This and That with Mike Fitzgerald 09/06/2010 - Diary of a Nobody should be enjoyed by everybody

First time I saw Hugh Bonneville it was in “Notting Hill”. You know, the film where most of the cast is impossibly British, except for the Welsh one and one of the Baldwin’s. Hugh was probably the most British of the British saps in the film. He also had great comic timing and was almost certainly the best thing about the dull sitcom “Courting Alex”. It was a very pleasant surprise for me then that I stumbled across Hugh in “Diary of a Nobody” (BBC 4)

“Diary of a Nobody” was originally a comic novel published in 1892 written by George Grossmith. The story follows the fictitious diaries of Charles Pooter. Pooter is a lower middle class bank clerk who takes himself far too seriously, often to hilarious consequences.

This adaptation is a one man show where Bonneville reads out the diary entries in soliloquy form. This has all the potential to be rather dull, but it really isn’t. For one, Bonneville is an excellent actor and plays the character with such conviction that you soon get hooked on the story. And there is a story here, a very well woven and interesting one.

The story mostly centres on Pooter trying to improve his status in society but there are numerous side plots, such as the considerable hassle his son Lupin causes him on a daily basis. All these characters feel remarkably fleshed out considering we never actually see them at any point. Bonneville has the ability to make the mundane sound interesting and make the interesting sound essential. He also has the ability to give you an accurate impression of a character without ever seeing them. I hate to use the term “tour de force” because it’s kind of been beaten into the ground but I can’t really think of a better way to describe Bonneville’s performance in this.

So what are the negatives? Well, for some the pace may be a little slow and some people won’t enjoy the “one man show” aspect. But overall I think if you give the show a chance you’ll enjoy it. Last I checked the show was still up on BBCi Player at this link http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/search/?q=diary%20of%20a%20nobody . Give it a try!

Fancy a Big Brother update? Well you’re getting one anyway so shoosh your noise and listen up! So Sunshine, the hippie who wouldn’t share her crisps, got voted out last weekend. I was actually a little bit upset, if only because she caused controversy amongst other members of the house. That and the hissy fit thrown by Shabbi when Cheiveaaarrrrggggghhhhhhhhhh got voted out would have made the episode with her hat look like a sneeze.

Oh yeah, Shabbi the lesbian who severely needs anger management. I watched the whole hat episode with a friend of mine who has the hots for Shabbi. Housemates were told they had to give something up to get tobacco. Big Brother wanted Shabbi’s hat. Shabbi wasn’t pleased about this and pretty much tore up an entire section of the house in frustration. During this crazy outburst and turned to my friend and asked “still want to hit that?”. I didn’t get a definitive answer.

I personally found the whole thing very entertaining so I’m quite dismayed that last nights episode seemed to suggest that Shabbi has left the house. Both her and Chievaarrrgggghhhhhhh went to the diary room and asked to leave in the morning after quiet girl Ife decided to not be so quiet any more and throw a hissy of her own. However, the “next time” feature at the end of the episode showed only Shabbi leaving. Could this mean more drama tonight? I bleedin’ hope so!

So yeah, I’m actually still quite into it. But, if all the most interesting people keep leaving or being voted out then I doubt I’ll stick around. If only Josie, Ife and Corin are left then I am outta there.