If You See God, Tell Him

This is what ought to have been a classic satire. The story isn't very important: Gordon Spry, an elderly man (Richard Briers) gets a brain injury which causes him to believe everything he's told.

The point is that nobody cares about him -- not really -- and so, he's only told anything at all by TV commercials. And, as he believes everything that TV commercials tell him, numerous (and wickedly, even harshly, funny) scenes ensue.

The satire is bleak and merciless, even for the BBC, if extremely well-made. It probably came too close for comfort for the general audience, and was quickly forgotten.

What I remember of a program shown a decade ago is that it was a hilarious yet (in its finale) moving modern retelling of Don Quixote. It was slated at the time, and has gone unrecognised ever since. This is well overdue for a reshowing or a DVD release.

This is very black comedy which leaves an indelible impression on the viewer. It is so powerful because of its impeccable attention to detail in the way it satirises contemporary advertising and the chasm between the glossy fantasy worlds they paint and the sad painful world inhabited by ordinary people. The casting of Bryers as the Pollyanna-ish protagonist is spot on, as his usual chirpy persona is given a new sinister twist by the catastrophic outcomes of his well meant intentions - like Tom Good accidentally launching bird flu on the unsuspecting citizens of Surbiton. Edmondson plays a similar character to Angus Deayton in 'One Foot in the Grave': permanently exasperated with Bryers but ultimately sympathetic that he is just a victim of an unfair world against which he has no defences.

I remember being very impressed by this. It confounded expectations in a number of ways. At first glance it appeared to be a standard Richard Briers cosy comedy but it soon became apparent that it was something far darker and stranger, and featured an unusually understated performance from Ade Edmondson. The main gist of the plot, as I remember it, was that Godfrey Spry (Richard Briers) suffers some kind of head injury which causes him to believe, completely, everything he sees and hears in advertisements. Many dark, comic moments ensue. I've wanted to see this again but TV repeats and DVD/video releases evade me. I'm sure a repeated screening would reveal this to be a forgotten cult classic.

This was a classic piece of comedy, take a look round at the current state of British sitcom. Richard Briers was brilliant as the hapless Godfrey Spry. Four episodes only, this could have been legendary given half a chance. Definetly needs a re-run or DVD.