Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge (1994–1995) User Reviews (16)

As Good as it Gets

[glgioia · 10/10 · 28 February 2007]

Satire, satire, satire...A very funny send up of the dreaded ubiquitous chat show. Actor Steve Coogan plays show business blight, Alan Partridge, a thoroughly unlikeable character who hosts an odd assortment of meaningless guests on his ridiculous chat show that is ridiculously titled, Knowing Me, Knowing You. The title of course is taken from the ABBA song of the same name, and Partridge himself mysteriously uses the A-Ha refrain from the song as his personal catch phrase. Completely idiotic but completely funny and eerily cogent. Alan Partridge the man likewise is as completely idiotic as he is pompous, condescending, moronic, cruel, vindictive and completely out of touch with reality. He also just happens to be 24 karat comic gold. In Alan Partridge, Coogan has created the perfect embodiment of an entertainment show-biz phony, cardboard jackass. An all too familiar character that sadly we as viewers now accept as normal. His pathetic C minus guest list parades one low-level pseudo-personality whacko after another. Said guests are all so excellently portrayed, that not being English, I initially was unable to tell if the people were actual Britsh celebs or not. Though Coogan is definitely top banana, the show in actuality is more troupe sketch format a la Monty Python then a solo tour de force. We see the same 4 or 5 actors switch disguises to portray each and every guest, with only a few exceptions sprinkled in now and again. They all deserve equal credit for the show's success. Knowing Me, Knowing You is the Sammy Maudlin bit from SCTV taken on as an entire show. Personally, I never got enough of Sammy Maudlin.

In terms of this type of fare, there is no American counterpart. Forget that satire itself has very little in the way of broadcast outlets, American entertainment simply does not or will not go after its own a la the Brits. That might well be because producers think American wont laugh at show business parody, but somehow cynicism makes me seriously doubt that. Even the terrific Larry Sanders show, ostensibly a similar type satire of the chat show genre, though hilarious, never once made Larry Sanders himself look professionally incompetent. To be fair, Knowing Me, Knowing You, is a fictional chat show of the type we don't really have in America, as its a hybrid of a Letterman format with a Regis daytime format. They may not have them in England either. Evening chat shows are likely in America to be very stiff, formal and almost nerve wracking as the hosts do their very best to keep celebrities ill at ease, in further glorification of the said host. I wont argue with success. So though the satire might be hard to relate to, the comedy makes that fact immaterial. I will say that if you have an aversion to British comedy in general, you will not change your opinion after watching this show. Yet the converse is definitely true. British comedy fans, this is what you live for!

What`d You Mean It`s A Spoof ?

[Theo Robertson · 20 August 2002]

KMKY gets off to a great start in the opening edition when Alan`s guests include a showjumper , an egotistical DJ and the world famous Roger Moore . No seriously Roger Moore is a guest on the first show . The later episodes drag slightly especially the French edition but KMKY picks up in the final two shows which feature Terry Norton a boxing promoter who has just beat a murder rap ( Alan kindly reconstructs the murder in question ) " Partridge Over Britain " which is a political debate , some revelations about Glen Ponder the band leader , and Joe Beasley and cheeky monkey - Abbadabadoo.

This is a really funny show which is very well remembered even though only six regular episodes and a Xmas special were made . This says an awful lot about the quality of the writing and performances . Perhaps the best compliment paid to the show is the fact that some viewers actually phoned up the BBC to complain about the content and the way Partridge treated his guests !!!!! I kid you not , some people didn`t realise this is a spoof chat show with Steve Coogan playing a comedy character called Alan Partridge !

And on that bombshell - AHA

Top range comedy

[mafster · 10/10 · 6 July 2005]

When I first watched this show, I wasn't sure. My friend told me how funny it was but at first it seemed a bit normal. However, I gave it a chance and watched some more. It was too late, I was hooked.

This show is brilliantly written and the jokes are so different to other comedies it feels refreshingly different. It does require a different view point for it's comedy but when looking from that perspective, this show stands tall.

The character himself, Alan Partridge, is a wonderful creation and Steve Coogan has cemented his name in comedy history. I love everything about this character and can quite easily watch this show over and over again.

The funniest thing is, you seem to be laughing at Alans crashing career which is sick but you just don't care.

The best part of this show was the ABBA medley. Truly brilliant.

This is comedy at it's very best. The supporting characters are truly wonderful and as for Alan Partridge himself, fantastic and brilliant.

AHA.....

he's Alan Patridge a-ha

[movieman_kev · 4 September 2005]

Steve Coogan is Alan Patridge (A-HA) in this parody of talk shows using England's famous perchant for dry humor. Poor Alan doesn't have much luck with any of his guests in the 6 episode series, and his handling of said guest is what makes this series worthwhile and I frequently found myself laughing at the deftly scripted show. I can't believe how great British comedies can truly be and most of the 'comedies' in my native land of, America can be so truly dreadful. The differences truly seem like night and day. If this had an American counterpart it would likely be "the Larry Sanders Show", but whereas that deals with the behind the scenes of a talk show as much, if not more so than in front of the camera, this one just deals with the talk show proper and I believe I like both the aforementioned shows equally.

My Grade: A-

DVD Extras: Disc 1) Commentaries on all the episodes (which are frequently as funny as the shows themselves) ; Promos for BBC America, and "Little Britian"

Disc 2) the 46 minute "Knowing me, Knowing Yule" special (with optional commentary); 16 minutes of the Test shoot with optional commentary; 5 minute, 16 seconds of Alan rambling on; 3 skits (totalling 6 minutes and 15 seconds) of Alan's appearance on BBC's "Comic Relief 1995"; 9 commercials for the TV show; photo gallery; Cast & crew Bios; and Trailer for "Men Behaving Badly" & "Manchild"

'And on that bombshell!'

[VictorianCushionCat · 6 November 2001]

Elevated from his radio show onto television this is presenter Alan Partridge's big break to take the art of chat to new heights. Unfortunately from the faulty studio fountain onwards it's all downhill for his ambitious project.

KMKY is six episodes of chat show spoof comedy heaven. There are too many funny bits to list but my favourite is the political debate where harrassed Conservative candidate Adrian Finch finally loses his nerve with the 'Bald Brummies' candidate and turns violent.

It is probally true that many presenters have skeletons locked away in the cupboard, but with Alan the skeletons tend to be released on camera, to ruin things for him every time. Maybe the real genius of the series is the fact that I have met people who genuinely believed that Alan was for real.

A program delivering a laugh a minute ratio is a rarity, which makes Knowing Me, Knowing You all the more essential viewing.

If Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge was a 'Meal o' the day', the this is the Ribs and Cabbage of the Chat shows.

[bossybootts · 20 December 2004]

I have rarely laughed so much. Maybe Derek and Clive and some M.Python but Alan Partridge is consistently hilarious. I find him even more loathsome than George of Seinfeld and that takes some doing. What a loser! But brilliantly written, and the timing is impeccable.Vintage British comedy which is making me snicker as I write this. Some scenes such as his cross country run to get away from his stalker, and his baying in the car park for his so called friend that he has caught sight of, oh the mans incorrigible! Every now and then in ones life you hear a song that you wish you could have written, you see a painting that you wish you could have painted and similarly........... comedy. Brilliant,brilliant, brilliant.

Roast Partridge

[Lejink · 8/10 · 3 September 2013]

Steve Coogan's Alan Partridge character just wouldn't lie down. After filling the sport slot in Christopher Morris's brilliant TV news show spoof "The Day Today", Coogan and his co-writers devised this devilishly funny and close-to-the-bone mickey-take of the ever-popular celebrity chat programme, with all the accoutrements of real-life prototypes by the likes of real-life stereotypical hosts (we know who they are) complete with guest house-band, fake starry guests and all their other familiar trappings (mix and match guests, the shared couch, the shallow content).

Coogan in particular rips into the title character with relish, a gormless, ignorant, sexist, bigoted, power-crazy narcissist who says what he thinks before he even thinks it. To play his guests, stock supporting actors like Rebecca Front, David Schneider and Patrick Marber change clothes and personalities from show to show, but somehow always end up as the unwilling victims of Partridge's prejudices.

All of the shows in the series are big on laughs, my favourite characters being the dead-on-his-feet ventriloquist act Cheeky Monkey, the cringe-worthy "Knowing Another Alan Partridge" section involving a recently deceased namesake and of course his quite literally go-out-with-a-bang climax.

Once you settle down to watch it, so convincingly played are the characters that you actually do end up thinking it could somehow be for real on an obscure satellite channel, although after the final bombshell which ends each episode, you snap out if it but realise how close to the truth it actually was.

For Coogan the character has never gone away, spawning the brilliant "I'm Alan Partridge" sequel and most recently a movie incarnation "Alan Partridge Alpha Papa", which I've not yet seen but it will be hard-pressed to beat the plentiful laughs on show here.

Sheer Magic

[alex-215 · 28 April 1999]

If you're not familiar with Alan I seriously recommend you get some of his stuff pronto, cos it is just too much fun.

And I have to say it: A-HA!

From the classy opening, to the parodies of guests ("Vivienne Westwood" is still the greatest thing ever) to "Glen Ponder and Debonair!" to Peter and Berni's Philosophical Steakhouse I just can't get enough of it. And Sports Casual!

Is this moribund?

Hots Pants! Tssssssss.

Funny and painfully tragic character-piece on top of light entertainment satire

[bob the moo · 20 August 2009]

Recently I heard an interview with Armando Iannucci on the Sound of Young America. He was promoting In the Loop of course but he was asked about his career and so on and the conversation took in Alan Partridge and other shows. It reminded me that, while I can remember the show from the time, I never really paid much attention to it while it was on and that I should probably borrow the DVD from a friend and try it. I did this recently and managed to wolf the whole thing down in a matter of days (it is only essentially 7 episodes long). Alan "shot to fame" as a sports presenter and has landed his own talk show a bit in the mould of Terry Wogan but on BBC2. He has done this despite being incredibly unsuited to the job – a fact demonstrated by his ratings and his inability to cope with anything beyond his own superficial blandness and punning.

As such the show is a good example of the awkward, pained comedy that the British do seem to do well – the comedy of embarrassment. It is a simple concept that, in fairness, probably couldn't have been sustained for much more than the one season and Christmas special that it got, because it does elevate itself to breakdown level within this timer period and the "joke" is essentially the same each time. That "joke" though is the character of Partridge himself – a local celebrity who is a sheen of catchphrases and corny jokes, popular with the elderly in Norwich no doubt but far from being the type of person you want to host a live TV show. He is unable to deal with anything that happens that is out of the ordinary – not only can he not deal with it but he cannot prevent himself being frustrated on air and this is generally what happens.

This works as well as it does because of Coogan. He takes some great writing and delivers it with commitment and realism that stops his character being a clown but rather a tragic figure who is floundering at every step, frantically denying reality to himself for as long as he can before moments of resignation or anger reveal that he does know it. It is both funny and painful to. That it happens against the backdrop of a solid lampoon of inane "light entertainment" makes it a very engaging show. I will not say I was rolling with laughter at every minute but it did consistently amuse me because of Coogan. The supporting cast are not quite as good but do still do good work as guests alongside this disaster of a man – some mock him, some go along with it as best they can and some do both. Front is the most varied of the regulars and is good for it but personally I was surprised by how many times Marber essentially did the same character. Schneider is good in a few small turns while John Thompson is brilliant as the only person who comes over more pathetic than Partridge himself.

It will not please all viewers but Iannucci crosses a satire on light entertainment with a great car-crash of a character to great effect. Frequently funny and consistently amusing, KMKYWAP is short and sweet as a season, staying around just long enough to do the job and creating a great character in the meantime.

Great comedy series

[grantss · 8/10 · 6 June 2023]

A chat and variety show hosted by Alan Partridge. Partridge has all manner of guests on his program, from actors to musicians to child prodigies. Unfortunately things don't always go according to plan and often Partridge lets his personal feelings on certain guests and issues slip.

The first Alan Partridge TV show. Not the first Alan Partridge show - the character and concept was first a radio show - nor the first appearance of Alan Partridge in a TV show - he was the sports reporter in The Day Today - but this is the series that truly launched the Alan Partridge character and brand.

Writer-actor Steve Coogan and writer-producer Armando Iannucci continue their collaboration from the radio show and The Day Today to give us this great series. Very funny and really a parody of chat shows. Not absurdist or as edgy as The Day Today, this is more a comedy show focusing on an inept TV show host.

Coogan and Iannucci also bring along many of the gang from The Day Today - Rebecca Front, Patrick Marber, David Schneider, Doon Mackichan - making for a great dynamic between Partridge and his "guests".

Alan gets his own chat show

[smellthecult-com-1 · 8/10 · 10 February 2010]

Alan Partridge is a wannabe megastar of the chat show world. He has designs on making himself a household name as a presenter of high quality family entertainment, interviewing celebrities, sports people, and newsworthy individuals, as well as engaging in some witty banter with the more comedic elements of the entertainment world.

Unfortunately, try as he might, he is simply awful at his job.

Rude, offensive, tactless, imbecilic, the man should no more be presenting a chat show than a paraplegic should be doing an impersonation of a spider. No matter how hard he tries he's fooling no-one.

Revel in the cringe-worthy world of embarrassment that Alan inhabits. Squirm as he digs himself into spasm inducing conversations and feel nothing but pity for the waste of human flesh we've all come to know and love.

Superb TV.

Not a dull moment.......

[wilss888 · 29 April 2005]

This is one of my favourite comedies, I so wish they had made more of this series. "I'm Alan Partridge" was good, but the 2nd series of that started going downhill a bit, like he was trying too hard.

But this is ultimate Partridge, the jokes and laughs come thick and fast, he's so bad at doing his job and insults the guests all the time, but your always on his side, especially in the French one, which happens to be one of my favourites. "What if your arm bursts?" I recommend this to any comedy fan, it's just so funny. Hopefully one day he'll get his 2nd series of his chat show.

But don't let me deter you from his two "I'm Alan Partridge" series though, the first series of that is also fantastic!

Great stuff!

[Ian-79 · 4 July 1999]

I can't recommend this series highly enough. Chat-show host 'Alan Partridge' is like nothing you've ever encountered before, and yet 'believable' - if you've not seen this, you're in for a fantastic ride!

Watch out for guests: Joe Beasley and Cheeky Monkey - as AP says "hold onto you're sides, they might just split".

Getting to know Alan Partridge

[Artimidor · 9/10 · 21 June 2014]

British actor Steve Coogan's versatility ranges from his talents as impressionist, playing multiple roles (and this includes a female character!) in his stand-up comedy over voice acting, writing and producing and even starring in very serious feature roles like the Oscar nominated "Philomena" (2013) - and whatever he does, he does it with fervor and consequence. In this spirit his alter ego wannabe "star" Alan Partridge was born, a fictional TV personality at first known for radio programmes and an infamous regional chat show, which would be "Knowing Me, Knowing You". An unlikeable character developed that Coogan slips into regularly in his stand-ups as well, later he based a TV series on him and brought him to the big screen. But it all started in earnest with these few chat show episodes. So what's so special about Alan? Well, Alan Partridge is the type of character who's so full of himself that his shameless displays of narcissism combined with his social awkwardness make his interviews prone to go further downhill without even having started at a notable high point. Partridge is one of the first who understood how to make cringeworthy comedy work for the audience, he's embarrassing, politically incorrect, condescending, pompous and whoever shares time with him on screen, he or she is not the issue - it's basically all about him. Throughout the show numerous fake guest stars help us to familiarize us with the phenomenon that is Partridge, but even then he sneaks in guest "stars" that are "famous" for being his namesake, and quite regularly minor and major catastrophes hit the show which eventually goes out with a bang - literally! The appearances of Alan Partridge over time in different formats vary considerably in quality, but all of them contribute to the manifestation of Coogan as a comedic genius in his alter ego. Not even a misfired bullet can kill off Partridge's career, just like Coogan himself can dodge media bullets with elegance as his superb "Everybody's a bit of a c*nt sometimes" performance shows in his 2009 stand-up, which is as snarky and to the point as Alan Partridge's tongue has an aptitude to screw up royally and with precision. Check that one out to get the picture. And on that bombshell recommendation we'll leave you to discover Alan Partridge and the man behind it. Once you get into it there's only one word to describe what you've been missing so far: A-Haaaaa!

Alan in a league of his own

[paudieconnolly · 7/10 · 13 August 2022]

I have watched the series a number of times very funny series. All that is to come from Alan Partridge builds around the success or failure of the TV chat show. I felt watching it originally and still feel to this day. It would've been a much better series. If not reusing the same actors has guests repeatedly made the whole thing seem even faker. Realism to Alan is what makes him special he's the one recurring actors in this series that feels like a real person and yes a very eccentric real person. The interviews with one off guests seemed to have something more believable to them.

Intriguing and delightful way to create comedy series .

[RobbieRedeyez · 8/10 · 27 September 2022]

Alan Partridge the masterpiece creation by Steve Coogan .

Its not constantly superfunny and not everything works .

But the way Steve Coogan goes about it , its intriguing character creation.

Alan can be pretty selfish and not so considerate to others , but how can u not like the guy at the same time .

The setting now where he still has a tv show , it is nice , but the quality is all in all some lower then the later Alan Partridge series .

Still this is good and has rewatch value , i watch this series again and again over time .

The series was the solo-breakthrough of the Alan Partridge personage and could be considered as season 1 of the Alan Partridge series .

This series has extra value due to all the Alan Partridge content that has followed , as these where the succes days of Alan Partridge , where later we see him also in harder times , so these series kept some relevance in the later development of the Alan Partridge character .