Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #523 in DVD
• Released on: 2003-08-18
• Rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 98 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Volume One of Not the Nine O'Clock News comprises 98 minutes of early material from the sketch show that ran between 1979 and 1982. Starring Rowan Atkinson, Griff Rhys-Jones, Mel Smith and Pamela Stephenson and coscripted by Richard (Blackadder) Curtis among others, it wasn't especially ground-breaking by the standards of Monty Python or contemporary series such as The Young Ones, but it did provide some pretty blunt belly-laughs at the major social and political concerns of the era: Thatcher, Reagan, police brutality, the prospect of nuclear war. The latter makes for an excellent Question Time spoof, in which, with the four-minute warning having sounded, a panel of politicians continue bleating on their own agenda ("Three million people are going to die unemployed!").

Atkinson's stuff is among the best here, be it as a hideous young Tory, or as Gerald the Gorilla, now civilised to a fault by the captor who caught him in the wild. ("Wild? I was livid!") The much-repeated bit of him walking into a tree, however, doesn't work as he clearly anticipates the collision. While the musical elements look inevitably dated and a lengthy sketch on darts players boozing reaches the "Yeah, we get the point" mark long before it reaches its end, it's surprising how topical much of this material remains decades on--a sketch involving an agonising gay vicar springs to mind--while time hasn't eroded the quality of much of the writing.

On the DVD: Not the Nine O'Clock News on disc comes with no extra features. --David Stubbs

Special Features
English
Region 2

Synopsis
First broadcast in 1979, NOT THE NINE O'CLOCK NEWS was one of the initial wave of series that brought "alternative" comedy into the mainstream via British television in the early 1980s. With fewer rough edges than The Young Ones, it found an audience of six million viewers and launched the careers of its stars: Mel Smith, Griff Rhys Jones, Pamela Stephenson and Rowan Atkinson. This disc features over three hours of the best sketches.

Customer Reviews

Vintage, timeless comedy
I disagree strongly with any assertion that the 'Not the Nine O'Clock News' sketches are dated. They have, if anything, improved with time, and if you are new to the programme, or wish to revisit the series, this DVD is a great place to start. It contains such classics as the darts sketch (which had such an impact at the time it temporarily ruined the reputation of the sport), the racist policeman, and Rowan Atkinson's brilliant turn as a Conservative politician addressing the Tory conference. It is a reminder of what classic sketch comedy is all about, and what Richard Curtis was capable of in his early career (though he was admittedly only one of a vast number of writers - who included members of the public).
It's a shame there are no extra features - I remember watching a very good documentary about the impact of the programme a few years back, and wonder why it isn't included. However, this is still well worth buying - and better than volume two.

Praise the Lord, the Beeb are back in town
Firstly, Not The Nine O'Clock news deserves a 10 star rating IMHO, as one of the best comedy shows of the last 30 years.
But this DVD release is a pretty poor effort from the BBC.

This DVD is a DVD release of the 1995 NTNOCN video "The Gorilla Kinda Lingers" The only feature apart from the quality comedy from the NTNOCN team, is a "scene selection" which allows you to skip forward in chunks, however it only allows a certain selection of the material. Very disapointed to see no other footage available! It is well worth buying to replace VHS or if you dont have the video releases, but little to justify paying full price for it, apart from the main episodes themselves!

Not The Nine O Clock news deserves a better tribute than this!

Excellent Comedy - Though Unfortunately Featureless
Although this comedy was made in the late 1970s/early 80s the writing remains fresh, the satire sharp, and the show itself hilarious. Obviously the picture and sound quality are not quite as crystal clear as recent releases, but the driving forces of inspired writing and fantastic performances (especially a youthful Rowan Atkinson)carry it along.
A minus-point is that the only special features are chapter selection (although there are only 6 chapters, and at least twenty sketches) - especially given its £15 RRP.
However, classic sketches such as 'Super Duper', 'Are You A Gay Christian?', and that one at the dinner table where everyone starts plugging products to the wall, whilst Atkinson looks on aghast (I don't know its actual name) are still hilarious and anybody that hasn't seen them are missing out.
This is obviously from the Thatcher period of British politics, however the core satire and political values remain fresh, sharp and hysterically funny - although perhaps the figureheads that it mocks have changed.
Despite it being a vanilla release, this is one of the best British comedies ever, and its stars Rowan Atkinson, Griff Rhys-Jones, Mel Smith and Pamela Stephenson have, for the most part, gone on to international fame. Sublime.