Night TobySo, I'm Nathan BarleyYou're watching TrashbatSo what's new?You didn't say goodnightI'm about to ease a smile, into your totally gorgeous mushEnominate thingimyClick on diary to see my new phoneSleep well!She's actually got Benobo syndrome, you know the monkey thing?HahahaHey Dan, Dan, preachWatch me evil Pingu's head with a lorry batteryCheck it out yeah, it is well bumTrashbat party yeah, you can come, you can come mate, you can come get startled!This is Nathan BarleyAlright?You can comeNathan Barley, AKA as Trashbat.cockIt's an online urban culture dispatchWhat kind of shit?What music do you cut to?This is TrashbatWhat edit gear you got?You can come twiceAlright you zips!My HQ's just around the cornerWell pour cold milk on it!I'm a self-facilitating media nodeQuick, it'll blisterThat is well bumYou're in trouble, can't you see she's too fucked to laugh?I just got a zapucinnoYou cuntLatte, no sugarI heard he got a big feature job at Sugar ApeFour rounds at The Nailgun and then dinnerHe was watching the back of your tits when you got changed thoughKeep feeling fascination yeah?You can come multiple timesGo on, get it up your beakReindeer Sausage and Pumkin PureeBangers and mash, bumShake the woman's hand mateOverride the finger yeah?You touched her!Renegade production nodeDo you need a laptop?This one suit you?Looking... learning... moving onRingtone... Barley UKWhat's that, that looks like it's come out of a hospital bin!Feel sorry for you, finger slaves, yeah?Yeah?Everything made here spurts out through this pipeOooooPeace and fucking, believeOk, here's the credosTobyTaking the lips down to the nipsDo you reckon?Trash, as in what's all around usAnd batFucked her in the arse8 screening rooms, 5 recording studios, and a weekly juice marketOooh, kicked the brown door in, painted it white on the way outAlright toe jobAlright you zipsAlright fucksticksAny time you want to use any of the facilidados here, I can fix thatCheck this out you bleeding fucking bumwartDave Bikinis is going to be thereFutures cum flannelShe's the VJ off the tellyThen we come back here and we chop some sense into that bollockTry Stanley Knives yeah, they're well bumAlright you fuckerLaters you greasy cockfartBumA night down the pub with your mates and it's fucking mentalCome on, that's just, you are illHey Mr Trash CockKnow it? I pratically bum it on a regular basisDoes the pope fuck kids?Peace and fuckingLaters honeytitsKeep it lividStanley Knives yeahA move from the pub to the club for some awesome soundsI'm Nathan Barley, watch the fuck out JapanKeep it dense yeah?Yeah?Peace and fucking Preach... yes!!!Going darkYou pay me back now, without moneyCheck it out yeahTrashbat.cock, my websiteTrashbat.cockCheck out the web site yeah, it's well fucking futileKeep it chopped out yeahOnce the idiots were just the fools gawping in through the windowsNow they've entered the buildingThey use the word cool, it is their favourite wordThe idiot doesn't think about what it is saying, thinking is rubbish, and rubbish isn't coolStuff and shit is coolReally annoying ring toneHey fanny blossomBig brown elephant shit crackKeep it Mencap you fucking earI don't even know himMy name's Nathan Barley and I like throwing people out of windowsBuzz on my nadsOnline tramp racing from Russia, totally dereg yeahFucking hillarious and you can't loseHello, my name's Nathan Barley and I'm an idiotCheck it out yeah, trashbat.cockMy web site.cock yeah, registered in the Cook IslandsDan Ashcroft yeah?Hey, you'reTotally sums up my credosAwesomeYeahFuckDan AshcroftMaximum!Er, it's for my web site, it's going to be, awesomeThis is Nathan Barley for Trashbat withWe will fuck you up!Peace and fucking believeWasp T12, it's got a massive number 5 because it's the most common numberDonnie Docker, Howard Marks...What you getting?Nice oneKeep fucking the idiots yeahYou rimlickerHow's it fucking collapsingPingu, coffee!Did you clean up afterwards?What you working on?20 Kubricks?Good yeahYeahThanksYepWell facilitated but under the total guidance of, so thanks againI'll text it overHow are you doll snatch?Don't think you should mate, you're a bit jumpyAlright spunkflakesAlright you bum pilotKeep it dustyUsual pleaseDanDanTwice in one dayWell coincimentalHis trousers fall down and there's a piss stain on his pantsNathan Barley is a Channel 4 sitcom written by Charlie Brooker and Chris Morris, starring Nicholas Burns, Julian Barratt and Claire Keelan, which follows the exploits of a loathsome, fictional twenty-something Hoxton, London media type. The first episode of six weekly episodes was broadcast on 11 February 2005 on Channel 4.
Described by his own creator as a 'meaningless strutting cadaver-in-waiting', the character originated on Charlie Brooker's TVGoHome � a website parodying television listings � as the focus of a fly-on-the-wall documentary called Cunt. After the cult success of TVGoHome, the name "Nathan Barley" was frequently used pejoratively towards those whose lifestyles were satirised by the series.
Contents
[hide]
* 1 Plot
* 2 Characters
* 3 Promotion
* 4 Cast
* 5 Nathan Barley 2
* 6 References
* 7 External links
[edit] Plot
Nathan Barley played by Nicholas Burns is a webmaster, guerrilla filmmaker, screenwriter, DJ and in his own words, a "self-facilitating media node". He is convinced he is the epitome of urban cool, and therefore secretly terrified he might not be, which is why he reads Sugar Ape magazine, his bible of cool. The magazine is an obvious parody of Vice Magazine and even has one issue called "The Vice Issue".
In reality however his output is of no real interest to anyone but him and his immediate friends. The website consists of stupid pranks caught on camera, photos of him with attractive women and famous figures (some of them digitally edited to insert himself), and photos of him standing on street corners in major cities around the world. He is fully of the belief that because he has a camera, some knowledge of web publishing and a webspace, this he has a talent.
The humour derives from the rapid rise of both the internet and digital television, and the assumption by publishers and broadcasters that almost any such work is worthy of attention. Barley and his peers are often hired ahead of actual journalists and talented writers trying to make intelligent points, such as the earnest documentary film maker Claire Ashcroft, and her brother Dan Ashcroft, a jaded and apathetic hack who, having written an article for Sugar Ape entitled "The Rise of the Idiots", is disgusted to find that "the idiots" in question � Nathan and his contemporaries � have adopted him as their spiritual leader, failing to see that they are the very people he was criticising.
[edit] Characters
The series features two other central characters, siblings Dan (Julian Barratt) and Claire Ashcroft. Dan � an instantly recognisable Brooker point-of-reference � dislikes everything Nathan Barley stands for, while Claire seeks to highlight the plight of the inner city's homeless and drug-dependent. Ironically, while Dan sees a clear distinction between himself and the "idiots", he's frequently forced to compromise his own ethics in order to earn a living, and seems to be fighting the dawning realisation that he may actually be the very thing he despises. At the same time, Claire, who clearly wants to see herself as socially responsible and philanthropic, ultimately only seeks to further her own career. This sets the scene for an unusually open-ended, and certainly introspective, satire-bordering-on-social-commentary.
Other recurring characters include the staff at Dan Ashcroft's magazine, Sugar Ape, such as asinine chief editor Jonatton Yeah? (Charlie Condou), Ned Smanks (Richard Ayoade) and Rufus Onslatt (Spencer Brown), a pair of gormless graphics designers, Sasha the receptionist (one of the few non-'idiots' in the show), and the eccentric and ludicrous Doug Rocket, founder member of The Veryphonics (a parody of David A. Stewart of Eurythmics), played by comedian David Hoyle.
Dan Ashcroft's flatmate is a DJ called 'Jones', who appears blissfully unaware of the antisocial cacophony he creates. Jones is played by Noel Fielding, Barratt's partner in comic duo The Mighty Boosh.
[edit] Promotion
A piece of Nathan's artwork.
A piece of Nathan's artwork.
Advertising for the series attracted some attention, with billboards advertising a fictitious yet almost plausible mobile telephone, the Wasp T12 Speechtool ("it's well weapon"), appearing throughout the UK. This device was advertised as being exceptionally loud, with several hugely annoying ringtones, a giant key for the number 5 (allegedly the most common number), a powerful projector, a business card printer and miniature turntables for scratching MP3s. It was also apparently "shark-proof".
Barley's website, www.trashbat.co.ck, serves as an official site for the television series, and remains active as of August 2008.
The DVD of the series was released in October 2005, featuring all six episodes, a host of extras (including the pilot) and a booklet written by Nathan featuring his 'artwork'. The artwork in question is largely in the style of prolific graffiti artist Banksy and the book could easily be mistaken for a book showcasing Banksy's work.
[edit] Cast
* Nicholas Burns � Nathan Barley
* Julian Barratt � Dan "Preacher Man" Ashcroft
* Claire Keelan � Claire Ashcroft
* Ben Whishaw � Pingu
* Richard Ayoade � Ned Smanks
* Spencer Brown � Rufus Onslatt
* Charlie Condou � Jonatton Yeah?
* Nina Sosanya � Sasha
* Rhys Thomas � Toby
* Noel Fielding � Jones
* David Hoyle (aka "The Divine David") � Doug Rocket
* Rupert Degas � Beer Gourd Man
* Ophelia Lovibond � Mandy
* Joe Van Moyland � Mudd
* Montserrat Lombard - Monika
[edit] Nathan Barley 2
Continued rumours of a second series of the comedy,[1] including possible auditions for extras,[2] were given added weight with reports that Chris Morris told students at a talk at Bournemouth University that he was working on new Nathan Barley material. The new series will centre on Barley's new-found employment in a general "media-facilitation" role for a small East-London based terrorist organisation.[3][4]
Further evidence of another series has been given weight when Flak magazine reported that Chris Morris and Charlie Brooker were working around the scripts amongst other projects.[5]
[edit] References
1. ^ "Bah, Sigh: Nathan Barley - Series 2". Cook'd and Bomb'd (2007-01-22).
2. ^ Paul McNamee (2007-03-15). "Will Nathan Barley 2 be totally Mexico?", Guardian Unlimited blog.
3. ^ "Events: In Conversation with Chris Morris". Wessex Media Group (2007-03-06).
4. ^ Leigh Holmwood (2007-03-19). "Morris to tackle suicide bombers", MediaGuardian.co.uk.
5. ^ "The Creators of Nathan Barley", Flak Magazine (2008-01-02).
[edit] External links
* Trashbat.co.ck � Official Website
* British Sitcom Guide
* A Cunt Compendium � the collected Cunt entries from TVGoHome
* BBC News: Anatomy of a backlash � Nathan in the context of Internet hype
* Text from press release for the Nathan Barley show
* Nathan Barley on IMDB
* Sugarape.com � Unofficial Sugar Ape Website
Ned Smanks (Nathan Barley series)
David Brent (from The Office UK)
Max and Paddy's Road to Nowhere
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
Tim Canterbury (from The Office UK)
Midnight Candymen and myhouse-yourhouse.net
Jonatton Yeah? (Nathan Barley series)
George W Bush - State of the Union 2006
Car Park Catchphrase with Roy Walker - BBC Radio 1
Doug Rocket (Nathan Barley series)
Claire Ashcroft (Nathan Barley Series)
Gareth Keenan (from The Office UK)
