Ricky Gervais’s clueless, cringe-worthy “Boss from Hell,” David Brent, cuts the rug in a classic scene from the BBC’s “The Office,” which is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a special DVD release. (BBC)
With Ricky Gervais returning for his third stint hosting the Golden Globes on NBC in January — despite (or, more likely, because of) his controversial hosting gig last year — it’s a good time to write about his (and Stephen Merchant’s) brilliant BBC series, “The Office,” which is celebrating its 10th anniversary.
The trailblazing show, which paved the way for NBC’s copycat, low-rated version, is being celebrated by BBC Video with the release next Tuesday, Nov. 22, of “The Office Collection Special Edition,” which features all 12 episodes and the two-part holiday special — plus the original pilot and interviews with original cast members (Gervais, Merchant, Lucy Davies, Mackenzie Crook, Martin Freeman and Ewen Macintosh). There are also interviews with “celebrity fans” including Ben Stiller (who appeared in Gervais’s HBO series, “Extras”), Christopher “It’s One Louder” Guest, Matthew Perry, Richard Curtis and David Baddiel.
“The Office” originally premiered on BBC2 in July 2001 and took viewers on a mockumentary journey inside the world of British paper company Wernham Hogg, based in the industrial, slightly seedy borough of Slough. Gervais played David Brent, Wernham Hogg’s painfully clueless (yet somehow sympathetic) general manager who lords over his co-workers — including sycophantic brown-noser Gareth (Crook) and perpetually cynical Tim (Freeman), who’s secretly in love with receptionist Dawn (Davies), who’s engaged to good-natured factory lunkhead Lee (Joel Beckett).
The series, which ran for two seasons, went on to win two Golden Globes, putting Gervais on the comedy map. He and Merchant went on to create “Extras,” in which the beanpole-like Merchant had a much bigger (and very funny and touching) on-camera role as Andy Millman’s (Gervais) agent, Darren. Great stuff.
To me, Gervais and Steve Coogan (“I’m Alan Partridge,” “Saxondale”) are the two British comedians who’ve most revolutionized the TV-comedy genre (in the UK) in the past 15 years.
Compared to those two, we’ve still got a long way to go here in the good old US of A.
Last, but not least:
* “South Park” will continue airing on Comedy Central through 2016 under a new deal struck with series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone . . . “Steve Harvey” has been sold in 40 of the top 50 TV markets. The syndicated talk show, hosted by Steve Harvey, premieres next fall . . . truTV’s “Hardcore Pawn” snared 1.9 million viewers in its fifth-season premiere Tuesday night and was up 30 percent in men 18-34 over last season’s premiere . . . Mario Lopez and wife Courtney Mazza at Vanity Nightclub inside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Vegas . . . Add the newly promoted Bear Fisher to The Starr Report’s long list of “Best Industry Names.” She’s now the senior VP, brand strategy and creative director for The Style Network.
Contact The Starr Report: mstarr@nypost.com
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