Pulp Sport

infobox television
show_name = Pulp Sport


caption =
format = Sketch comedy
runtime = 30 minutes per episode (inc. commercials)
creator = Shonky Productions
starring = Jamie 'Bill' Linehan
Ben 'Ben' Boyce
country = New Zealand
network = Sky Sport
first_aired =
num_episodes =
last_aired =

"Pulp Sport" is a low budget TV show filmed in New Zealand, that mixes sport with various styles of comedy. The hosts Jamie Linehan and Ben Boyce act under their respective pseudonyms Bill and Ben, performing a half hour of various sports based skits.

History

"Pulp Sport" started as a radio show on Radio Sport in 2001 until the TV series began in 2003 on Sky Sport. Syndication preceded by C4 for two series, achieving strong ratings. As a result, it was soon snapped up by TV3 where its popularity continued to grow with even better ratings. The show still remains on Sky Sport. In 2006 and 2007 "Pulp Sport" was judged "New Zealand's Best Comedy" at the Qantas New Zealand Television Awards.

During March 2008, Season 5 (the 2007 season) was released on DVD, as "Pulp Sport - Volume 2", despite the fact no other seasons have previously been released on DVD.

Lineham and Boyce are currently standing as 'electoral candidates' and as leaders of the Bill and Ben Party, a joke political party based on their Pulp Sport personas, at the forthcoming New Zealand general election in November 2008.

egments

The show features recurring skit segments in each episode.

Active

*"The Great Tui Sneak" - a segment in which the hosts Bill and Ben attempt to sneak Tui beer into a New Zealand sport stadium where there is an enforced alcohol ban, such as Eden Park. Different methods have included - sneaking the beer via an IV drip, a coffin, a remote control car, a wrapped birthday present, getting Schapelle Corby to do it and a fibreglass cow.
*"Can a Mascot?" - This skit involves the Pulp Sport Mascot (a person in a big brown furry fox suit) attempting to complete often comical or socially unaccepted challenges such as sneaking into an establishment without paying or sneaking on to another TV show.
*"The Mad Mad Butcher" - Series of stunts based around New Zealand Celebrity business man The Mad Butcher. The Pulp Sport Mad Mad Butcher attempts each week to prove to 'dickless bastards' that he is mad by doing crazy, sometimes bizarre stunts. This segment often starts with the line "Some of you dickless bastards still don't think I'm mad...".
*"Sporting Hell" - This skit starts with the hosts flipping a coin. The winner of the coin toss is rewarded with a pizza from the sponsor, while the loser is forced to do often humiliating sport-themed stunts. An example of a 'Sporting Hell' is of the loser attending a motor-racing meeting cross-dressing as a scantly-dressed promotional woman promoting the amusingly named Golden Gaytime branded ice cream cones to often homophobic male attendees. This section of the show is sponsored by the New Zealand food company Hell Pizza.
*"Father v Son" - These skits, a reference to old advertisements for the Instant Kiwi scratch card and filmed usually in black and white, involves a young boy playing different sports against his highly competitive father. The young boy often beats his father in the chosen sport, who in turn, out of frustration, resorts to drastic measures (for comedic effect) to defeat his son, including violence and cheating.
*"Celebrity Challenge" - Each week some of New Zealand's biggest celebrities are paired up with some of New Zealand's biggest sports stars to partake in ridiculous challenges based around the person's chosen sport. This usually develops into a parody of a well-known television show, such as 'Prison Break'.
*"Man-Love Moments" - A montage of sporting clips set to provocative music such as Barry White or Marvin Gaye, showing sportmen in sexually suggestive positions or committing sexually suggestive actions.
* "Super-Streaker" - A weekly clip of an unknown man, wearing only gloves, a cape and a Wolverine mask, streaking at inappropriate events such as a lawn bowls game or a round of golf. The skit is set to the theme song of the Superman films.
* "Halfass" - A parody of the television series Jackass. This skit involves the hosts, Bill and Ben, accompanied by friends, attempting extremely tame stunts. Examples of these tame stunts include, walking with untied laces, standing on an office chair and running with scissors.
* "Mc Kay-ver" - This skit replaced 'McIvor' when Pulp Sport moved to TV3 from Sky Television. This skit, a spoof of the television show MacGyver, involve the hosts playing pranks on TV3 sports reporter Hamish McKay. The pranks often revolve around the victim's car, such as covering the car with 'Post-It' notes, and / or around the victim's office area, such as wrapping the victim's office equipment with fishing line. Although it was suggested that this segment would be replaced in season 5 of the show by "the Real Campbell Live", in which the skit would target television broadcaster John Campbell, presenter of the New Zealand current affairs programme Campbell Live, they instead continue "Mc Kay-ver" into the new season.
* "The Grynch Who Stole Sport" - This skit, introduced in season 5 of the show, draws it's inspiration from the Dr. Seuss children's book 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas!'. Every week an unknown person dressed as 'The Grinch' steals a sports item in the middle of a sport game played by the unsuspecting public, such as a rugby ball.
* "Pulp Sport" is also now sponsored by the energy beverage Lift Plus and contains skits that pay homage to Lift Plus advertisements.

Retired

*"Yours Please" - A playful jab at New Zealand sports talk back host Murray Deaker and his catch phrase.
*"McIvor" - A segment where Bill and Ben and Guy would play pranks on New Zealand Sky Sports broadcaster Steven McIvor. Unlike his successor, McIvor reacted very aggressively to the pranks.
*"6.0 Minutes" - A parody of the New Zealand current events show "60 Minutes". The skit was originally aired when the show was airing on New Zealand radio station Radio Sport.
*"Urban Creatures" - A parody of the Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin. "Steve Urban" explores the "amazing creatures" of the sporting world usually killing someone in the process. However, this segment was omitted season 5 of the show as it offended Australians due to the death of the former.
*"101 Uses for (insert name here)" - skits that see Bill and Ben finding mundane uses for a sportsperson's talents. Some participants thus far have included basketball player Ben Pepper, All Black Byron Kelleher and rowing twins Caroline and Georgina Evers-Swindell

Future

Series 6 of Pulp Sport is currently being filmed, and due to hit screens sometime in October this year. There are also plans to release several more DVD's at some stage.

External links

* [http://www.pulpsport.tv Pulp Sport website]
* [http://www.beigebrigade.co.nz/gallery/PulpSport Pulp Sport gallery]
* [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/4/story.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10354473 New Zealand Herald: Pulp Sport Returns]