8.2 /10 1 Votes
8.2/10 TV Country of origin United Kingdom Final episode date 21 October 1994 | 8.3/10 IMDb First episode date 16 September 1994 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Created by Steve CooganArmando IannucciPatrick Marber Starring Steve CooganSteve BrownRebecca FrontPatrick MarberDavid SchneiderDoon Mackichan Awards NME Award for Best TV Series Similar The Day Today, I'm Alan Partridge, Coogan's Run, People Like Us, Bellamy's People | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge (also known as Knowing Me Knowing You) is a BBC Television series of six episodes (beginning 16 September 1994), and a Christmas special Knowing Me Knowing Yule on 29 December 1995. It is named after the song "Knowing Me, Knowing You" by ABBA (the main character's favourite band), which was used as the show's title music. Steve Coogan plays the incompetent but self-satisfied Norwich-based talk show host Alan Partridge. Alan was a spin-off character from the spoof radio show On the Hour (which later transferred to TV as The Day Today). Knowing Me Knowing You was written by Coogan, Armando Iannucci (who produced the radio version) and Patrick Marber (who also starred), with contributions from the regular supporting cast of Doon Mackichan, Rebecca Front and David Schneider, who played Alan's weekly guests. Steve Brown provided the show's music and arrangements, and also appeared as Glenn Ponder, the man in charge of the house band (the name of which changed, without explanation, every episode).
Contents
Alan went on to appear in two series of the sitcom I'm Alan Partridge, following his life after both his marriage and TV career come to an end. It was generally well received by fans and critics, and was nominated for a BAFTA and a British Comedy Award.
Format
Knowing Me Knowing You is a parody of a chat show. It featured a live audience whose laughter meant that viewers could not mistake the show for a real chat show. Some of the guests parodied real life appearances on chat shows. For example, the medical fashion parade by Yvonne Boyd is a reference to Vivienne Westwood's appearance on Wogan.
Script and broadcast versions
In total there have been three 'official' versions of the television series prepared by producer Armando Iannucci - the originally transmitted half-hour version (also used in most repeats and abroad), a version extended by roughly five minutes per episode for the VHS and subsequent DVD release, and a version prepared for BBC2's 2002 Partridge repeat season, again in a thirty-minute slot but now featuring reinstated material from the video version (such as Partridge's promotion of the Sprünt drink brand) and a generally tighter edit to compensate for the running time, in addition to the Partridge web address being added to the end credits. In 2013, the latter version was made available for streaming on Netflix.
Reception
The Austin Chronicle called it "one of the most hilarious satirical comedies in recent memory".