Writer/ Director Ricky Gervais

The Office became an iconic sit-com, possibly due to its short run. If the programme had run on for five or six series, it might have grown stale but there were only fourteen episodes of the series; two six part series and two Christmas specials. This are a number of memorable comedies such as Father Ted (25 episodes) and Fawlty Towers (12 episodes) which had similar short runs. Was a Christmas special the right way to sign off from the character? Quite possibly, but Gervais couldn’t resist another crack at David Brent. The character is his first major creation and his portrayal is what made him famous. Now he returns bereft of the rest of his Office crew and trying to make it big in the music industry. While Gervais is well known as an actor, it is his work as a writer and director we will look at in this short piece.

Extras (TV Series) is possibly his best work. It had another short run with 13 episodes between 2005 and 07. It featured a multitude of big name actors all willing to make fun of themselves, with appearances from names such as Sir Ian McKellen , Chris Martin, David Bowie, Samuel L Jackson, Kate Winslet and Ben Stiller. This was co-written and directed with Merchant, much like the Office.

“You are guaranteed an Oscar if you play a mental” – Kate Winslet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjDufjtIr1M

Next up was the The Invention of Lying, which was his first major film release. It took a meagre $32m at the box office.

Cemetery Junction was released in 2010 and again combined with Stephen Merchant, who co-wrote and co-directed. It was a smaller production with a largely unknown cast, and by the end of its theatrical run in the UK, the film had taken in £1.3 m.

He then returned to the smaller screen with Life’s Too Short (2011-2013 – 8 episodes) and Derek (2012-2014 – 14 episodes) which did not grab the attention like his earlier work.

2016 will see two new movies written, directed and starring Gervais. The Special Correspondent will be released later in the year, which co-stars Eric Bana. It’s the story of a “radio journalist and his technician who get in over their heads when they hatch a scheme to fake their own kidnapping”.

The one most are looking forward to is the return of David Brent in all his splendour! It is a film that has some very funny moments, but falls flat on too many occasions. Fans of the character will be happy with the many moments that make you squirm! His career as a singer features heavily with songs such as ‘Slough’, ‘Lady Gypsy’ and ‘Please don’t Make Fun Of The Disabled’. Chris Martin was involved with the sound track, recording some of the songs with him. Andy Burrows, the drummer from Razorlight, features in the film and wrote some songs for the album.

The film has no clear resolution for Brent so we can expect to see Grevais return to the character some time soon.