‘Britain’s first ever documentary about mental health…’
A lot has happened to Alan Partridge since he last graced our TV screens. It’s been four years (!) since the second season of This Time with Alan Partridge wrapped, and since then, we’ve had a couple of seasons of his excellent podcast, From the Oasthouse, a motivational speaking tour (entitled Stratagem) and the publication of his third autobiography, Big Beacon. The character is now a fully fledged multimedia brand. We are truly living in the Golden Age of Partridge. In Partridge’s world, much has changed, too. Having had his contract terminated by the BBC, he is back in the world of corporate presenting gigs. When he embarrassingly and hilariously faints whilst hosting an event for Bannroyd Animal Feed, Partridge decides to take stock and take a step back to review his mental health…
While I thoroughly enjoyed This Time, seeing him being successful (albeit only relatively briefly) is not my preferred state of the character. Partridge can only be at his most Partridge if he is bearing a significant grudge, trying to pretend his life hasn’t fallen apart or both. This is why the podcast format suits him so well. It allows Steve Coogan and the Gibbons brothers to really tap into the inner psyche of one of comedy’s greatest ever creations. Well, this latest foray into broadcasting sees Partridge at his defensive, bewildered best. He attempts to patch things up with his hapless former colleague, Sidekick Simon (Tim Key), to no avail. He returns to the BBC to clear the air, but ends up making a fool of himself. Perhaps most tragically of all, his pseudo-relationship with local Karen, Katrina (Katherine Kelly), also goes south. Luckily, through all this hardship, Partridge has his loyal assistant, Lynn Benfield (Felicity Montagu), by his side. It’s truly joyous to see these two characters together again, and the scenes that they share are often the most effective (at one point, Alan cruelly forces Lynn to reapply for her job, but soon realises that he would be lost without her).
The wonderfully titled How Are You? It’s Alan (Partridge), is Partridge at peak Partridge. Partridge in exelcis. And it’s all the better for it.
