look around you

i love me some British television. granted, i don't like ALL British television, but i do like quite a bit of it - The Office, Life on Mars, Spaced, Extras - and now there's another one to add to the list: Look Around You. i just got done watching the first series and wow... good stuff. spot on.

the show mimics 1970s and 80s educational videos, teaching the viewer about topics such as "maths," "germs," and even "ghosts." a lot of the show is nonsense, but it's just hilarious. perhaps my favorite was learning that calcium has a sister element, i-calcium, or "intelligent calcium." that's right - sentient calcium. the experiment they do on it... oh man. you just have to see it.

oh, i also liked learning that germs came from Germany. a little part inside me always secretly knew.

Look Around You is perfect for youtube, as the episodes in this series (except for the pilot) are all 9 minutes long - short enough to sneak in a viewing at work.

series 2 of this wonder of a show awaits. in it, they abandoned the 9-minute format and went to the standard 30 minute format. also i've read that they ditched the narrator (one of the funniest parts of the show imho) and went with 4 presenters and guests. i'll let you know what i think of the change when i'm done watching them.

as for series 1 of Look Around You - kudos.

- kawitchate