Project Ha Ha

Project Ha Ha
Genre	Satirical pilots
Created by	Various
Starring	David McSavage Bernard O'Shea Patrick McDonnell
Country of origin	Ireland
Language(s)	English
No. of series	1
No. of episodes	4
Production
Running time	30 minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	RTÉ Two
Original run	5 January 2009 – 26 January 2009
External links
Website

Project Ha Ha is an Irish experimental comedy television series of pilots broadcast in four parts on RTÉ Two in January 2009. The series showcases comedians such as Dead Cat Bounce, Diet of Worms, David McSavage and an ensemble piece featuring comedians including Bernard O'Shea, Collum McDonnell and Carol Tobin. The projects are produced by such companies as Blinder Films, Red Jam Productions, D.A.D.D.Y, Accomplice Productions and Green Inc Productions. Project Ha Ha aired each Monday at 22:55 from 5 – 24 January 2009.^[1]

Comedy groups

Two comedy groups feature in the series and their work is focused on in the first two episodes.

Dead Cat Bounce

Dead Cat Bounce are a comedy group whose blend of sketch comedy and musical performance have won them many fans and much critical acclaim. Their pilot Work focuses on a day in the life of a corporate office. It is produced by Red Jam Productions and directed by the video director duo D.A.D.D.Y.

Diet of Worms

Diet of Worms have had success both on the live circuit and online. Their self-written performance Dublin Stories is a continuation of their cult internet series of the same name. It is produced by Accomplice Television, which created the IFTA-nominated comedy series Dan & Becs.

Other comedians

Other comedians to feature in the series include David McSavage and Bernard O'Shea.

Episode list

Work

The first episode, titled Work, was broadcast on 5 January 2009. It is written by and features Dead Cat Bounce. It spans a day in the life of an unusual corporate office building, where stock brokers must construct a method to dispose of the corpse of a lifeless prostitute, a bored worker becomes involved in hip hop music videos, love songs are graphic, and a xenophobic spy stalks them through the corridors. It is directed by D.A.D.D.Y and produced by Red Jam Productions. It consists of writer/performers Shane O'Brien, Mick Cullinan, Demian Fox and James Walmsley as central character Steve Hardcastle.^[2]

Dublin Stories

The second episode, titled Dublin Stories, was broadcast on 12 January 2009. It stars Diet of Worms, who are Philippa Dunne, Amy Stephenson, Rory Connolly, Niall Gaffney and Shane Langan, a five-piece troupe from Dublin which formed in 2006 and has taken three full-length shows to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Their 2007 show, Diet of Worms on (Melted) Ice, for instance, was performed entirely in a swimming pool. Diet of Worms has a cult following on the video sharing website YouTube.^[3]

The Savage Eye

The third episode, titled The Savage Eye, was broadcast on 19 January 2009. It is a satirical comedy show which seeks to answer the perennial question of why the Irish people drink so much alcohol. The pilot is written by and starring David McSavage and is directed by Kieron J. Walsh (who directed the drama series Raw and the film When Brendan Met Trudy). The cast includes Declan Rooney, Aidan Bishop, Pat McDonnell and Gerard McSorley, the latter two of whom appeared in the successful sitcom Father Ted. Damien O'Donnell is a creative consultant whilst it is filmed by Catherine O'Shaughnessy. It is produced by Blinder Films, the company's first production for RTÉ.^[4]

The Savage Eye was later picked up for a full series of six episodes. Following the success of the first series, it was commissioned for a second, also consisting of six episodes, which began airing on Monday the tenth of January 2011 on RTÉ 2.

Touching People

The fourth episode, titled Touching People, was broadcast on 26 January 2009. It features comedy sketches, written and performed by comedians such as Bernard O'Shea, Colum McDonnell, Carol Tobin and John Colleary. The main theme is the idea of the "do-gooder", with the show being presented and linked together by a spoof TV host played by O'Shea. It mocks the celebrity charity spokesperson-types who are willing to give up their time to help a good cause for free – alongside a fee and the chance to raise their own profile. Touching People is produced by Green Inc Productions who have also produced the comedies Headwreckers and Ape for Channel 4's Comedy Lab.^[5]

Reaction

John Boland of the Irish Independent was "reduced to stupefaction" upon viewing what he described made This is Nightlive appear a "masterpiece". He suggested that the opening episode was "an irrefutable case for conducting such experiments in private" and questioned why most of the staff in the office corporation, Hardcastle, spoke with either American or Australian accents. Boland described the overall tone of the episode as "misogynistic and unpleasant", with the carcass of a prostitute being carried around whilst employees at the water cooler "obsessed about women's bottoms".^[6]

References

1. ^ "About the show". RTÉ. Accessed 30 January 2009.
2. ^ "Dead Cat Bounce - Work". RTÉ. Accessed 30 January 2009.
3. ^ "Dublin Stories - The Diet of Worms". RTÉ. Accessed 30 January 2009.
4. ^ "Dublin Stories - The Savage Eye". RTÉ. Accessed 30 January 2009.
5. ^ "Touching People". RTÉ. Accessed 30 January 2009.
6. ^ "RTE comedy? You're having a laugh...". Irish Independent. 2009-01-10. http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/tv-radio/rte-comedy-youre-having-a-laugh-1597863.html. Retrieved 2009-01-10. 

External links

• Official site