Extra! Extra! Read All About It! is an Irish television sitcom that aired on RTÉ 1 for one season of eight episodes in 1993. The show was written by Frank Sheerin,[1] and the stand-up comedian, Morgan Jones, was a cast member.[2]
| Extra! Extra! Read All About It! | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Situation comedy |
| Written by | Frank Sheerin |
| Starring | Nuala Holloway Morgan Jones Lise Ann McLaughlin Lorraine Pilkington Norman Rodway Peter Vollebregt |
| Country of origin | Ireland |
| Original language | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Production | |
| Production locations | Studio 1, RTÉ Television Centre, Donnybrook, Dublin 4, Ireland |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | RTÉ 1 |
| Release | 3 November – 22 December 1993 |
The show was notable for its negative reception. Writing in the Connacht Sentinel, journalist Declan Tierney gave the programme a negative review: "to say that this is a pathetic attempt at comedy is being kind to "Extra! Extra! Read All About It!" and stated "the only indication that it is a comedy comes from the canned laughter, which is over-done and often goes on for so long that it is impossible to hear the start of the next sentence".[3] Writer Colm Tóibín stated Extra! Extra! was "probably the worst programme RTÉ has ever shown".[4] Brendan Glacken of The Irish Times was equally scathing: "Speaking of Extra! Extra!, as I am afraid we still must, even seasoned RTÉ observers seem unable to answer the question why a series so pathetically weak should have been allowed to reach the screen at all".[5] Extra! Extra! was later included in an Irish Independent list of the worst Irish TV programmes.[2]
The name of the show comes from the phrase "Extra! Extra! Read all about it!" formerly used by street news vendors to sell newspaper extras.
References
edit- ^ Trinity College Dublin (13 August 2019). "Irish Film and TV Index". Irish Film & TV Research Online. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT! - Production company: RTE; Director: CLARK, Alistair; Script/Adaptation:SHEERIN, Frank; Release date: 1993; TX channel: RTE 1; Summary: Eight-part series.
- ^ a b "The worst Irish TV shows EVER!". Irish Independent. 28 October 2006. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
- ^ Tierney, Declan. "New "Comedy" Sets the cringe alarms ringing". Connacht Sentinel, 9 November 1993, pg. 9.
- ^ Tóibín, Colm "The Very Worst, Anywhere". The Sunday Independent, 14 November 1993 pg. 17.
- ^ Glacken, Brendan (23 November 1993). "Entering a New Reality". The Irish Times. p. 10.