Game On (British TV series)


Game On is a British sitcom which ran for three series and aired on BBC2 from 27 February 1995 to 6 February 1998.
The central characters are three childhood friends from Herne Bay in Kent; laddish agoraphobe Matthew Malone, man-eater Amanda "Mandy" Wilkins, and wimpish Martin Henson. When in their twenties, the trio move into and share a flat in Battersea, south-west London, which Matthew bought with his inheritance, and the series follows their lives as flatmates.
Created and written by Andrew Davies and Bernadette Davis, and produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC, Game On was aimed at twenty-somethings, the same age group as the principal cast of the show.

Production

The title, originally derived from a stock screen term used by 1980s early computer video games to initiate a competitive encounter, was taken from English urban slang speech of the 1990s lad culture of which the principal character Matthew Malone was an exemplar. It was directed by John Stroud, produced by Sioned Wiliam and the BBC Television Head of Comedy Geoffrey Perkins, and executive produced by Denise O'Donohue on behalf of Hat Trick Productions for the BBC.
After a successful first series, the production suffered somewhat from the loss of its lead player Ben Chaplin, who quit the cast unexpectedly after receiving an offer of a film role in Hollywood on the back of his performance in the series. He was replaced for Series 2 and 3 by Neil Stuke.
The first two series were written by Andrew Davies and Bernadette Davis. Davis wrote the final series alone.
The show's theme tune was "Where I Find My Heaven" by the Gigolo Aunts. The single reached number 29 in the UK singles chart in May 1995, when the series debuted, and was also included in the soundtrack to the film Dumb and Dumber at the same time. Among other music included was Dogs of Lust by The The, Screamager by Therapy?, From Despair to Where by Manic Street Preachers, Girls & Boys by Blur, God! Show Me Magic by Super Furry Animals, The View From Here by Dubstar and Oasis.
A fourth series was initially considered. Writer Bernadette Davis voiced her desire to focus the next series on the development of Matthew, whom due to his flat-bound existence, she began to find increasingly hard to write for; the addition of a 'radicalist' new gay or lesbian housemate was also part of her suggestions to add a new element of interest to the series. However, despite a continuity announcer stating over the closing credits of the final episode in a 1999 rerun announcing the series would return the following year, only one lone further repeated episode was broadcast the following year, and a fourth series never emerged.

Characters

Reception

The Digital Fix noted that viewing figures for the show were highest during its first series with Ben Chaplin as the lead actor, and the audience for the subsequent series declined sharply when he was replaced by Neil Stuke. The British Comedy Guide noted in its review of Game On that the series was polarizing due to some controversy over some of the politically incorrect dialogue, situations and gags, but also that the series had high viewing figures, building up an even bigger following after its cancellation.

Awards

Game On was nominated for Best Comedy at the 1997 BAFTAs, along with Absolutely Fabulous and Father Ted; the category was won by Only Fools and Horses.

DVD releases

All three series of the show are available on DVD. The first series DVD is the only one with any special features, which include Ben Chaplin's best moments as Matthew Malone from the first series, and character photo galleries.