The Day Today

This article is about the 1994 UK TV programme. For the day, seetoday (disambiguation).

Not to be confused withToday Is the DayorToday's the Day.

The Day Today
Created by	Chris Morris Armando Iannucci
Directed by	Andrew Gillman
Starring	Chris Morris Steve Coogan Rebecca Front Doon Mackichan Patrick Marber David Schneider
Narrated by	Michael Alexander St John
Music by	Jonathan Whitehead Chris Morris
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No.of series	1
No.of episodes	6
Production
Running time	30 minutes
Production company	Talkback Productions
Original release
Network	BBC2
Release	19 January(1994-01-19)– 23 February 1994(1994-02-23)
Related
On the Hour Brass Eye Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge

The Day Todayis aBritish comedytelevision showthat parodies televisionnewsandcurrent affairs programmes,broadcast from 19 January to 23 February 1994 onBBC2.It was created byArmando IannucciandChris Morrisand is an adaptation of the radio programmeOn the Hour,which was broadcast onBBC Radio 4between 9 August 1991 and 28 May 1992 and was also written by Morris, Iannucci,Steven Wells,Andrew Glover,Stewart Lee,Richard Herring,David Quantick,and the cast. ForThe Day Today,Peter Baynhamjoined the writing team, and Lee and Herring were replaced byGraham LinehanandArthur Mathews.The principal cast ofOn the Hourwas retained forThe Day Today.

The Day Todayis composed of six half-hour episodes and a selection of shorter five-minute slots recorded as promotional trailers for the longer episodes. The series won many awards including Morris winning the 1994British Comedy Awardfor Best Newcomer. All six episodes are available onBBC DVD,having previously been issued onVHS.

Format

Each episode is presented as a mock news programme, and the episodes rely on a combination of ludicrous fictitious news stories, covered with a serious, quasi-professional attitude. Each episode revolves around one or two major stories, which are pursued throughout the programme, along with a host of other stories usually only briefly referred to. In addition, the programme dips into other channels from time to time, presents clips of fictitious upcomingBBCprogrammes, and conducts street interviews with members of the public, in a segment titledSpeak Your Brains.

The programme frequently comments on other programmes, most often a spoofsoap operacalledThe Bureau,set in a 24-hourbureau de change,incorporating clichéd soap opera-style plots, which apparently produces and airs 2,000 episodes between the first and third episodes ofThe Day Todayand becomes a hit inItaly.The programme also contains clips from a spoofdocumentaryseries calledThe Pool,featuring a publicswimming pooland its neurotic staff, Morris' character explaining thatThe Day Todayhas funded a documentary on every public building in the country. The final episode features reports from the fictitious documentaryThe Office,which follows office workers as they go on a retreat with an efficiency expert. Other non-news segments of the programme include the occasional "physical cartoons" ofcurrent eventsset in the studio. Morris frequently parodies entirely separate channels, including RokTV (spoofingMTV); reporting on the fictitious and psychotically violentAfrican-AmericanrapperFur-Q; andGenutainment,a segment which reports on a sheepdog averting ahelicopterdisaster in a parody of the real-life rescue show999.

The programme occasionally features producerArmando Iannucciand writerPeter Baynham,the latter playing Gay Desk reporter Colin Poppshed, among other characters.John Thomson,Graham Linehan,Tony Haase andMinnie Driveralso appear. Michael Alexander St John provides the voiceover stings, as he did inOn the Hour.

Much of the programme's humour derives from its bombastic style of reporting and its unnecessarily elaborate graphics.The theme tune is deliberately overdramatic and self-important, and the opening sequence of each episode is lengthy and complex, a parody of the overuse of computer-generated credit sequences on news programmes (as the graphics throughout were developed and designed byITN).One episode presents false adverts featuring depictions ofThe Day Todaybeing broadcast in bizarre locations: the night sky overParis,the sides of theGreat PyramidinEgypt,the "International Hackenbacker Building" inChicago,and the handles of 400 millionpetrol pumpsacross the globe; this is a parody ofCNN International's promotions advertising the hotels in which the channel could be seen. Morris presents aggressively, often arguing with reporters and insulting guests on-air, and at one stage provoking a war betweenAustraliaandHong Kong.

The programme frequently lambastsConservativegovernment politicians in office at the time of the programme's production. Those repeatedly lampooned by the series includeJohn Major,Michael Heseltine(who had his picture swapped with an old Bosnian woman),Chris Patten,Douglas Hurd,Virginia Bottomley,andMichael Portillo,in addition to US PresidentBill Clinton.LabourpoliticianPaul Boatengalso appears briefly in an interview about the fictitious musician 'Herman the Tosser'.

Each episode is brought to an interrupted ending with just enough time to quickly overview the following day's newspapers (a parody ofJeremy Paxmanon BBC2'sNewsnight) printed with absurd headlines such as "Lord Mayor's pirouette in fire chief wife decapitation" or "Russia elects cobweb" and a final humorously misused video. Each episode ends in a familiar style for news reports, with the camera panning out as the studio lights dim on Morris. Instead of shuffling his papers in clichéd newsreader style, Morris takes advantage of the dimming lights to perform bizarre activities; putting many pens in his jacket pockets, placing atourniquetaround his arm in preparation to injectheroin,removing his normal hair to reveal long blonde locks underneath, and, in the last episode, prostrating himself before the newsdesk.

In addition to the characterAlan Partridgeand many of the cast and writers, there are other crossovers between the fictional worlds ofOn the Hour,The Day Todayand the radio and television series ofKnowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge.With the exception of Patrick Marber, the entire main cast ofThe Day Todaytake guest roles inI'm Alan Partridge,in addition to writers Peter Baynham, Arthur Mathews and Graham Linehan. Marber is, however seen in a photograph on the wall of Peartree Productions.

Notable coverage

The programme features surreal news items. Examples include:

• Reports that explosive-packed terrorist dogs were being released in London by theIRA.These "bomb dogs" wreak havoc, and prompt the British police to begin executing any dog on sight. This story is accompanied by a clip ofSteve Cooganimpersonating aGerry Adams-esqueSinn Féinleader, spouting rhetoric while inhalingheliumto subtract credibility from his statement. This was a satirical comment onbroadcasters' responses to the law at the time,which prevented any Sinn Féin spokesperson from being heard in radio and television; their words would instead be dubbed by an actor speaking in a neutral tone of voice.
• Coverage of a feud betweenJohn Majorandthe Queen.The feud culminates in physical fighting between the two inBuckingham Palace,videoed by a secret reporter who comments on "loud swearing voices", "the sounds of bodies falling against furniture", and the "Prime Minister leaving with bleeding legs". Early coverage of the incident worsens the situation, and prompts Morris' character to air apropagandareel reserved fornational emergencies;film consisting of a sequence of subtly humorous scenarios (stockbrokers spend "playtime" outside theLondon Stock Exchangejumping and skipping; a paramedic comforting an injured old woman gives her a brief kiss on the cheek; a man with a cigarette gets the offer of a light from a group of six-year-olds), all set against a backdrop ofpatrioticBritish music ( "Thaxted"byGustav Holst), in an effort to boost British national solidarity. The feud ultimately ends with the Queen and her entourage marching onDowning Streetto beat up John Major, and after the close of the incident, theRoyal Mailissues acommemorative stampfeaturing the Queen and John Major kissing.
• Coverage of an ongoing rail crisis, following a train trapped on the tracks inHampshire.Trapped by a jammedsemaphore signal,the stranded train rapidly becomes the scene ofanarchyandpaganism,its passengers reverting to an animalistic state.
• In the fifth episode, Morris provokes a war betweenAustraliaandHong Kongas much of the episode revolves around bombastically over-the-top reports on the resulting conflict in a parody of the extensive and overdramaticmedia coverage of the Gulf War.Subsequent reports of the war delivered from "Eastmanstown in the Upper Cataracts, on the Australio-Hong-Kong border", are humorously blown out of proportion. At the end of the episode, a false advertisement features a three-tapeVHSset of the war produced byThe Day Today,featuring footage of the war and its origins, set against a backdrop of inappropriatepop music,a parody oftabloid television's tendency to "dumb down" stories and present serious events in a lighthearted manner.

Other stories included a report of two French boys who break into theRoman Catholic Church's computer databanks in order to change the Catholiccatechism;an urgent report that theBritish poundhad been stolen; reports of wild horses disrupting theLondon Underground;and reports thatCretehad been kidnapped byLibyaand thatJapanhad manufactured 16 identical Japans.

Main characters

• Christopher Morris (Chris Morris) – the newsreader. Morris has several computers giving him the news instantly from around the world, and often interrupts segments in order to break in with more important stories. He is confrontational and aggressive, even provoking a war betweenAustraliaandHong Kong.The character was described by theBritish Film Instituteas "a gleeful, bloodlust hybrid ofJeremy PaxmanandMichael Buerk".InThe Day Today,Morris reprises his overzealous newsreader role fromOn the Hour.
• Collaterlie Sisters (alternative spelling: "Collately Sisters" ) (Doon Mackichan) – business correspondent. As satire of the incomprehensible nature of business news to the layperson, Sisters talks nonsensically about the world of business, padding out her reports with meaninglessjargon( "Trading remained succulent for the rest of the day." ) She uses bewildering graphics, mainly when addressing thecurrency market,using such aids as the "Currency Cat", the "Currency Kidney", and the "International Finance Arse". Sisters also employs odd syntaxes, reciting strangely arranged sentences in a semi-robotic deadpan fashion (often smirking at arbitrary points in the monologue) and frequently name-checking Chris in the middle of her reports. During her reports, a news ticker scrolls across the bottom, displaying meaningless symbols. Morris can sometimes be heard making scathing remarks about her. In one episode, he asks for Sisters to be taken off his monitor as "I don't want to see her face".
• Sylvester Stuart (David Schneider) – the weatherman. Only Stuart's head is seen, usually floating on a graphic background. He describes the weather with elliptical analogies such as "That's about as warm as going into a heated drawing room after chopping some wood" and describing gloomy weather as "a bit like waking up next to a corpse." His reports have included the "Metball", apinball-style graphic of theBritish Isleswith Stuart's face as the ball, and another featuring the "Weather Collar", a large collar with the British Isles painted on it, rotating his head to face different areas of the country.
• Barbara Wintergreen (Rebecca Front) – correspondent onThe Day Today's American sister channel CBN. Speaking with an exaggerated American accent, Wintergreen reports on the multipleexecutionsofmass murdererChapman Baxter (Patrick Marber) by a variety of bizarre methods, and on US couples having aprostheticpregnancy.All her reports make use of convolutedpunsand interviews with stereotypicalstock charactersin American culture (includingSteve Cooganas dimwittedSouthernerAlvin Holler). Wintergreen's reports end with a joke and pouting at the camera. The CBN reports are presented in a different format to other reports shown in the episodes; her segments are made using different shooting and editing techniques which mimic the appearance of American news, while the content of her reports satirises common British perceptions of the American media. The segments went through excessive processing to accentuate the reduction in picture quality typical ofstandards conversionof the time. The character of Barbara Wintergreen originated inOn the Hour,which also featured a character identical to Chapman Baxter, played by Marber and named "Daimler Jeffries".
• Peter O'Hanraha-hanrahan (Patrick Marber) – economic correspondent. O'Hanraha-hanrahan is extremely incompetent, and his reports end with him having to admit their fundamental inaccuracy to an unforgiving Morris. Examples include a claim that an American factory with only 25,000 workers had made 35,000 redundant; a failed effort to conduct a light-hearted interview with a shippingminister;and a report in which O'Hanraha-hanrahan claims to have conducted an interview with an elusive economics minister in theGerman language,his ignorance of which is then exposed. O'Hanraha-hanrahan resembles former BBC newsreaderRichard Whitmore;his name is inspired by that ofBrian Hanrahan.The character originated from writing byStewart LeeandRichard Herring,in the second series ofOn the Hour.
• Rosy May (Rebecca Front) – environmental correspondent. The bearded Rosy May presents theEnviromationslot. Her stories include theskydetaching from thehorizon;a mobilecemetery;a ban onwavehunting; and arefrigeratorpowered byearthworms.Her segments end with a new-age style epigram, such as "Tread not on the forest leaves, for you tread on my face". May never interacts with other members of the news team. The character originated inOn the Hour,although in that series, her segment is titledGreen Desk.(The CD releases ofOn the Hourspell the character's name as "Rosie May", but theEnviromationident inThe Day Todayidentifies her as "Rosy May".)
• Jaques-'Jaques' Liverot (Patrick Marber) – resident French commentator. Depicted as a stereotypicalpostmodernistphilosopher,eternally smoking alone in a dark and gloomy corner of the studio, Liverot comments on the news throughout the programme, using a series of pseudo-existentialistbons mots.He asksrhetorical questions,such as "If we could seepolitics,what would it look like? "and makes philosophical statements, such as" An old man stands naked in front of a mirror, eating soup. He is a fool. "
• Valerie Sinatra (Rebecca Front) – travel correspondent. Sinatra works inThe Day Todaytravel pod, perched at the top of a tower a mile above the centre ofGreat Britain.The traffic reports cover accidents such as a piece of pie blocking the road and coverage of an ongoing crash that has been in progress south ofNewcastle upon Tynefor several weeks; police marksmen to shoot speeding drivers in the chin; as well as general traffic reports including a claim that workers have finishedcobblingtheM25and that cars are being slowed down by their own lights. Morris flirts with her at the start and end of her reports.
• Brant (David Schneider) – the physicalcartoonistfromThe Daily Telegraph.Brantsatirisesthe news using cartoon backgrounds and then acting as the main character in the cartoon itself. His cartoons rely on elaborate physical metaphors which have to be labelled to render them comprehensible; an example is his cartoon of Britain'shandover of Hong Kong,whereChris Patten,"making a monkey of himself", is represented asKing (Hong) Kongclimbing theBritish Empire State Building,swatting at aeroplanes representingChinaand the handover year of 1997. Each cartoon ends with hissignature.The visual style is reminiscent ofNicholas Garland,a realDaily Telegraphpolitical cartoonist,and the cumbersome labelling ofpolitical cartoonsgenerally.
• Alan Partridge(Steve Coogan) – sports correspondent. Partridge is an old-school lower-middle-classConservativewho has little knowledge of the sports he is covering, and frequently makes critical errors on-air which reveal this. However, unlike the similarly incompetent Peter O'Hanraha-hanrahan, he is adept enough at improvisation to often mask his ignorance of the subject at hand. Morris makes a point of making Partridge appear uncomfortable on-air: in one episode, his sports reports are interrupted three times by Morris; in another, Morris openly humiliates Partridge on-air; and in the final episode, Morris atypically compliments Partridge on his report, and goes so far as to kiss him on the mouth. The character had previously appeared, portrayed by Coogan, in theRadio 4showsOn the HourandKnowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridgeand would go on to star in the TV seriesKnowing Me, Knowing You... with Alan Partridge,I'm Alan Partridgeand the movieAlan Partridge: Alpha Papa.
• Ted Maul (Chris Morris) – the roving reporter who later appears inBrass Eyemade his first appearance inThe Day Todayas a grey-haired, moustachioed veteran, with a very enthusiastically aggressive style of reporting. His reports include one oncannibalismin the police force, and a long-running report covering commuters trapped on a train, who turn topaganismand violence during their wait on the line.

One-off correspondents in the series have absurd names, and include Hellwyn Ballard (Armando Iannucci), Iggy Pop Barker (Marber), Romella Belx (Front), Dônnnald Bethl'hem (Marber), Eugene Fraxby (Morris), Suzanna Gekkaloys (Mackichan), Pheeona Haahlahm (Mackichan), Collin Haye (Morris), Remedy Malahide (Front),SpartacusMills (Coogan), Colin Poppshed (Peter Baynham), Beverley Smax (Mackichan) and Suki Bapswent (Morris in drag, as part of theRokTVspoof which also features Harfynn Teuport, with Morris putting on a generic Dutch accent). David Schneider also playsThe Day Today's News Dancer, who performs an energeticinterpretive danceroutine as an accompaniment to some news stories.

Cast and crew

Cast

• Chris Morrisas Christopher Morris, Ted Maul, other roles
• Steve CooganasAlan Partridge,Alvin Holler, Mr. Hennity ofThe Bureau,Spartacus Mills, other roles
• Rebecca Frontas Barbara Wintergreen, Rosy May, Valerie Sinatra, Ange ofThe Bureau,other roles
• Doon Mackichanas Collaterlie Sisters, Maria ofThe Bureau,other roles
• Patrick Marberas Peter O'Hanraha-hanrahan, Jaques-'Jaques' Liverot, Chapman Baxter, Guy ofThe Bureau,other roles
• David Schneideras Sylvester Stewart, Brant, Alex ofThe Bureau,other roles
• Michael Alexander St John – voiceover

The Day Todayalso features appearances by show co-creatorArmando Iannucci,also byPeter Baynham,Jean Ainslie,John Thomson,Graham Linehan,Alan Stocks andMinnie Driver.

Crew

• Chris Morris– writing, music, production
• Armando Iannucci – writing, production
• Peter Baynham– writing
• Andrew Glover – additional material
• Steven Wells– additional material
• David Quantick– additional material
• Graham Linehan– additional material
• Arthur Mathews– additional material
• Andrew Gillman – direction
• Jonathan Whitehead– music

Episodes

No.	Title	Original air date
1	"Main News Attack"	19 January 1994(1994-01-19)
Features reports onPrince Charlesvolunteering to go to prison, the London Jam Festival, bullying in theChurch of England,medievalalternative medicine,and asheep dogpiloting an out of control helicopter. Also features Barbara Wintergreen's report on theElvis-styled execution of Americanserial killerChapman Baxter, and Alan Partridge covering theTour de Franceandboxing.
2	"The Big Report"	26 January 1994(1994-01-26)
Features reports on the junior minister for health resigning,Marlon Brandobeing sold at auction inSotheby's,illegal back street dentists, and Peter O'Hanraha-hanrahan reporting on the new European trade quota rates. Also features part one ofThe Pool(a documentary set in apublic swimming pool), a segment from RokTV (featuring Morris as presenters Harfynn Teuport and Sukie Bapswent,NirvanafrontmanKurt Cobain,rapper Fur Q, andRolling Stoneeditor Derrin Zikks), and Alan Partridge covering thehorse racingatMarple.
3	"Meganews"	2 February 1994(1994-02-02)
Features reports on an infestation ofwild horsesin theLondon Underground,theBBC's newsoap operaThe Bureau(replaces theNine O'Clock News), a fight betweenthe QueenandJohn Major(with anemergency broadcastrelated to the event), and an air jam overHeathrow.Also features Barbara Wintergreen's report on Chapman Baxter being executed viamarriage,a continuation ofThe Pool,and Alan Partridge interviewingfootballplayers and an Australian femaleshow jumper.
4	"Stretchcast"	9 February 1994(1994-02-09)
Features reports on suspicions that British police officers are eating their suspects, Peter O'Hanraha-hanrahan interviewing thegovernment ministerfor ships regarding recent accusations, theIRA's use ofexplosiveshidden in dogs, the immense popularity ofThe BureauinItaly,theHome Officereleasing theSortedvideos aimed at young people, andnear-death experiences.Also features Barbara Wintergreen reporting on the natus (a method ofprostheticpregnancy), and Alan Partridge's countdown to the1994 World Cup.
5	"Magnifevent"	16 February 1994(1994-02-16)
Features reports on theBritish poundbeing stolen, the plummeting ratings ofThe Bureau,theclampingof the homeless in London, a reminiscence of events in 1944, government ministers contracting a disease that inhibits reading, and thetrade agreementin a subsequent war betweenAustraliaandHong Kong.Also features Barbara Wintergreen reporting on Chapman Baxter being executed by the reanimated corpse of his last victim, and Alan Partridge riding with a femalerallydriver.
6	"Newsatrolysis" / "Factgasm"	23 February 1994(1994-02-23)
Features reports onBuckingham Palaceculling40 members of staff, passengers stuck on a train inHampshireand resorting topaganism,Peter O'Hanraha-hanrahan reporting onGeneral Motorsmaking 35,000 workersredundant,Colin Poppshed reporting from thegaydesk, the decline of theNHS,and a roundup of international news. Also featuresThe Office(a documentary set at the office of apharmaceuticalcompany), and Alan Partridge coveringself-defence.

Reception

The Day Todaywas described as "achingly funny" by theDaily Mirrorand "the freshest and funniest comedy sinceMonty Python"byThe Independent.NME's review was mixed, calling it "not exactly hilarious".

DVD bonus material

TheDVDfeatures extensive bonus material including short mini-episodes featuring original material which were broadcast the night before the original broadcast of each episode, the original pilot episode, and anOpen Universityprogramme about news presentation which includes an analysis of how and why parodies such asThe Day Todaywork.

The DVD also includes several "easter eggs"including: a version of aState of the Union AddressbyGeorge W. Bush,edited to make United States policy seem insanely belligerent; a new audio discussion between Morris and Alan Partridge discussing bizarre theories of howDiana, Princess of Wales,andJohn F. Kennedydied; a further discussion between Morris and Partridge about the environment; a reunion of Morris, Partridge, Brant, Peter O'Hanraha-hanrahan, Collaterlie Sisters and Valerie Sinatra; and another audio sketch featuring Peter O'Hanraha-hanrahan pretending to file a report from theWorld Trade Centercovering up the fact that he had overslept, while blithely unaware about theattacks on 11 September 2001have just taken place. Pressing the Angle button during the third episode unveils brief, intermittent visual descriptions of the episode byAndy Hodgsonand Jennifer Reinfrank, whilst a half-hour interview withSteve Coogan,conducted byMark Radcliffeon 17 January 1994 edition of hisradio show,can be accessed through the extended scenes menu.

External links

• The Day TodayatBBC Online
• The Day TodayatBBC OnlineComedy Guide
• The Day TodayatIMDb
• The Day Todayat theBFI'sScreenonline
• The Day Today at the Dedicated Alan Partridge Site