2002|10|10|df=y}}
| last_aired   = {{end date|2005|3|7|df=y}}
}}

'''''Look Around You''''' is a comedic [[parody]] of British science television shows, devised and written by [[Robert Popper]] and [[Peter Serafinowicz]], and narrated in the first series by [[Nigel Lambert]]. The first series of eight 10-minute shorts was shown in 2002, and the second series of six 30-minute episodes in 2005, both on [[BBC Two]]. The first series of ''Look Around You'' was nominated for a [[BAFTA]] award in 2003.

== Series 1 ==


In the first series, the episodes ("modules") [[satire|satirise]] and pay [[Homage (arts)|homage]] to early 1980s [[educational film]]s and school programmes such as [[ITV Schools]]' ''Experiment'' series and [[BBC Schools|BBC's "For Schools and Colleges"]]. A different scientific subject is covered in each episode.

The modules were, in order of transmission:
# "Calcium" (pilot, double episode)
# "Maths"
# "Water"
# "Germs"
# "Ghosts"
# "Sulphur"
# "Music"
# "Iron"
# "The Brain"

The humour is derived from a combination of patent nonsense and faithful references and homages. For instance, fictional items that have a passing resemblance to everyday objects are shown and discussed. Such items include the "boîte diabolique", a box at the top of a piano scale which housed the "forbidden notes"; and "Garry gum", a performance-enhancing [[chewing gum]] which has the unfortunate side-effect of inducing [[diarrhoea]], necessitating the consumption of "anti-Garry gum". Each episode begins with a "countdown clock", similar to the one used on [[ITV Schools]] programmes from 1979 to 1987. The music that accompanies the countdown is in the same spirit as the original, but is played on a solo guitar, and at the beginning of the "Brain" module, the guitarist can be heard tuning.

The module subjects are distorted beyond recognition; for instance, germs are described as coming from Germany, and [[whisky]] is said to be made by combining water with [[nitrogen]]. The maths module features a distorted and inaccurate version of the ancient [[As I was going to St Ives#Rhind mathematical papyrus|'seven cats' puzzle]] by [[Ahmes]]. Additionally, subjects are mixed: for example, a chemistry experiment about eggs (in the episode "Water") turns into a French language lesson. Each episode follows a general format, beginning with an introduction to the subject, followed by a series of silly experiments performed by the hapless (and normally mute) scientists, played by Popper, Serafinowicz and [[Edgar Wright]], among others.

The colour and overall look of the film was purposefully altered to replicate 1980s television for schools, and passably authentic [[incidental music]] written by Serafinowicz and Popper under the [[pseudonym]] "Gelg" was [[overdub]]bed to complete the parody of the original programmes.

A running gag throughout the series is the fastidious labelling of all items in [[Dymo tape]], such as [[Blow dryer|hairdryers]], magnets, a bottle of maths, or a jar of nuts (which contained both types of nut: the [[Nut (fruit)|foodstuff]] and [[Nut (hardware)|fastener]]). Another recurring joke is the use of fictional apparatus and materials used in the experiments—items such as the "Besselheim plate" poke fun at real lab equipment, often named after their designers (e.g. [[Petri dish]], [[Erlenmeyer flask]]). Pencils are always used to point at key elements of the experiments, as the 'scientists' do not speak: this is sometimes taken to ridiculous levels—pointing out pencils using a pencil; pointing at chocolates and then at a person to show they are a gift.  Also, the series repeatedly instructs viewers to keep a notebook, described as a "copy book," and to inscribe random and essentially worthless details of the lessons taking place with the spoken instruction to "note that down in your copy book."

The series was commissioned based on a 20-minute pilot episode (twice the length of an episode in the first series, but otherwise identical) in which [[calcium]] is described as an amorphous gel prepared by grinding discarded teeth in massive milling machines; this is included on the [[DVD]] release of Series 1 as an "advanced double-length module".

The DVD extras also include a music video for the song "Little Mouse" (as featured in the module on music), a selection of mock-[[Ceefax]] pages, and a creator's commentary. The joke is taken even further by presenting the DVD [[subtitles]] in exactly the same format as those broadcast via [[teletext]].

At the end of each episode, reference is made to the "next module"—although these episodes were never actually made. The episodes that are promised, but never seen are:

* "Champagne"
* "Cosmetics"
* "Dynamite"
* "Flowers"
* "Hitchhiking"
* "Italians"
* "Reggae"
* "Romance"

On the DVD Ceefax pages there were also two unseen modules:

* "Blood"
* "Further Maths"

== Series 2 ==


The second series is composed of six 30-minute episodes and is presented in the [[popular science|pop-science]] vein of programmes such as ''[[Tomorrow's World]]''. The series was directed by [[Tim Kirkby]], and [[Ash Atalla]] (producer of ''[[The Office (British TV series)|The Office]]'') worked as [[executive producer]]. Running from 31 January to 7 March 2005 on [[BBC Two]] at 10 p.m., Series 2 comprised the following episodes:

# "Music 2000"
# "Health"
# "Sport"
# "Food"
# "Computers"
# "Live ''Inventor of the Year'' Final"

The DVD commentary confirms that this was not the intended order, explaining why some running gags appear to build inconsistently.

According to the audio commentary, the programme is set around 1980–1981. To reinforce the show's retro look, each episode's opening [[continuity announcer|continuity announcement]] (typically narrated by Serafinowicz, who exaggerated the sound of his breathing and mouth movements to simulate the effect of the microphones used at that time) played over the three-dimensional [[BBC Two 'Computer Generated 2' ident|BBC Two ident from 1979 to 1986]]. Unlike the first series, which is [[16:9|16:9 widescreen]], the second series is presented in [[Aspect ratio (image)#4:3 standard|4:3]] to emulate the television format used in the early '80s. Additionally, location footage was shot on [[16mm film]], of the type used for location filming at the time. Episode 1 features a ''[[Top of the Pops]]'' introduction complete with the real ''TOTP'' theme music from the early 1980s, [[Yellow Pearl (song)|Yellow Pearl]] by [[Phil Lynott]].

Features such as the song contest in the "Music 2000" episode also ground the series in the 1980s. Contestants showcase the futuristic songs they believe we could expect to hear in the far-off year 2000. Runners-up "Machadaynu", performed by Tony Rudd (played by [[Kevin Eldon]]) and Antony Carmichael's "The Rapping Song" are beaten in the contest by Toni Baxter's track, "Sexual Interface".

Unlike the first series, Series 2 contains dialogue between the four presenters and their guests, leaving behind both the narrated style of the first series and the anonymity given to the scientists. Serafinowicz plays Peter Packard, whilst Popper plays Jack Morgan, a character originally seen in series one as a musician performing the song "Little Mouse". There are also two additional presenters, Pam Bachelor and {{not a typo|Pealy}} Maghti, played by [[Olivia Colman]] and [[Josie D'Arby]] respectively.

Several [[running gag]]s from the first series are reprised in Series 2, such as references to [[Imhotep]] (pictured, as in the 1st series, as a [[moai]]), [[bassoon]]s, and the use of ''[[portmanteau]]x'', in phrases such as "Thanks, ants. Thants," or as in the Music episode, "Thanks [[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky|Tchaikovsky]]. Thaikovsky." In the final episode, this word-play culminates with Packard addressing two security guards, both named Hank, with the phrase "Thanks, Hanks. Thanks." Another running joke centres on characters such as [[Synthesizer]] Patel in the "Music" episode and Computer Jones in the "Computers" episode, who like an item to such a degree that they've changed their names.

Whereas the modules in Series 1 were distinct, there is a measure of continuity throughout the episodes of Series 2. Each week, inventors (played by a number of British comic actors) showcase their new products, culminating in the live final programme where a winning invention is chosen, supposedly by "HRH, Sir Prince Charles". To achieve this fake presentation, archive footage of [[Charles, Prince of Wales|Prince Charles]] was blended with ''Look Around You'' footage, whilst Serafinowicz dubs the Prince's real voice with his own lip-synced impression of it.

=== DVD extras ===
DVD extras include a quiz, mock pages from [[Ceefax]], an alternative "Birds of Britain" feature, the Scary Picture, which features a comically large succession of warning screens making sure the viewer actually wants to view it, before suddenly showing it at the same time as hearing a male scream, being shown without the scream in 2 episodes of Series 2,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/lookaroundyou/programmes/food/picture3.shtml |title=Slimby Slimming Picture |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=24 September 2014 |publisher=BBC |access-date=29 April 2019 }}</ref> and the Test Card (a music video). Watching this to the end, including the credits, triggers an [[Easter egg (interaction design)|Easter egg]] featuring Jack Morgan's more realistic reaction to his plastic surgery, in which the ''Look Around You'' team are shocked at the modifications to Jack's face when Dr. Fu reveals him to them. When handed a mirror, Jack turns to Dr. Fu and starts shouting expletives at him (the sole reason for the 15 rating on the DVD), but then calms down after stating that it was the initial reaction to the surgery.

== Production ==

* A [[running joke]] in Series 2 is that all guests, when introduced, enter through a series of large [[blast door]]s (similar to those from ''[[Get Smart]]''). However, these were filmed against a [[Chroma key|bluescreen]] which gave an inferior effect, and the creators stated, on the DVD commentary, that they did not like the joke but felt they were "stuck with it".
* Leonard Hatred's funny walk was not scripted—it was improvised by [[Mark Heap]]. His encounter with Championess in the finale of the second series was also improvised.<ref>{{cite video|people=Robert Popper and Peter Serafinowicz|title=Look Around You 2, commentary track|medium=DVD|publisher=Talkback Thames/BBC|date=2006}}</ref>
* The "Computers" episode featured clips of fake 1980s computer games created by members of [[b3ta]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.b3ta.com/features/crapcomputergames/|title=b3ta computer games competition}}</ref> Games included "[https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/lookaroundyou/programmes/computers/dd.shtml Diarrhea Dan]".

== Broadcast ==

When aired on [[BBC America]] from 2003 to 2008, episodes were edited to fit within a 30-minute time slot with adverts. This triggered a continuity error with the series: Leonard Hatred's initial segment was cut from the first episode, causing him to appear without explanation in the series finale.{{Citation needed|date=June 2008}}

The series ran on [[Adult Swim]] from 2009 to 2011.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20250573,00.html|title=''Entertainment Weekly'', 16 January 2009|date=7 January 2009|access-date=11 January 2009|archive-date=6 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121006162734/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20250573,00.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Robert Popper reprised the role of his ''Look Around You'' character, Jack Morgan, for an appearance in the music video of the [[Frankie & The Heartstrings]] song "Hunger" (2011). Jack is seen hosting a ''[[Blue Peter]]''-type programme, and introduces the song.

In 2023, both series were made permanently available on [[BBC iPlayer]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00bt5dl | title=Look Around You }}</ref>

== Reception ==
The series was praised for its attention to detail. 
''[[The Simpsons]]''{{'}} creator [[Matt Groening]] called it "one of the funniest shows I've ever seen".<ref>{{cite news|title=Six to watch: TV shows about TV shows|url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2012/jul/02/six-to-watch-tv-shows|access-date=22 August 2012|newspaper=The Guardian|date=2 July 2012|author=Daniel Bettridge}}</ref>

On 13 January 2012 ''Look Around You'' had its 10th anniversary celebrated by a showing of all episodes of the first series at the [[BFI Southbank]] in London. Peter Serafinowicz also released a new short clip entitled "Intermission".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://boingboing.net/2012/01/13/look-around-you-turns-10.html|title=''Boing Boing'', 13 January 2012|date=13 January 2012 }}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
{{Wikiquote}}

*{{bbc.co.uk|id=comedy/lookaroundyou|title=''Look Around You''}}
*{{BBC programme}}
*{{IMDb title|id=0358323|title=Look Around You}}

[[Category:2002 British television series debuts]]
[[Category:2005 British television series endings]]
[[Category:2000s British satirical television series]]
[[Category:BBC television comedy]]
[[Category:Historical television series]]
[[Category:British mockumentary television series]]
[[Category:Television series about television]]
[[Category:British English-language television shows]]
[[Category:'Pataphysics]]
[[Category:Television series by Fremantle (company)]]
[[Category:Television series set in the 1980s]]