HOME

TheInfoList



Click Here for Items Related To - Ideal (TV Series)
OR:
Ideal (TV Series) on:   [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Amazon]

''Ideal'' is a British
dark comedy Black comedy, also known as dark comedy, morbid humor, or gallows humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally considered serious or painful to discus ...
television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...
originally broadcast on TV channel
BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes targeting 16 to 34-year-olds, covering all genres including animation, comedy, curre ...
, created by
Graham Duff Graham Duff (born 13 April 1964) is an English writer, actor and producer. He was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, and lives in Brighton. He graduated from the University of Brighton. His work for TV and radio is typified by intricate plotting, ...
and produced by
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
Comedy North and
Baby Cow Productions Baby Cow Productions Ltd is a British comedy television production company based in London and Manchester, founded by Steve Coogan and Henry Normal. Since its establishment it has diversified into radio, animation and film. According to their w ...
. It stars
Johnny Vegas Michael Joseph Pennington (born 5 September 1970), better known as Johnny Vegas, is an English comedian, actor, writer, and director. He is known for his thick Lancashire accent, husky voice, overweight appearance, angry comedic rants, and us ...
as small-time
cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively ...
dealer Dealer may refer to: Film and TV * ''Dealers'' (film), a 1989 British film * ''Dealers'' (TV series), a reality television series where five art and antique dealers bid on items * ''The Dealer'' (film), filmed in 2008 and released in 2010 * ...
Moz. ''Ideal'' is set in
Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...
,
Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority, combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: City of Manchester, Manchester, City of Salford, Salford ...
, chosen because Duff was familiar with the area, having done many stand-up gigs there during his youth. Most of the series takes place in Moz's
flat Flat or flats may refer to: Architecture * Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries Arts and entertainment * Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch * Flat (soldier), ...
and revolves around the eclectic array of characters who visit Moz to buy cannabis, socialise or both. The closing theme is "Song of the Oss" from the album ''Nuada: Music Inspired By the Film the Wicker Man'' composed by British band
Candidate A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example: * to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs. * t ...
. The series features a number of tracks by Californian hip hop group
Ugly Duckling "The Ugly Duckling" ( da, Den grimme ælling) is a Danish literary fairy tale by Danish poet and author Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875). It was first published on 11 November 1843 in '' New Fairy Tales. First Volume. First Collection'' ...
and
Pizzicato Five Pizzicato Five (formerly typeset as Pizzicato V and sometimes abbreviated to P5)Yang Jeff, Dina Can, Terry Hong, (1997) ''Eastern Standard Time'' pg 277 New York: Mariner Books was a Japanese pop band formed in Tokyo in 1979 by multi-instrume ...
. ''Ideal'' was broadcast on BBC Three in the UK, on entertainment channel 3e in Ireland and on
ABC2 ABC TV Plus (formerly ABC2 and ABC Comedy) is an Australian free-to-air television channel owned by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and part of its ABC Television network. The channel broadcasts a range of general entertainment progra ...
in Australia. First broadcast in 2005, seven series have been shown; the most recent ended on 30 June 2011. After the seventh series, ''Ideal'' was cancelled by the BBC. Following the announcement, writer and creator Graham Duff wrote to fans "As some of you may have heard, the BBC have decided against commissioning an 8th series of Ideal. The reason given was that the new channel controller wanted to make a clean sweep. It is a source of both pride and frustration that, at the point of cancellation, Ideal was attracting its biggest ever audiences, its highest profile guest stars and its best ever reviews. And the show is now being screened in more countries than ever before – from America to Finland and beyond".


Characters

* Moz (
Johnny Vegas Michael Joseph Pennington (born 5 September 1970), better known as Johnny Vegas, is an English comedian, actor, writer, and director. He is known for his thick Lancashire accent, husky voice, overweight appearance, angry comedic rants, and us ...
): a small-time cannabis dealer who has been dealing for a number of years from his flat in
Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...
which he used to share with his girlfriend Nicki but now shares with his new girlfriend Jenny. He deals only in the many varieties of
marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...
and sees himself as 'providing a crucial service to the community". Moz rarely sets foot outside the front door of his apartment and seems to have no concept of keeping the flat tidy. * Nicki (
Nicola Reynolds Nicola Jane Reynolds (born 26 July 1972, Pontypridd) is a Cardiff-based Welsh actress. Career After appearing in the 1999 film ''Human Traffic,'' she appeared in a series of jobbing roles, including ''Clocking Off'' and '' High Hopes''. Reyno ...
): Moz's girlfriend for the first four series. She and Moz have a love/hate relationship, with Nicki constantly nagging Moz about the state of the flat. Nicki can be very assertive and openly opposed to several of Moz's more distinctive shortcomings. * Cartoon Head aka Golova Sharzh ( James Foster, series one /
David Sant David Sant (born 1968) is a Spanish mime artist, acrobat, puppeteer, stuntman, director, actor and writer. Early life and career Sant was born in Spain in 1968. He discovered the theatre at the age of seventeen thanks to his literature teach ...
, series two): a man who never speaks and always wears a mask resembling a cartoon mouse. * Craig / Steve ( Seymour Leon Mace): the irritating loner Craig wasn't originally one of Moz's regular clients but after someone has recommended Moz as a good dealer to him, he keeps pestering Moz to let him visit the flat. * 'Psycho' Paul Nevin (Ryan Pope): originally a rival dealer to Moz, Psycho Paul now works with Cartoon Head. * PC Phil Collins (
Tom Goodman-Hill Tom Goodman-Hill is an English actor of film, television, theatre and radio. Early life Brought up near Newcastle upon Tyne, he qualified as a teacher before turning to acting. During his time in Newcastle, he regularly acted in amateur perform ...
): Moz's mate and also his chief supplier. PC is a
police constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...
for the
Greater Manchester Police Greater Manchester Police (GMP) is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement within the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester in North West England. , Greater Manchester Police employed 6,866 police officers, 3,524 memb ...
. He supplies Moz with weed which has been seized from other dealers during raids. PC is a useful contact for Moz, tipping him off as to what the latest police activity is - information which proves vital when the
CID CID may refer to: Film * ''C.I.D.'' (1955 film), an Indian Malayalam film * ''C.I.D.'' (1956 film), an Indian Hindi film * ''C. I. D.'' (1965 film), an Indian Telugu film * ''C.I.D.'' (1990 film), an Indian Hindi film Television * ''CID'' ( ...
plan to raid the flat. * Troy ( Tony Burgess, also co-writer): Moz's half-brother. * Kuldip (
Ronny Jhutti Ronny Jhutti (born Ajay Jhutti, 1973) is a British actor, most notable for his role as Sohail Karim in '' EastEnders'', Danny Bartock in two episodes of '' Doctor Who'' and Naz Omar in ''Vexed''. Ronny was raised in London, where he was born, as ...
): a former close friend of Moz. A relatively successful DJ (which Troy resents), he has a regular slot as a DJ at the local nightclub. He often boasts to Moz about the number of
white label A white label record is a vinyl record with white labels attached. There are several variations each with a different purpose. Variations include test pressings, white label promos, and plain white labels. Test pressings Test pressings, usua ...
records he has in his box. * Judith (
Joanna Neary Joanna Neary is a British comedian, writer and actress. Her solo, character-based stage shows include ''Youth Club'' and ''Joanna Neary Is Not Feeling Herself'', which received a Perrier Best Newcomer award nomination in 2004. She has also appear ...
): moves in across the hall from Moz at the start of series two. She is a timid, demure
necrophilia Necrophilia, also known as necrophilism, necrolagnia, necrocoitus, necrochlesis, and thanatophilia, is sexual attraction towards or a sexual act involving Cadaver, corpses. It is classified as a paraphilia by the World Health Organization (WHO) ...
c who is constantly saying "sorry". She soon becomes the dealer's potential love interest; they are mutually attracted but he is disgusted at the idea of her having sex with dead bodies. * Jenny (
Sinead Matthews Sinead Matthews (born ) is an English actress whose credits include film, television and stage. Her notable TV roles include Marcia Williams in ''The Crown''. She was born in Coventry, England, and attended Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School i ...
): a dim-witted young adult who becomes Moz's girlfriend near the end of series four. * Felix (Des O'Malley): the teenage father of Jenny's baby. * Stemroach ( David Bradley): the sinister gangland boss who employs Cartoon Head and Psycho Paul as his henchmen. * Brian (
Graham Duff Graham Duff (born 13 April 1964) is an English writer, actor and producer. He was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, and lives in Brighton. He graduated from the University of Brighton. His work for TV and radio is typified by intricate plotting, ...
, who is also creator and writer of the show); a very camp and flamboyant homosexual. * Colin (
Ben Crompton Benjamin Lorton Crompton (born 1974) is an English actor and standup comedian, best known for his performance on the BBC sketch show ''Man Stroke Woman'' and as Colin in the BBC Three sitcom ''Ideal''. From 2012 to 2019, Crompton portrayed Eddi ...
): a bouncy, childlike petty criminal who is usually on
probation Probation in criminal law is a period of supervision over an offender, ordered by the court often in lieu of incarceration. In some jurisdictions, the term ''probation'' applies only to community sentences (alternatives to incarceration), such ...
, as he frequently reminds people. * Carmel ( Hanne Steen): a Spanish escort. * Sangita (
Sunetra Sarker Sunetra Sarker (born 25 June 1973) is an English actress and presenter, known for her roles as Nisha Batra in '' Brookside'', Anji Mittel in ''No Angels'', Zoe Hanna in '' Casualty'' and Kaneez Paracha in ''Ackley Bridge''. In 2014, she took p ...
): one of Moz's regular customers for a period. * Yasuko (
Haruka Kuroda is a Japanese actress and presenter. She provided the voice of Noodle from Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett's alternative rock virtual band Gorillaz from 2000 to 2017. She performed on all the Phase One tour dates as Noodle: She performed Noodl ...
): a bubbly and naive Japanese woman with a cleaning
compulsion Compulsion may refer to: * Compulsive behavior, a psychological condition in which a person does a behavior compulsively, having an overwhelming feeling that they must do so. * Obsessive–compulsive disorder, a mental disorder characterized by i ...
. * Derrick (
Alfie Joey Alfie Joey is a writer, comic, actor, impressionist, singer, presenter, and artist/cartoonist. He hosted the flagship breakfast show on BBC Radio Newcastle from 2009, until his last show on 28 October 2022. He was nominated Best Compère at th ...
): another regular customer whose obsession with vegetables Moz finds very boring. * China (
Natalie Gumede Natalie Gumede (born 20 March 1984) is an English actress. She is known for playing Kirsty Soames in the ITV soap opera, ''Coronation Street'', from 2011 to 2013. She previously played China in BBC Three comedy show ''Ideal''. She has also appe ...
): along with her friend Asia, is one of Moz's regular clients. * Asia (
Rebecca Atkinson Rebecca Atkinson (born 22 September 1983) is an English actress, known for portraying Karen Maguire in '' Shameless'' from 2004 until 2013. Early life and education Atkinson studied theatre and dance at Preston College. Career Before her te ...
): friend of China's, who finds Moz to be repulsive. * Silicon Valets (pronounced "Silicon Valleys"): Lee and Jason together are Silicon Valets, a pop group of indeterminate quality and style, who drop by to buy drugs and brag about their success. :* Jason ( Tim Fallows): a member of the same
boy band A boy band is loosely defined as a vocal group consisting of young male singers, usually in their teenage years or in their twenties at the time of formation. Generally, boy bands perform Love song, love songs marketed towards girls and young ...
as Lee. * Kim and Miko (Jessica Peh and
Haruka Abe is a Japanese actress. Life and career Born in Nerima, Tokyo, Abe grew up in Tokyo, London and New York. She trained at Rose Bruford College in South East London. She appeared in BBC's ''Ideal'' as Miko, and as Marti in Sleepydog's science-f ...
): Friends of Yasuko who are members of a Japanese girl band. * Tanya (
Emma Fryer Emma Fryer is a British stand-up comedian, actress and writer from Coventry, best known for playing Tania in BBC Three's ''Ideal'', Janine in E4's '' PhoneShop'' and Gaynor in BBC Two's ''Home Time'', which she co-wrote with Neil Edmond. In 20 ...
): Colin's sister and also baby Sanjeev's health visitor. * Alan (Peter Slater): the foreman of the builders who renovate Moz's flat after the fire. * Marco ( Andrew Lawrence): Alan's assistant builder. * Reverend Jeff "Fist" Fistwick (Graham Duff; uncredited and in a mask): His flat is usually dark and unlit and Fist seems to spend a lot of time watching people come and go, seemingly with sinister intent. * Chen ( Hon Ping Tan): a member of the Low Triad, initially working for Min Yin Low. * Tony ( Dan Li): also a member of the Low Triad, initially working for Min Yin Low. * Keith ( Mick Miller): Moz's long lost stepfather. * Xavier ( Michael Kofi): a member of Psycho Paul's gang. He is infatuated by how comfortable one of Moz's chairs is. * Dawn (
Julia Davis Julia Charlotte L. Davis (born 25 August 1966) is an English actress, comedian, director and writer. She is known for writing and starring in the BBC Three comedy ''Nighty Night'' (2004–2005) and the comedies ''Hunderby'' (2012–2015) and ' ...
): Jenny's mum who has
cataract A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens of the eye that leads to a decrease in vision. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colors, blurry or double vision, halos around light, trouble w ...
s. * Jake/Dinos (
Dylan Edwards Dylan Edwards (born 10 January 1996) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a for the Penrith Panthers in the NRL with whom he won the 2021 and 2022 NRL premierships. Background Edwards was born in Albury, New So ...
) & (Sam Fletcher): Conjoined Twins. * Carol (
Jo Enright Jo Enright is an English stand-up comedian and actress who has appeared in a number of television and radio comedy programmes. She is best known for her roles in ''The Job Lot'', '' Life's Too Short'' and ''Trollied''. Career In 1995, she mad ...
): Keith's blind girlfriend. * Tilly (
Janeane Garofalo Janeane Marie Garofalo ( ; born September 28, 1964) is an American comedian, actress, and former co-host on the now-defunct Air America Radio's ''The Majority Report''. Garofalo began her career as a stand-up comedian and became a cast member on ...
): Moz's new neighbour in flat 6. * Mr. Rupani (
Vincent Ebrahim Vincent Ebrahim (born 1951) is a South African actor and comedian. He is known for portraying the roles of Ashwin in the BBC later Sky One comedy series '' The Kumars at No. 42'' (2001–2006, 2014), pub landlord Bobby in the BBC One comedy seri ...
): Moz's landlord, as well as the landlord of the other flats in the block. * Jess ( Elinor Crawley): Nicki's sister/daughter. * Amanda with the weird eyes: An
unseen character An unseen character in theatre, comics, film, or television, or silent character in radio or literature, is a character that is mentioned but not directly known to the audience, but who advances the action of the plot in a significant way, and wh ...
(save for one scene in the final episode of series one, in which she is only seen from the back).


Guest stars

Guest stars have included
Graham Fellows Graham David Fellows (born 22 May 1959) is an English actor and musician, best known for releasing the 1978 single "Jilted John", which reached #4 on the UK Singles Chart, and creating the comedic character John Shuttleworth in 1986. Jilted ...
(as Dr Persil),
Sean Lock Sean Lock (22 April 1963 – 16 August 2021) was an English comedian and actor. He began his comedy career as a stand-up comedian and in 2000 he won the British Comedy Award, in the category of Best Live Comic, and was nominated for the Perri ...
(as Natalie/Nathaniel, Brian's
transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...
partner), Mark Radcliffe,
Jason Manford Jason John Manford (born 26 May 1981) is an English comedian, presenter, actor and singer. Manford was a team captain on the Channel 4 panel show ''8 Out of 10 Cats'' from 2007 until 2010 and has presented numerous television shows for the BBC an ...
(as Jack),
Mark E Smith Mark Edward Smith (5 March 1957 – 24 January 2018) was an English singer, who was the lead singer, lyricist and only constant member of the post-punk group the Fall. Smith formed the band after attending the June 1976 Sex Pistols gig at th ...
(as
Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
),
Paul Weller Paul John Weller (born John William Weller; 25 May 1958) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame with the punk rock/ new wave/mod revival band the Jam (1972–1982). He had further success with the blue-eyed soul m ...
,
Kara Tointon Kara Louise Tointon (born 5 August 1983) is an English actress, known for portraying the role of Dawn Swann in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. In 2010, she won the BBC competition series ''Strictly Come Dancing'', and in 2015, she appeared as ...
,
Barry Adamson Barry Adamson (born 11 June 1958) Discography Studio Albums Compilation Albums EPs Singles Soundtracks References External links * Adamson's art-house
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Adamson, Barry 1958 births Living people People from ...
(as Brian's hitman boyfriend),
Alan Yentob Alan Yentob (born 11 March 1947) is a BBC presenter and retired British television executive. He stepped down as Creative Director in December 2015, and was chairman of the board of trustees of the charity Kids Company from 2003 until its collap ...
(as himself) and
Rula Lenska Rula Lenska (born Róża Maria Leopoldyna Łubieńska, 30 September 1947) is a British actress. She mainly appears in British stage and television productions and is known in the United States for a series of television advertisements in the 19 ...
(as the Red King).


Series overview


Episodes

Each series of ''Ideal'' has a different coloured title sequence. Series 1 was
sepia Sepia may refer to: Biology * ''Sepia'' (genus), a genus of cuttlefish Color * Sepia (color), a reddish-brown color * Sepia tone, a photography technique Music * ''Sepia'', a 2001 album by Coco Mbassi * ''Sepia'' (album) by Yu Takahashi * " ...
; the Christmas special was
red Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–740 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...
; Series 2 was
blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...
; Series 3 was
green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...
; Series 4 was
purple Purple is any of a variety of colors with hue between red and blue. In the RGB color model used in computer and television screens, purples are produced by mixing red and blue light. In the RYB color model historically used by painters, pu ...
; Series 5 was red; Series 6 was
yellow Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In the R ...
and Series 7 is
bondi blue Blue-green is the color that is between green and blue. It belongs to the cyan family of colors. Variations Cyan (aqua) Cyan, also called aqua, is the blue-green color that is between blue and green on a modern RGB color wheel. The ...
.


Series 1 (2005)


Series 2 (2006)


Series 3 (2007)


Series 4 (2008)


Series 5 (2009)


Series 6 (2010)


Series 7 (2011)


Awards and nominations

In November 2006, ''Ideal'' received the award for Best Comedy Programme at the
Royal Television Society The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen r ...
North West Comedy Awards.


DVD release

A
box set A box set or (its original name) boxed set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists and bands ...
of series one (excluding the Christmas special episode) was released in the UK on 7 November 2005. It includes the following extras: * Making of ''Ideal'' * Out-takes * Deleted scenes * Commentaries from Johnny Vegas (Moz), Graham Duff (creator, writer, Brian and Reverend Fistwick) and
Henry Normal Henry Normal (real name Peter James Carroll, born 15 August 1956) is a writer, poet, TV and film producer, founder of the Manchester Poetry Festival (now the Manchester Literature Festival) and co-founder of the Nottingham Poetry Festival. In Ju ...
(executive producer). The second series (including the Christmas special) was released on DVD on 19 February 2007, the third series on 9 June 2008, the fourth series on 13 April 2009, and the fifth series on 19 July 2010. The sixth series was released on 11 October 2010. The seventh and final series was released on 25 July 2011.


Film

A film based on the TV series was planned. The last update was this in June 2012. Baby Cow executive Henry Normal told Chortle: "It's going to be set in the same place, with many of the same characters. We even bought the physical set from the BBC, our co-producers on the TV series. We are aiming for it to be quite a dark psychological comedy-thriller". As of 2019, there has been no word of the film being in production.


See also

* ''
Top Buzzer ''Top Buzzer'' is a British sitcom written by Johnny Vaughan and Ed Allen, styled as television's first ever "dope opera". It was shown on MTV in 2004 and later repeated on Five. It revolves around two small-time cannabis dealers, Lee ( Stephen ...
'' * '' Weeds''


References


External links

* * *
''Ideal'' soundtrack music
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ideal (Tv Series) 2005 British television series debuts 2011 British television series endings 2000s British black comedy television series 2000s British comedy-drama television series 2010s British black comedy television series 2010s British comedy-drama television series BBC black comedy television shows BBC television sitcoms English-language television shows Television series about illegal drug trade Television series about cannabis Television shows set in Manchester