Harry Enfield

Harry and Paul's Story of the 2s was an irreverent look back at the history of BBC Two as a whole. The programme was set out as a mockumentary with Harry Enfield taking the role of Simon Schama as he took us back to 1964 where Auntie Beeb gave birth to her second child. Enfield and Paul Whitehouse appear to have been given free rein to mock every programme that the channel have ever produced.

I was personally surprised that programmes such as Fawlty Towers, which are often held in high regard, were picked apart in a matter of minutes by the mischievous duo. Highlights for me included Paul's perfect impressions of both Mary Berry and Jools Holland with the latter presenting an ill-fated breakfast show 'Earlier with Jools'. I also thought the extended pastiche of the channel's recent reliance on panel shows were expertly done with Paul Merton's input on Have I Got News for You being perfectly lampooned.

At the same time I found a lot of the programme to make fairly obvious jokes including the fact that the majority of the BBC Two executives went to Oxbridge universities. In addition I felt the programme took its time getting started and that the early focus on long-running war documentaries weren't really that funny. At just under an hour in length, it felt at times as if Harry and Paul were struggling to find programmes to mock and even included a sketch from an unaired episode of Blackadder, a programme that never featured on BBC Two. But ultimately I do feel the programme was a success which featured more comedy hits than misses and just enough laughs to justify the length of the programme. Enfield and Whitehouse proved why they're still the go-to comics of choice for the BBC and the Story of the 2s was a perfect inclusion in the Bank Holiday comedy marathon. I did also find it admirable that Enfield took time to even mock himself as one sketch focused on his jealousy over the fact that Whitehouse's Fast Show had one multiple BAFTAs while his own show had never been recognised.

Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse skewered the entire output of BBC2 over the past 50 years in Harry and Paul's Story of the Twos, and not even that kindly. Enfield, as Alan Bennett, as a Talking Heads Stalin, torn between curtain-fussery and genocide, was the most surreal vision this perfect pair have ever concocted, but worked: as did their evisceration of such sacred cows as Monty Python, I Claudius and Have I Got News For You. It was wonderfully written, and brave, and I'd like to think that all the famous targets decked themselves with laughter. Mr Cleese may have even ventured a smile.

Radio Times review

As part of the 50th birthday celebrations, Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse have a laugh at the expense of pretty much everything that has ever been on BBC Two. From a Likely Lads parody to a re-imagining of The Killing (featuring Pingu), it's a catalogue of derision that barely stops for breath.

Sacred cows get the bolt gun along with everything else: Enfield does a wheezing John Cleese impression that is spot-on and makes a lovely Alan-Bennett-as-Stalin in Talking Heads of State. The show is full of these kind of involved spoofs, not all of which come off, but enough do.

My favourite was Whitehouse doing Later... with Jools Holland re-imagined as a breakfast show ("And what a treat - Jeff Beck! Jeff, perhaps, if I could prod you awake...?"), but there will be something here for everyone.

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