The Last Chancers is British television sitcom, originally a one-off show screened under the Comedy Lab banner at 11:40pm on Thursday 21 November 2002. The show was later developed into a five-part series which was broadcast on E4 in December 2002. Currently the Channel 4 website has one series consisting of eight episodes listed.

The Last Chancers
GenreSitcom
No. of series1
No. of episodes8
Original release
NetworkE4
ReleaseNovember 21, 2002 (2002-11-21)

History

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The show was initially screened under the Comedy Lab banner. Stephen Merchant directed the initial screening, which featured the actors Adam Buxton and Steve John Shepherd. Channel 4 subsequently slated the show for production in two instalments.[1] Tony MacMurray and Buxton wrote The Last Chancers series.[2] The show is a comedy drama.[3]

Cast

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Crew

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  • Tony MacMurray - Writer
  • Stephen Merchant - Director
  • James Harding - Executive Producer
  • Richard Osborne - Executive Producer
  • Sally Martin - Producer

Reception

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In a mixed review, Rupert Smith of The Guardian wrote, "Any programme that involves puking, guitar solos and incredibly stupid drummers is always going to get a thumbs-up from me, but I wished The Last Chancers had decided whether it was vicious satire, feelgood comedy or laddish high-jinks."[2] Referring to Valerie Edmond, The Sunday Times television critic John Dugdale criticized the show, writing, "Underused on TV since The Crow Road, Edmond is a welcome signing; but the comedy's problem is its hero, who suffers as many humiliations as Brent and Alan Partridge but lacks their compelling and richly imagined awfulness."[4]

The Independent's Thomas Sutcliffe praised the show, calling it "quite strongly reminiscent of Peep Show, with its anti-climactic rhythms and loser slapstick, but good enough not to suffer by the comparison".[5] In a positive review, Gabrielle Starkey of The Times said the show is "well observed and written", "funny", and found every character to be "well-defined and instantly recognisable without being total cliches".[6]

References

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  1. ^ Potton, Ed (18 December 2004). "Something to bray about - Our pick of the festive TV". The Times. Archived from the original on 3 July 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  2. ^ a b Smith, Rupert (23 December 2004). "Rock bottom". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 July 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  3. ^ Ridgway, Imogen (22 December 2004). "Last chance saloon for pub rock hopefuls". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 3 July 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  4. ^ Dugdale, John (12 December 2004). "The Last Chancers - Pick of the day". The Sunday Times. Archived from the original on 3 July 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  5. ^ Sutcliffe, Thomas (23 December 2004). "Last night's television: Yes, I'm beginning to see the light - Light Fantastic BBC4 The Last Chancers C4". The Independent. Archived from the original on 3 July 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  6. ^ Starkey, Gabrielle (11 December 2004). "The Last Chancers - Multichannel Choice". The Times. Archived from the original on 3 July 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
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