''Bedsitcom'' is a British reality television hoax series that was broadcast on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

in December 2003. Pitched as "somewhere between a sitcom and a reality TV show", the show documented the lives of six young people living in a loft flat in London. Its

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

was that its TV audience was aware that three of the participants—named Mel, Paul and Rufus—were actually actors being directed by a trio of "writers" in a garage on the ground floor. ''Bedsitcom'' was commissioned by the

Channel Four Television Corporation Channel Four Television Corporation is a British state-owned media company headquartered in London. Its original and principal activity is the British national television network Channel 4. The company was founded in 1982 as the Channel Four T ...

and produced by

Objective Productions Objective Media Group (OMG), previously known as Objective Productions, is a media company that produces shows in comedy, comedy drama, entertainment, factual entertainment and Magic. It has produced shows including '' The Cube'', ''Breaking Ma ...

. Producers auditioned thousands of people to be the show's genuine subjects and selected from them six young adults to live in the flat with the three actors. These six participants were told that they would be starring in a new reality TV series called ''Making Friends'', and featured on the show three at a time over a period of eight weeks. The programme ran for a single series of eight episodes and featured various storylines, involving dead goldfish, dodgy dealings, promiscuous mothers and telephone psychics. The show received largely negative feedback from television reviewers, who criticised the show's premise as a "deeply offensive" idea. It received a viewership peak of 1.2 million with its final episode, giving it an audience share of 8.9 per cent. ''Bedsitcom'' was not recommissioned for a second series and is currently not available either on DVD or on Channel 4's on demand service,

4oD All 4 is a video on demand service from the Channel Four Television Corporation, free of charge for most content and funded by advertising. The service is available in the UK and Ireland; viewers are not required to have a TV licence—require ...

Production

Concept

''Bedsitcom'' was created by Peter James and Andrew O'Connor, and was conceived as a parody of both reality television and the traditional

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

. It combined these two elements by featuring three members of the public being unknowingly placed in extraordinary situations by three actors being directed by writers. After being commissioned for

by Danielle Lux, ''Bedsitcom'' was produced by Matt Crook and Kirsty Smith of

. The show was pitched as "somewhere between a sitcom and a reality TV show" and was promoted as "an entirely new genre of television programme". Its title is a

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsbedsit"—a British term referring to a form of rented accommodation consisting of a single room and shared bathroom—and "sitcom". The title is technically a misnomer: as the accommodation's bedroom and sitting area were separate, it was not a bedsit.

Casting

Melanie Ash, Paul Gibbon and Rufus Jones were selected as the three actors to feature in ''Bedsitcom''. Jones had previously portrayed the part of Crispin in the 2002 drama '' White Teeth''; Gibbon had played the lead role of Link in the series '' Stone Cold''. To avoid breaking character, all three used their real names while living in the flat and went through weeks of rehearsals. O'Connor described the entire process as "exhausting". To find suitable candidates to live with the three actors, producers auditioned roughly 10,000 people, who were told that they would be taking part in a new reality television programme in London called ''Making Friends''. Six members of the public, named Barrington, Bob, Dave, David, Jessica and Shirine, were selected to feature on the show.

Writing and filming

The plots for ''Bedsitcom'' were devised by a team of writers (led by Rob Gibbons, Neil Gibbons and producer Matt Crook) located in a garage on the ground floor of the apartment building that the contestants were staying in. The writers would often appear on screen and explain to the TV audience what their intention for each episode was. They communicated with Ash, Gibbon and Jones either by ringing them on their mobile phones, or by calling them downstairs to speak to them in person. They would occasionally change their plans for an episode—in "Worst Case Scenario", for example, the writers altered their storyline from having Mel bring various animals into the flat to having the group kill Mel's goldfish after only one night. Among the team of writers were Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain, who had created the Channel 4 sitcom ''

Peep Show A peep show or peepshow is a presentation of a live sex show or pornographic film which is viewed through a viewing slot. Several historical media provided voyeuristic entertainment through hidden erotic imagery. Before the development of the c ...

'' with O'Connor earlier that year, plus Rob Gibbons and Neil Gibbons. Filming of ''Bedsitcom'' began in May 2003 and lasted for approximately eight weeks. The flatmates were filmed for 12 hours a day, with this footage then being edited down to roughly 25 minutes per week of filming.

Episodes

''Bedsitcom'' documented the lives of six young adults living in a loft flat in London. Eight episodes in total were created, which were divided into two distinct halves. The first four episodes centred on the lives of Mel, Paul and Rufus, the three actors, as they lived in the flat with Bob, Dave and Shirine, the three unaware members of the public who believed they were taking part in a genuine reality TV show. After Bob, Dave and Shirine had learnt the true nature of the show at the end of episode four, they moved out and were replaced by three new members of the public named Barrington, David and Jessica. These three new cast members remained on ''Bedsitcom'' for the final four episodes.

Reception

Critical reception

Reviewers gave ''Bedsitcom'' generally negative feedback. Some were critical of the storylines that had been devised by the writers, calling them unimaginative and clichéd. Others were critical of the premise of the show itself, describing it as "deeply offensive and manipulative"—all three actors, particularly Jones, received criticism for their acting abilities. Frances Traynor of '' The Daily Record'' called the show "about as funny as sharing a flat with that German cannibal" and Paddy Sherman of '' The Liverpool Echo'' branded the show "intensely irritating". Paul Hoggart of ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' called it "a show that seemed to have nothing to recommend it whatsoever",—after watching the first episode, Charlie Catchpole of '' The Daily Star'' simply stated: "It isn't funny." Critics on ''

Newsnight Review ''The Review Show'' was a British discussion programme dedicated to the arts which ran, under several titles, from 1994 to 2014. The programme featured a panel of guests who reviewed developments in the world of the arts and culture. History ' ...

'' also spoke harshly about the programme, with

Tom Paulin Thomas Neilson Paulin (born 25 January 1949 in Leeds, England) is a Northern Irish poet and critic of film, music and literature. He lives in England, where he was the G. M. Young Lecturer in English Literature at Hertford College, Oxford. Earl ...

calling it "a disgraceful piece of television" and

Jeanette Winterson Jeanette Winterson (born 27 August 1959) is an English writer. Her first book, '' Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit'', was a semi-autobiographical novel about a sensitive teenage girl rebelling against convention. Other novels explore gender pola ...

describing it as "incredibly dull". A slightly more positive review came from Joe Joseph of ''The Times'', who suggested that "if he formatworks, tcould be profitably franchised around the world". Deborah Bull said that, while it was "a terrible programme", there were "some funny lines". Chris Wilson, editor of Collective, similarly wrote that "while the end results are often amusing and tackle some interesting storylines, the whole project smacks of lazy, cruel television". In a 2005 interview, series creator Andrew O'Connor spoke about ''Bedsitcom'' and the critical reaction that it had received. He said that he felt that the premise of the show was a "great idea", but that it did not make "great television". He also remarked: "We didn't cast it right and the public didn't take to the series."

Ratings and awards

Given the level of exposure and promotion that it had been granted,

Channel Four Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service in ...

were disappointed by ratings for ''Bedsitcom''. The pilot, shown on 8 December 2003, generated 1 million viewers, but this figure had fallen to 700,000 by 10 December. The ratings rose to 1.1 million viewers for the fourth episode, "Fag Ends". On average, the series attracted an audience share of less than 6 per cent. The final episode, "P.I.G", gained a viewership of 1.2 million with a market share of 8.9 per cent, which was its highest audience for the series. ''Bedsitcom'' was nominated for a single award at the 2004

Rose d'Or The Rose d'Or ('Golden Rose') is an international awards festival in entertainment broadcasting and programming. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) first acquired the Rose d’Or in 1961, when it was created by Swiss Television in the lakes ...

festival, a European awards show that commemorates achievement in entertainment television. The programme was submitted in the Best Situation Comedy category, but was beaten by ''

''.

Distribution

''Bedsitcom'' was distributed by the

, who broadcast the show on its eponymous channel. It premiered in the UK at 10:40 p.m. on 8 December 2003. Bedsitcom's eight episodes were 'stripped' over two weeks: the first four were broadcast nightly until 11 December and the remaining four were shown each night from 15 December. There are currently no plans to revive the series, and it is not available either on DVD or on

, Channel 4's on demand service.

References

;Primary sources ;Secondary sources ;Bibliography * *

External links

* * {{Good article 2000s British comedy television series 2003 British television series debuts 2003 British television series endings British reality television series Channel 4 sitcoms English-language television shows Reality television series parodies Television series by All3Media Television shows set in London