What can i say? Every line is pure gold and quotable. This is the best comedy series i ever watched Nothing can beat scenes like when Alan does his boot video and a cow is dropped on him. The way he says i m trapped under a cow. I could go on forever Whenever i am in a bad mood i get out my Alan partridge stuff and watch it and laugh my ass off every time. I think all the Sascha baron Cohen's and Ricky gervais owe so much to Alan partridge The influence this character had on the comedy scene is incredible and can t be overestimated. I am German and i English people thank you for giving me something that funny The German comedy scene is full of awfulness And everybody who hasn t watched this i can guarantee you that you will not regret it

In On the Hour and The Day Today, the character of Alan Partridge is introduced as a bumbling, easily exasperated sports reporter. The audience gets a more focused look at him with his "failed" chat show Knowing Me, Knowing You… with Alan Partridge, but the character does not really "come into his own" until the sitcom I'm Alan Partridge.Sometimes mistakenly labeled as a mockumentary, I'm Alan Partridge is immediately removed from that label by its use of a laugh-track. In KMKYWAP, the audience sits in the same studio as Alan's, and he often reacts to their laughter as though to heckling. With IAP, the hand-held camera-work does somewhat mimic that of a documentary, but that non-diegetic tittering causes a riff in the realism of the show, as Coogan and other cast members will time delivery in accordance with the track. Partridge is thus occasionally portrayed as a bit more of a "doof" than he might have been otherwise, in his "hamming it up" like other sitcom characters.In the first series of IAP, though the laugh-track is a bit jarring, there is still a deep sadness to Alan Partridge. He still often acts like a buffoon, but the series is emotionally connected by his fear of failure (to get his chat show renewed). This is represented visually by a dream motif, depicting Alan gyrating in a strip club for the BBC's Tony Hayers and other television executives. Alan will often act like a fool to try to avoid this nightmare, but as the other characters (particularly Sophie and Ben of the Linton Travel Tavern) are aware of how outlandish Alan is acting, the realism is reaffirmed. Realism is not a necessity for a comedy show, but as Alan Partridge was initially conceived as a lampoon of a particular type of media personality, it is important for him to be grounded in reality. Thus, the world is not wacky, but a desperate Alan Partridge is. This is particularly revealed when, so determined to please some Irish television executives, Alan shows them to the house of a random fan in lieu of his own, and that aficionado ends up being an obsessive stalker. In IAP, however, even this "crazy" fan pales in comparison to Partridge's reactions to him.The first series meanders in terms of quality, with the best episodes directly connected to Partridge's fear of failure (and thus his unhappiness), and the worst feeling undeveloped and rather pointless (in "Basic Alan," a bored Alan makes for a bored audience). The last episode brings the series to a nice close, with Alan so desperate for his career not to die, that he uses a dead man's hand to sign a contract. The cackling audience does not know whether Alan will succeed, but they do know how low he will stoop to ensure it.In the second series of IAP, filmed five years after the first (2002), Alan is immediately brought back to his "roots" in the premiere, by giving a talk at his childhood school. But these are roots the viewers know nothing about, having never been established in the first series or before. Likewise, this episode is largely about exposition – Alan's career got somehow even worse, he had a breakdown, and he got fat—all sort of "funny" things that would leave a man as fragile as Alan shattered. Instead, Alan, having "bounced back," careens around, acting doofy as ever. Yet unlike the first series, in which almost every character seems to act as a rational foil to Alan's out of touch personality, a parade of guest stars enter into the world of IAP, each seemingly trying to outdo Alan with their wackiness. There is Alan's young Ukranian girlfriend Sonja (Amelia Bullmore), who in her broken English constantly plays practical jokes that even Alan knows are shamefully unfunny. There is Stephen Mangan as Dan, a seeming younger incarnate of Partridge's personality, yet no longer is it crazy enough just that there exists another human being with Alan's god-awful disposition, and Alan ends up the saner one of the pair, as Dan is into orgies and "sex festivals." The undercurrent of melancholy in first series is replaced by a more "tragic" back-story, and "front"-stories obsessed with Alan not just embarrassing himself, but everyone else embarrassing themselves as well.(Also, the former Linton staff-member Michael, someone whom Alan never previously seemed to like or be able to understand, is elevated to the spot of Alan's best friend.) In the last episode of the second series, as Alan's book is pulped and officially regarded as a failure, the tragedy mentioned in the premiere is finally dealt with. As Alan is confronted with failure once again, he has a series of flash backs to his "Fat Alan" stage. He is invited onto a Christian radio show, and in an attempt to not look like the biggest failure there, he insults the other guest in exceedingly outlandish ways. Yet instead of responding with some bigger, hammier reaction, the other guest stops him like a rational human being would, and leaves. A sense of realism is restored. The Christian radio host remarks on Alan's book ending every anecdote with the line "Needless to say, I had the last laugh." IAP's second series seems to suffer from this obsession as well. In order for IAP to be not only funny but compelling, the characters do not need to try to outdo each other with their wacky hijincks and clever jokes. The goofy, but more subdued Alan Partridge of The Day Today and Knowing Me, Knowing You can already bring laughs just with his exasperation. But IAP's second series, so desperate to make the audience snicker, largely dismisses realism, and in doing so, reduces much character quality and consistency, and Partridge's fear of failure does in a way come true.SERIES ONE: ********/10 (8/10) SERIES TWO: *******/10 (7/10)

I'm Alan Partridge follows hot on the heels of Alan's T.V outing in 'Knowing Me Knowing You! With Alan Partridge' (KMKYWAP) His last T.V appearance left many questions unanswered, this series answers some of those though not all of them.Series 1 --- The first series of I'm Alan Partridge set about showing Partridge in a different light, a light unseen by viewers ever before, in his previous adventures whether it be on the radio on 'On the hour' at the sports desk on 'The Day Today', or hosting his chat-show 'KMKYWAP' on the BBC viewers saw Alan at his shameful best during his work on air, I'm Alan Partridge set about giving the viewers an insight into the mind of one of T.V biggest catastrophes and Norwich's most infamous figures. This was done (as stated on the DVD Audio extras) as a documentary about how Alan copes with life just over 2 years after his chat show was cancelled (Xmas 94), now in 1997 Alan plots to make a comeback to mainstream T.V with a 2nd series of 'KMKYWAP' to do this he must convince BBC head of programming 'Tony Hayers' who he punched with a turkey on his last show at Xmas 94 that he merits a 2nd series, we find out he has returned to radio with the 4.30-7.00am slot on Radio Norwich, he has been chucked out by his wife Carol, is unwanted by his children Fernando & Denise and now resides in the 'Linton Travel Tavern' due the ingeniousness of it's location in that it's equidistant between London and Norwich.During this series we see the state of which Alan has become mentally more than anything else, a series during which Alan gets his Rover 800 vandalised for the third time, having a Valentine's day date with his secretary, presenting a corporate video for 'Hamilton's waterbreaks', walking up the A12 for 12 bottles of wind-screen washer fluid, meeting up with his biggest fan and judging a vegetable competition at the 'Swaffham country fayre'.Series 2 --- Series 2 sees Alan nearly 4 years after series 1 ended, we find out Alan now resides within a caravan ('doh', sorry Static home), has the third best slot on Radio Norwich, hosts a military based quiz-show on UK Conquest called Skirmish and most importantly has a girlfriend who is 13 years younger than him 'back-of-the-net' In this Series we see Alan doing a presentation at his old school, hosting a gala event for Dante's of Reading, giving out an award at the 'Norfolk bravery awards', having a 'Bond-a-thon', taking his girlfriend to U2 lead-man Bono's house and attending his PA Lynn's baptism.My personal opinion: ----- Many a time do we brand something with the word genius yet realize in fact it can be more accurately defined as good when truly analyzed yet genius is the only word to describe this comedy accurately.Why? What makes this comedy different from others out there and most importantly why do I and other viewers of the series think so too...There are many factors but the most important for me is the blend and diversity of opinion and input in the series from the cast crew right through the director and it's production.This is a comedy which you can see has been clearly well thought-out and has had huge amount of effort and detail put into it, from an immaculate set especially the locations from series 1 (Travel tavern, 5 bedroom house, etc), including great lighting a backdrops used, credit also to a casting crew which gel well and act off each other superbly, with each actor playing their part to perfection and using their individual skills to their up-most effect, Coogan's dry wit and Sarcasm, Montagu's facial expressions, Greenalls vocal impressions, etc... these maximise the feel of both series in a way which has the ability to immerse yourself into all things Partridge, and finally to the combined talents of the writers Coogan, Iannucci & Baynham who have created a truly remarkable pair of comedy series.Rarely does a comedy have the ability to make a person cry and yet laugh (Ambivalence) at the same yet this comedy does just that.The last thing that really makes the show what it is and made it a pioneer for modern comedy shows like Spaced, The Office, Coupling, etc… is that I'm Alan Partridge is a comedy that has been given a cast-iron direction in terms of its audience maximizing its appeal to those that enjoy its humour – but most of all understand it!!! It is because of this that I'm Alan Partridge is a show that could just not be a favourite with a mainstream T.V. audience, a testament most notably to it's dark and rather painful nature, nevertheless this is a show that provided the person understands it's content has the undoubted ability to make them howl with laughter... and that my is a guaranteed promise thanks a work of pure comedy genius!!!

Now I know that a lot of people dislike Alan Partridge more than they hate Bush and Blair but what I can't seem to understand is why? Probably because people don't get his sense of humour and the way he explains things. I remember once an American was saying `when watching any episode of Alan Partridge, I doesn't have a clue what his jokes mean' and that's why he didn't like him. When I watch Friends they all tell a joke about an American sportsmen or something American sometimes which I don't understand but I will still laugh along with it because it sounded funny anyway. You have to give comedians time when it comes to sitcom's because if you don't then you will never get them. Alan Partridge is somebody we all have in us. Because he is so sad he doesn't care what anybody thinks and says what is on his mind at that particular moment. There is a history of depression in Alan but he chooses to ignore it and because he does he becomes frustrated by everything around him. If we all lived in our own world like Alan then you have to ask yourself where would you're life be at that time and moment. Believe it or not he is an icon to people who have a lot to say but don't want to. When looking at Alan Partridge and the people he comes across there is always a part of him that is bitter or he finds a fault within that person and always let's them know what it is that he dislikes whether they are right and wrong which is what we wish we cold all do.I am interested in why Knowing Me Knowing You is not known as the first series of Alan Partridge. The series after KMKY is called Alan Partridge Series 1 and then you have series 2. It makes no sense what so ever to me because I will always look upon KNKY as the first series. Some people say that its his introduction and not apart of Alan Partridge series 1 and 2 but it is because KMKY tells us how Alan got to who he is in Series 1 and 2. I mean Blackadder has four terrific series but all of them are different as far as story goes apart from having something to do with Royalty but it is still known as series 1,2,3 and 4 because they are apart of each other through Blackadder so why isn't KNKY apart of the Partridge series. We could go on forever but I think Steve Coogan have confused themselves, bless their hearts.After seeing Series 2 of Alan Partridge, the one after KNKY, Oh yeah!!!I thought how can Coogan out do Partridge anymore than he already has. Well the first episode is the best Partridge episode ever so it was off to a flying start. The more the series went on the worse I thought it got but I straight away after viewing the last one starting going through it again and got more in touch with the jokes because I am not the smartest and quickest tool in the shed but after viewing it many times as a whole I think it is the best one out of the three because it brings this new chapter of Alan's life and he is getting much more older and much more retro the more he ages so it gets funnier. Steve Coogan did say he was killing off his character in the last episode and when it came I was dreading it because I don't like it when they do that because it's an easy way to stop running the program. Albert didn't die in the last Steptoe and Son, Basil Fawlty didn't have a heart attack which was sooner or later coming after his scuffles with the guests but I was pleasantly surprised to see that he didn't actually kill him off. On the last note when he was watching his book being pulped I honestly thought that some kind of machinery was going to drop on him or something to finish it but again it didn't happen so it was nice not to see any closure to Alan as there is so much more they can do with his life. I thought they brought it off to a great 3rd series and definitely it's best but now Steve Coogan is starting to become a big film star especially with Around the World in 80 Days coming up, can we expect him to go back to TV. I think he will because after seeing The Parole Officer and the masterpiece 24 Hour Party People who has still not been able to shake the Alan Partridge charisma off as there are so many scenes in both films where it sounds like a young Alan. Steve Coogan hasn't said he won't be making another series so we have to live in hope that one day he will see sense and realise how much we love him and want him back, but that depends on what Hollywood think of Around the world in 80 Days.Best British Sitcom place for Alan Partridge was number 42 out of 50 with the overrated Peter Kay beating him by at least 8 to 10 places, Scum….Subhuman Scum!!