The Office (BBC version)

I just finished watching disk 1 of Season 1 of the BBS (original) version of The Office. VERY funny. Looking forward to disk 2. Anyone else share the same opinion?

Who are these BBS and what did they do with the BBC?!

I'm all thumbs. Yes, the BBC of course. I'm so old I got my acronyms crossed. BBS (bulletin board system?) is something I connected to with my 300 baud modem on my Commodore64 about 21 years ago.

The BBC version is a lot more caustic and depressingly funny. While I like the US version, the UK one is still my favourite.

IMO a classic comedy, though not quite up there with Fawlty Towers. 

Have watched and enjoyed a few of the US versions but found I wasn't addicted to them in the same way as the original.

PaoloM wrote:

The BBC version is a lot more caustic and depressingly funny. While I like the US version, the UK one is still my favourite.

Heh, agreed. NBC version isn't bad, but BBC version is incredible funny.
David Brent

I actually could not watch it, it was that painfully funny and true to life.

What was even worse was watching it, going to work the next day and hearing the all-too Brent-like managers laughing about it.

Tensor wrote:

I actually could not watch it, it was that painfully funny and true to life.

I actually missed the whole first series first time around because I just found it too stressful to watch; too much embarrassment!
I got into it for the second series and waited for the first to be repeated (didn't take long).

Extras was good too.


Herbie

While I haven't seen the British or the American version, I do have the DVD's of 'Het Eiland' (The Island), a Belgian series inspired by the Office. I've watched it many times and I still think they're hillarious. Protput.

On a less cynical level, but still amusing for IT workers: The IT Crowd, from Channel 4.

I haven't seen enough of the BBC office to form an opinion. I like the US one but at times the situations become very uncomfortable.

Schrutebucks!

   david brent's long lost cousin?

OMG, if I look closely, I can definitely see similarities. We have the same fat nose and chubby facial features. Thanks for the laugh, Jamie.

Yeah you look like him

The IT crowd rocks
Peeps Show is THE best
Extras is stupidly funny - but awesome all the same
The Office is kindof weird... ive never really sat down to watch it. The ones i have seen are hilarious though.

jamie wrote:

   david brent's long lost cousin?

wow. there is an uncanny similarity here.  I can relate, I've been compared to Garreth Keenan many times, I dont have a picture to share though at the moment. 

The BBC Office is so funny, Ricky Gervais is a genius, I dont know how he can deliver his lines with a straight face sometimes.  The US Version is pretty good, but lacks the real "mockumentary" feel.  The US version characters seem like actors, whereas the BBC versions characters seem like real people being filmed, which makes the absurdity of what goes on that much more entertaining.

...and I noticed the BBC version allows a few naughty words that make the U.S. censors cringe.

If you enjoyed 'The Office' I think you will really enjoy 'Peep Show' which is in the same kind of genre.

Mitchell & Webb are differently a new set of comedians for you guys state side to look out for.

They also have a feature length film out soon to look out for called Magicians which I'm going to see tonight.

British comedy at the moment is looking pretty good but I have to say that we could learn a lot from the USA about how to do decent drama's. Things like 24, House, BSG, Prison Break are just brilliant! Our dramas seem to have lost that gritty punch and the important human story, the best we have produced in years is 'Life on Mars' and thats because it really played on the nostalgia and cult thing rather than good plot.