Extra! Extra! Read All About It!

Extra! Extra! Read All About It! is an Irish television sitcom that aired on RTÉ 1 for one season of eight episodes in 1993. The show was written by Frank Sheerin,[1] and the stand-up comedian, Morgan Jones, was a cast member.[2]

Extra! Extra! Read All About It!
GenreSituation comedy
Written byFrank Sheerin
StarringNuala Holloway
Morgan Jones
Lise Ann McLaughlin
Lorraine Pilkington
Norman Rodway
Peter Vollebregt
Country of originIreland
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes8
Production
Production locationsStudio 1, RTÉ Television Centre, Donnybrook, Dublin 4, Ireland
Camera setupMulti-camera
Running time30 minutes
Original release
NetworkRTÉ 1
Release3 November (1993-11-03) –
22 December 1993 (1993-12-22)

The show was notable for its negative reception. Writing in the Connacht Sentinel, journalist Declan Tierney gave the programme a negative review: "to say that this is a pathetic attempt at comedy is being kind to "Extra! Extra! Read All About It!" and stated "the only indication that it is a comedy comes from the canned laughter, which is over-done and often goes on for so long that it is impossible to hear the start of the next sentence".[3] Writer Colm Tóibín stated Extra! Extra! was "probably the worst programme RTÉ has ever shown".[4] Brendan Glacken of The Irish Times was equally scathing: "Speaking of Extra! Extra!, as I am afraid we still must, even seasoned RTÉ observers seem unable to answer the question why a series so pathetically weak should have been allowed to reach the screen at all".[5] Extra! Extra! was later included in an Irish Independent list of the worst Irish TV programmes.[2]

The name of the show comes from the phrase "Extra! Extra! Read all about it!" formerly used by street news vendors to sell newspaper extras.

References

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  1. ^ Trinity College Dublin (13 August 2019). "Irish Film and TV Index". Irish Film & TV Research Online. Retrieved 10 July 2021. EXTRA! EXTRA! READ ALL ABOUT IT! - Production company: RTE; Director: CLARK, Alistair; Script/Adaptation:SHEERIN, Frank; Release date: 1993; TX channel: RTE 1; Summary: Eight-part series.
  2. ^ a b "The worst Irish TV shows EVER!". Irish Independent. 28 October 2006. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
  3. ^ Tierney, Declan. "New "Comedy" Sets the cringe alarms ringing". Connacht Sentinel, 9 November 1993, pg. 9.
  4. ^ Tóibín, Colm "The Very Worst, Anywhere". The Sunday Independent, 14 November 1993 pg. 17.
  5. ^ Glacken, Brendan (23 November 1993). "Entering a New Reality". The Irish Times. p. 10.
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