Robert Darren Popper (born 23 November 1967) is a British comedy producer, writer, actor, and author, best known as co-creator of the mock BBC documentary ''
Look Around You
''Look Around You'' is a comedic parody of British science television shows, devised and written by Robert Popper and Peter Serafinowicz, and narrated in the first series by Nigel Lambert. The first series of eight 10-minute shorts was shown in ...
'', and creator of Channel 4's sitcom ''
Friday Night Dinner
''Friday Night Dinner'' is a
British television sitcom written by Robert Popper and starring Tamsin Greig, Paul Ritter, Simon Bird, Tom Rosenthal, and Mark Heap. The comedy is focused on the regular dinner experience of the middle-class Bri ...
''. He also wrote the books ''The Timewaster Letters'', ''Return of The Timewaster Letters'' and ''The Timewaster Diaries'' under the
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
Robin Cooper.
Personal life
Popper was educated at
Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School
Haberdashers' Boys' School (also known as Haberdashers', Habs, or Habs Boys), until September 2021 known as Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School, is a Independent school (United Kingdom), public school for pupils age 4 to 18 in Elstree, Hertfo ...
and is
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
.
Television and film
Popper began his career in
British television
Regular television broadcasts in the United Kingdom started in 1936 as a public service which was free of advertising, which followed the first demonstration of a transmitted moving image in 1926. Currently, the United Kingdom has a collection ...
working for
The Comic Strip
The Comic Strip are a group of British comedians who came to prominence in the 1980s. They are known for their television series ''The Comic Strip Presents...'', which was labelled as a pioneering example of the alternative comedy scene. The ...
under
Peter Richardson. He then worked on the Channel 4 show, ''
The Big Breakfast
''The Big Breakfast'' is a British breakfast light entertainment television programme that was broadcast on Channel 4. Originally presented by Chris Evans and Gaby Roslin, the show was latterly presented by Mo Gilligan and AJ Odudu.
The p ...
'', writing for comedy puppets,
Zig and Zag. He also made his first appearance as a comedian on ''
The Eleven O'Clock Show
''The 11 O'Clock Show'' is a satirical late-night British television comedy series on Channel 4 which featured topical sketches and commentary on news items. It ran between 30 September 1998 and 8 December 2000, most notably hosted by Iain Lee a ...
'' as character Simon Michael Simon. Later, he was employed as a Commissioning Editor for Entertainment and Comedy at
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
.
His commissioning credits include the series ''
Bo' Selecta!
''Bo' Selecta!'' is a British television sketch show written and performed by Leigh Francis. It was broadcast on Channel 4 from 2002 until 2009 and lampooned popular culture, becoming known for its often surreal, abstract toilet humour. Seas ...
'', ''
Black Books
''Black Books'' is a British sitcom created by Dylan Moran and Graham Linehan, and written by Moran, Kevin Cecil, Andy Riley, Linehan and Arthur Mathews. It was broadcast on Channel 4, running for three series from 2000 to 2004. Starring Mo ...
'', ''
Spaced
''Spaced'' is a British television sitcom created, written by and starring Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, and directed by Edgar Wright, about the (comedic and sometimes farcical and action-packed) misadventures of Daisy Steiner and Tim Bi ...
'' and ''
Bremner, Bird and Fortune
''Bremner, Bird and Fortune'' is a satirical British television programme produced by Vera Productions for Channel Four, uniting the longstanding satirical team of John Bird and John Fortune ("the Two Johns") with the satirical impressionist Ro ...
''. He also commissioned three series of the ''
Comedy Lab
''Comedy Lab'' is a British television series which showcases pilots of experimental comedy shows. Series have been aired irregularly on Channel 4 and E4 since 1998.
Several pilots first shown on ''Comedy Lab'' have gone on to spawn full serie ...
'' whilst at the channel. He left the role to work on the first series of ''
Look Around You
''Look Around You'' is a comedic parody of British science television shows, devised and written by Robert Popper and Peter Serafinowicz, and narrated in the first series by Nigel Lambert. The first series of eight 10-minute shorts was shown in ...
'' (2002) with
Peter Serafinowicz
Peter Szymon Serafinowicz ( ; born 10 July 1972) is an English actor, comedian, director and screenwriter, best known for his roles as the title character in the 2016 live-action series of '' The Tick'', Pete in ''Shaun of the Dead'' (2004) an ...
. ''Look Around You'' was a spoof educational science comedy which ran on BBC2. It was written and produced by Popper (who featured onscreen in one episode as "Jack Morgan" also performing the rock song "Little Mouse") and Serafinowicz (who appeared more frequently). The pair also wrote and played all the music in the series. ''Look Around You'' was nominated for a
BAFTA and a
British Comedy Award
The National Comedy Awards (known as the British Comedy Awards from 1990 to 2014) is an annual awards ceremony in the United Kingdom, celebrating notable comedians and entertainment performances of the previous year.
The British Comedy Awards ( ...
. In 2003, Popper co-wrote the short film ''Hello Friend'' with
Graham Linehan
Graham Linehan () (born 22 May 1968) is an Irish television writer and anti-transgender activist. He created or co-created the sitcoms ''Father Ted'' (1995–1998), ''Black Books'' (2000–2004) and '' The IT Crowd'' (2006–2013). He has also ...
.
In 2005, Popper returned to the screen with a second series of ''
Look Around You
''Look Around You'' is a comedic parody of British science television shows, devised and written by Robert Popper and Peter Serafinowicz, and narrated in the first series by Nigel Lambert. The first series of eight 10-minute shorts was shown in ...
'', again co-written by himself and Peter Serafinowicz. Made up of six half-hour shows, ''Look Around You 2'' resembled an early-80s ''
Tomorrow's World
''Tomorrow's World'' is a former British television series about contemporary developments in science and technology. First transmitted on 7 July 1965 on BBC1, it ran for 38 years until it was cancelled at the beginning of 2003. The ''Tomorro ...
'' . Popper appeared in all six episodes as Jack Morgan. Besides Popper and Serafinowicz, the series featured
Josie D'Arby and
Olivia Colman as
presenter
A presenter is a person or organization responsible for the running of a public event, or someone who conveys information on media via a broadcasting outlet. Presenter may refer to:
People
* News presenter, person who presents news during a new ...
s. ''Look Around You 2'' won the Rose D'Or TV Award in 2006 for Best Comedy Series. Popper was a programme consultant and co-writer for the TV sketch comedy ''
The Peter Serafinowicz Show
''The Peter Serafinowicz Show'' is a British sketch comedy show written by and starring Peter Serafinowicz. Its debut was on 4 October 2007 at 21:30 on BBC Two as part of the newly launched "Thursdays Are Funny" brand on the channel and Thursda ...
'' (2007), in which he also made several brief on-screen appearances.
Popper was the
producer for the third and fourth series of Channel 4's ''
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 ...
''.
Both series won the British Comedy Award for Best Comedy, and Popper won a BAFTA for series 4. Popper was the
script editor
A script editor is a member of the production team of scripted television and radio programmes, usually dramas and comedies. The script editor has many responsibilities including finding new script writers, developing storyline and series ideas wi ...
on all three series of ''
The Inbetweeners
''The Inbetweeners'' is a British coming-of-age television teen sitcom, which originally aired on E4 from 2008 until 2010 and was created and written by Damon Beesley and Iain Morris. The series follows the misadventures of suburban teenager ...
.'' He was also script editor on Graham Linehan's ''
The IT Crowd'' and the BBC3 comedy ''
Him & Her
''Him & Her'' is a British television sitcom about a lazy twenty-something couple: Steve and Becky, who live in Walthamstow, London. It was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Three on 6 September 2010. It is written by Stefan Golasz ...
''.
In 2009 Popper and Serafinowicz wrote, produced and performed in a 30-minute podcast entitled
The Other Side'. The comedy purported to be a radio show coming from the only radio station ("Radio Spiritworld") to broadcast from the afterlife. Robert and Peter also created the online world religion,
Tarvuism, making a variety of shorts. The pair created a number of web videos on YouTube showcasing their surreal humour, including "Birds of Britain", "Markets of Britain" and "Intermission".
Popper also wrote on the
fourteenth series of ''
South Park
''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...
''; he was signed up by creators
Matt Stone
Matthew Richard Stone (born May 26, 1971) is an American actor, animator, filmmaker, and composer. He is known for co-creating ''South Park'' (since 1997) and ''The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his creative partner Trey Parker. Stone was interes ...
and
Trey Parker
Randolph Severn "Trey" Parker III (born October 19, 1969) is an American actor, animator, filmmaker, and composer. He is known for co-creating ''South Park'' (since 1997) and '' The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his creative partner Matt Stone. ...
following a week long brainstorming session, and worked on the final four episodes of first half-season.
Popper created, wrote and produced six series of the
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...
sitcom ''
Friday Night Dinner
''Friday Night Dinner'' is a
British television sitcom written by Robert Popper and starring Tamsin Greig, Paul Ritter, Simon Bird, Tom Rosenthal, and Mark Heap. The comedy is focused on the regular dinner experience of the middle-class Bri ...
''. Series 1 aired from February to April in 2011 and won the Rose D'or Award for Best Sitcom. It also received two BAFTA nominations and four British Comedy Award nominations. It is unknown whether the sitcom is still in production.
Popper also co-wrote the first 3 episodes of
Stath Lets Flats with
Jamie Demetriou
Jamie Demetriou (born November 1987) is an English comedian, actor and screenwriter. He is best known for his role as Bus Rodent in ''Fleabag'' and for creating, co-writing, and starring in ''Stath Lets Flats''. For the latter, he won Best Male A ...
in 2018. He also created and wrote ''I Hate You'' for Channel 4, starring
Tanya Reynolds
Tanya Louise Reynolds (born 4 November 1991) is an English actress. She landed her first major role as a series regular on the Sky 1 comedy-drama ''Delicious (TV series), Delicious'' (2016–2019). Reynolds gained further prominence for portrayi ...
and Melissa Saint. It dropped on
All 4
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—requir ...
in September 2022 and aired on C4 in October 2022.
Popper had a small, uncredited role in
Edgar Wright
Edgar Howard Wright (born 18 April 1974) is an English filmmaker. He is known for his fast-paced and kinetic, satirical genre films, which feature extensive utilisation of expressive popular music, Steadicam tracking shots, dolly zooms and a ...
's 2004 film ''
Shaun of the Dead
''Shaun of the Dead'' is a 2004 zombie comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg. Pegg stars as Shaun, a downtrodden salesman in London who is caught in a zombie apocalypse with his friend Ed ( Nick Frost). The ...
'', in which he played a news reporter, and also appeared in Wright's next film, ''
Hot Fuzz
''Hot Fuzz'' is a 2007 action comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg. Starring Pegg, Nick Frost, Timothy Dalton, and Jim Broadbent, the film centres on two police officers investigating a series of mysteriou ...
'' (2007), credited as "Not Janine". He reprised his ''Look Around You'' character, Jack Morgan, for an appearance in the music video for
Frankie & The Heartstrings
Frankie & The Heartstrings are a Sunderland-based indie rock band formed in 2008. The band's debut album, ''Hunger'' was released on 21 February 2011, and debuted at No. 32 on the UK albums chart. Known for their partying, they were labelled as ...
' 2011 single "Hunger".
Books
Robert Popper wrote the books ''The Timewaster Letters'' and ''Return of the Timewaster Letters'' under the pseudonym Robin Cooper. The books were a set of madcap letters he wrote to weird associations and hobby groups. The books became bestsellers and have so far sold over 300,000 copies. The third "Robin Cooper" book, ''The Timewaster Diaries'', was published in 2007, was serialised on Radio 4's Book of the Week programme 16–20 July 2007, read by
Paul Whitehouse
Paul Julian Whitehouse (born 17 May 1958) is a Welsh actor, writer and comedian. He was one of the main stars of the BBC sketch comedy series '' The Fast Show'', and has also starred with Harry Enfield in the shows ''Harry & Paul'' and ''Harr ...
. ''The Timewaster Letters'' was released in the US in the summer of 2008 and there are a number of Robin Cooper Timewaster Phone Calls released on the web an
Popper's website
Tangerinegate
Popper was responsible for a minor hoax regarding
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
in February 2010 known as "Tangerinegate". Popper, who often makes prank phone calls, rang up
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
radio station
LBC
LBC (originally the London Broadcasting Company) is a British phone-in and talk radio station owned and operated by Global and based in its headquarters in London. It was the UK's first licensed commercial radio station, and began to broadca ...
claiming he had seen Brown throw a tangerine into a laminating machine during a fit of rage, breaking the machine. This hoax was reported as a true event in ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally.
It was fo ...
'' as well as being referenced (as 'alleged') on comedy news show ''
The Bubble''. The ''
Financial Times
The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'' (FT) website published a blog post, stating its belief that the story was a hoax. The FT also reported on the emergence of a computer animated version of the events from Hong Kong. Similar stories regarding Gordon Brown having temper tantrums were widely published in the British media during February 2010, following publicity about
Andrew Rawnsley
Andrew Nicholas James Rawnsley (born 5 January 1962) is a British political journalist and broadcaster. A columnist and chief political commentator for ''The Observer'', he has written two books on New Labour.
Early life
Rawnsley was born in Le ...
's book ''
The End of the Party''.
The ''Financial Times'' later issued a follow-up post acknowledging the hoax.
Awards
Friday Night Dinner
''Friday Night Dinner'' is a
British television sitcom written by Robert Popper and starring Tamsin Greig, Paul Ritter, Simon Bird, Tom Rosenthal, and Mark Heap. The comedy is focused on the regular dinner experience of the middle-class Bri ...
(Series 1)
Writer/Producer
Winner: Best Sitcom, Rose d'Or Awards 2012
Winner: Best Format, MIPCOM, 2012
Winner: Best Sitcom, Montreux Comedy Festival, 2011
Winner: RTS Craft Award, Best Editing, Sitcom 2011
Nominated: BAFTA, Best Sitcom
Nominated British Comedy Awards, Best Sitcom 2011
Nominated British Comedy Awards, Best New Comedy 2011
Nominated Best Writer, Comedy, RTS Awards 2011
Nominated Best Comedy, Broadcast Awards 2012
Nominated, Best Comedy, Televisual Awards, 2011
Nominated Best New Programme, Broadcast Awards 2012
Praise Tarvubr />
Short Film co/written/produced with Peter Serafinowicz
Winner: Best Comedy, Campfire Film Festival, Australia, 2009
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 ...
(Series 4)
Producer
Winner: BAFTA, Best Sitcom, 2008
Winner British Comedy Award, Best Comedy Series, 2007
Winner of the Monte Carlo International TV Festival, Best Comedy
Winner, Best Comedy Performance, RTS Awards, 2008
Nominated RTS Awards, Best Sit Com, 2008
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 ...
(Series 3)
Producer
Winner: British Comedy Awards, Best Comedy Series, 2006
Nominated: BAFTA, Situation Comedy 2006
Winner: South Bank Awards for Best Comedy, 2006
Nominated for a Broadcast Award, Best Comedy, 2006
Look Around You
''Look Around You'' is a comedic parody of British science television shows, devised and written by Robert Popper and Peter Serafinowicz, and narrated in the first series by Nigel Lambert. The first series of eight 10-minute shorts was shown in ...
(Series 2)
Co-Writer, Co-Star, Co-Producer, Co-Composer (with Peter Serafinowicz)
Winner: Best Comedy, Rose D’Or Awards, 2006
Winner: Arena Magazine Awards for Best Comedy Show 2005
DVD: Nominated for a DVDA award, Best Comedy DVD, 2006
Look Around You
''Look Around You'' is a comedic parody of British science television shows, devised and written by Robert Popper and Peter Serafinowicz, and narrated in the first series by Nigel Lambert. The first series of eight 10-minute shorts was shown in ...
(Series 1)
Co-Writer, Co-Star, Co-Producer, Co-Composer (with Peter Serafinowicz)
Nominated: BAFTA, Best Comedy Series, 2003
Nominated: British Comedy Award, Best New Comedy, 2003
Winner: Amazon.co.uk’s UK Comedy DVD of the year, 2003
Look Around You
''Look Around You'' is a comedic parody of British science television shows, devised and written by Robert Popper and Peter Serafinowicz, and narrated in the first series by Nigel Lambert. The first series of eight 10-minute shorts was shown in ...
: Calcium
Co-Writer, Co-Producer, Co-Composer with Peter Serafinowicz, 20-minute comedy short film, 2001
Winner: London Portobello Film Festival (Springfest)
Special Mentions: Milan, Leeds, and Bradford Film Festivals
Finalist: London Greenwich Film Festival
References
External links
*
''The Timewaster Letters'' webpageTarvuism's official websiteRadio Spirit World official website*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Popper, Robert
English male comedians
English male television actors
English television producers
People educated at Haberdashers' Boys' School
1967 births
Living people
English Jewish writers
Jewish male comedians