The last laugh: is the television sitcom really dead?

From Friends to The Thick Of It, the TV sitcom has evolved – but it’s no longer in rude health. Enter offbeat shows like Stath Lets Flats, bringing joy and potential redemptionThe sitcom has a long history of being dead. According to the former NBC president of entertainment, Warren Littlefield, in the early 1980s many people believed the sitcom was over. In 1999, Entertainment Weekly noted the genre’s demise. In 2005, so did Victoria Wood. The following year, the former ITV director of programmes, David Liddiment, made a programme called Who Killed the Sitcom? In the decade and a half since, similar questions have been posed repeatedly by publications on both sides of the Atlantic. Declaring the sitcom dead now seems more like an annual ritual than a convincing take on the state of comedy. But what if this time it’s actually true?There are a few reasons why the sitcom seems, if not comprehensively deceased, then at least less responsive than it has ever been. In terms of the comedy zeitgeist, the sadcom – a frequently bleak drama hybrid – continues to rule (see: I May Destroy You, Feel Good, This Way Up, Insecure). Streaming giants increasingly shape our viewing habits, and they don’t tend to make sitcoms (their discrete episodic plots mean they are not very bingeworthy, for a start). The newly established National Comedy Awards, meanwhile, doesn’t include a sitcom category, while Bafta dropped its sitcom award in 2015 and replaced it with one for scripted comedy: this... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2021-10-26 14:35:04 UTC ]
News tagged with: #early 1980s #victoria wood #feel good #viewing habits #anthology

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Stan Lee, the arch superhero of comic books, is dead at 95

There will never be ’nuff said about this legendary creator. The man born Stanley Lieber published his first comic book under the pseudonym Stan Lee in 1941–Captain America Comics #3–and he never looked back. He went on to create some of the most memorable, beloved, pivotal characters in all of... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2018-11-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Dead Ink gets £66k ACE grant

Liverpool indie Dead Ink has received £66,880 from Arts Council England’s National Lottery Project Grants in support of its Publishing Step-Change project. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-11-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Dead Ink buys Lee Rourke's 'Glitch'

Independent publisher Dead Ink will publish Lee Rourke’s third novel, Glitch, about a dramatic drop in cabin pressure on a man’s flight home from America. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jesse Ball | 'Let the dead be thoroughly serious. The rest of us are too busy'

We spoke to American author Jesse Ball about the inspirations behind Gordon Burn Prize-winning novel Census (Granta Books). Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-10-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Rooney to adapt Normal People for television

Sally Rooney’s upcoming novel Normal People is set to be adapted for television by BBC Three. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Griffiths enjoys double win at Dead Good Reader Awards

Quercus author Elly Griffiths emerged triumphant at the Dead Good Reader Awards with a double win while Clare Macintosh, C J Tudor, Lee Child and Lisa Jewell also scooped awards. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-07-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Finnish Digital Media Fund IPR.VC Backs Development of YA Book Series for Television

With plans for multiplatform development to follow, the allegorical fantasy writings of Italian author Roberto Ricci are coming first to television. The post Finnish Digital Media Fund IPR.VC Backs Development of YA Book Series for Television appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-06-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Walking Dead: The Final Season' lands on August 14th

Ahead of E3, Telltalle Games released a trailer for The Walking Dead: The Final Season. This game is the final installment in a four-part series based on the popular comic book series. The release date is August 14th; The Final Season will be availab... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2018-06-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Field up twice for Laugh out Loud Awards

Three of the winners of last year’s Laugh Out Loud Awards (The Lollies) are on the shortlist for the 2018 prizes, chair of the judges Michael Rosen revealed. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2018-06-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Kristi Charish: Strong Women and the Dead

“This is probably the biggest reading event I’ve ever attended,” says Kristi Charish, who’s coming from Canada to attend her first BookExpo. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2018-06-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Storytelling Competition from Film and Television: What Can Publishers Do?

Publishing's traditional position as society's main storytelling industry may be in jeopardy. At a Byte the Book session during London Book Fair, speakers discussed how publishers can remain competitive. The post Storytelling Competition from Film and Television: What Can Publishers Do? appeared... Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2018-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Lisa Garcia Quiroz, Magazine Publisher, Is Dead at 57

Lisa Garcia Quiroz in 2016. Her mission, she said, was to “give the Latino community a voice.” Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2018-03-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Young, working-class and fed up: Iran's deadly protests driven by a new crop of dissenters

The 28-year-old university graduate stood in front of a bookstore window in central Tehran, pretending to browse the titles on the shelves. He really was looking out for Iranian security forces sent to quash anti-government protesters. Kambiz, who gave only his first name, earned a physics degree... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2018-01-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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No, Organic Content Isn’t Dead: It Just Has a New Purpose

You probably heard that Facebook is testing a separate feed where only promoted content appears alongside posts from friends and family. While the test is small (six countries) and only applies to publishers, I've been inundated with "organic is dead" emails, tweets and posts from clients,... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2017-11-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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AMC Brings Six-Second Ads to 'The Walking Dead'

AMC is planning on running six-second ads in "The Walking Dead" this season, enlisting TV's top scripted show in the effort to fight ratings declines by making ads less of an imposition.The network intends to run one six-second commercial between its repeat of the prior week's episode and the... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2017-10-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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S.I. Newhouse Jr., Longtime Chairman of Condé Nast, Dead at 89

The magazine mogul passed away in his New York home on Sunday. The post S.I. Newhouse Jr., Longtime Chairman of Condé Nast, Dead at 89 appeared first on Folio:. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2017-10-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Obituary: Top Exec at Three Publishers, Howard Kaminsky, Dead at 77

Howard Kaminsky, a former president and publisher of Warner Books, Random House and William Morrow/Avon, has died. He was 77. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2017-08-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon plans Prime Video shows with ‘Walking Dead’ creator

It looks like we're not finished with deals between comic book creators and online movie studios. Hot on the heels of Netflix announcing its acquisition of Mark Millar's comic book empire Millarworld comes news from Amazon. The company now has a firs... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2017-08-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BBC's 'Front Row' comes to television

The BBC will expand its Radio 4 show "Front Row" brand this autumn into television with a new series on BBC Two. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2017-08-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Judith Jones, editor who discovered Julia Child, dead at 93

Judith Jones, a consummate literary editor who helped revolutionize American cuisine by publishing Julia Child and other groundbreaking cookbook authors, worked for decades with John Updike and Anne... To view the full story, click the title link. Continue reading at Crains New York

[ Crains New York | 2017-08-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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