EPL Talk » I’m On Setanta Sports

Isn’t there Something Funnier than Special 1 TV?

Richard Whittall — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 00:29:00 +0000

Now THAT's funny.

The Football Comedy is closely related to the Football Film: both are nearly impossible to pull off and both tend to leave fans deeply divided. In my experience, football comedy is usually best when it targets soccer’s absurd periphery, like When Saturday Comes’ tongue-in-cheek reporting on money in modern English football, Mitchell and Webb’s exquisite dissection of the moronic bombast of Sky Sports, or Steve Coogan’s take on inane TV sports analysis.

But football comedy intended for “the fans” is usually doomed from the start, suffering the a priori limitation of having to carefully cater to the absurd, partisan bias of the average club supporter. Hence the gratingly unfunny Special 1 TV (formerly known as I’m on Setanta Sports), Setanta’s five minute Spitting Image-style puppet show featuring Jose Mourinho, Sven Goran Erikkson, Wayne Rooney and Fabio Capello, among a few other familiar off-screen ‘callers’ (Fergie, Becks and Benitez, rounding up the LCD of recognizable football characters).

Of course many Eee Pee El fans will disagree violently with me on this (scroll down for the usual grab-bag of epithets). Love for the latex megalomaniac Mourinho and his apparently brain-damaged side-kick Wayne Rooney seems near universal on the blogs. Some close friends of mine have even expressed envy at my Setanta subscription, not so much for the three Saturday fixtures but for the five minute, post-match S1TV featuring moist globs waving their gloved hands around while making jokes well below the comedy line.

It seems to me in conceiving the show, the producers thought as long as the puppets looked and sounded right the need for funny dialogue would be moot. They also took care to avoid pissing off their less-than-anticipated number of subscribers by removing any hint of cutting satire (here’s a great example). There’s a reason main on-screen characters are ex-Premier League managers—anything touching on the actual absurdity of the current Premiership might stumble on the truth and thereby piss off thousands of vulnerable supporters, able to mobilize on a moment’s notice with on-line petitions and Facebook groups calling for boycotts (the Rooney puppet, depicted as a rambunctious man child, doesn’t count. A Ronaldo puppet on the other hand…).

Yes, the show is only five minutes long and easily avoidable. That’s not the issue. The issue is is that it seems to have become part of the ‘zeitgeist.’ References to S1TV are near ubiquitous in the English press, and football bloggers almost choked when they swallowed last month’s ‘cancellation’ prank whole (a marketing gimmick for the above-mentioned name change). I just think we can do better than this, and that there is a place for good, biting satire in deadly-close proximity to match day fixtures—the more offended partisan fans the better. If they need any inspiration, they could go no better than go back to the original Spitting Image, the show that cut into the dark, horrible heart of Thatcherism with little remorse. Lord knows the Premier League is still ripe for the pickin.’

These are the opinions of the author and not necessarily those of ANYONE else at EPL Talk.

Special 1 TV: First Episode

The Gaffer — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 22:35:36 +0000

The first episode of Special 1 TV has premiered, and it’s an instant classic. Be sure to check out the tribute to Robbie Keane, a call from Beckham in Milan (sounding clueless) and even a surprise phone call from a closet West Ham United supporter in the United States.

It’s all here in the first episode of Special 1 TV, the sequel to I’m On Setanta Sports:

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Anticipation Building For Launch Of Special 1 TV

The Gaffer — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 12:47:22 +0000

The characters from Special 1 TV, the new show to replace I’m On Setanta Sports, have spoken. The show will debut after the Manchester United versus Everton match this weekend on Setanta Sports UK, and will be available shortly thereafter on the interweb. Here’s the latest statement from our favorite trio, The Special One, The Boy and Sven:

The Special One: “My fellow football fans, I am humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed. I thank Sven, Wayne and Fabio for the generosity and co-operation they have shown throughout this transition. Today, I say to you the challenges we face with my new show, Special1 TV, are real, they are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this viewers: They will be met.

“Special1 TV will proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas that for far too long have strangled sports punditry.”

Wayne Rooney: “Ahhhh that’s brilliant like. I have been counting down the number of sleeps to Saturday and the new show. I am more excited than a new puppy.”

Sven: “Wella … he is always promising more than he can deliver. Different wrapper maybe but I think the same self indulgent content. And how narcissistic is naming the show after your self penned moniker. Ridiculous.”

One possible reason that the show changed its name and has been rebranded. Special 1 TV now has a sponsor — Pools4all.com

Special 1 TV Trailer: New Show Will Launch This Saturday

The Gaffer — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 12:55:04 +0000

Special 1 TV has launched a short advert to tease viewers about the launch of the new show. Special 1 TV, which is the name of the new show to replace I’m On Setanta Sports will debut on Saturday, January 31 on Setanta Sports after they air the Manchester United against Everton game on Setanta UK.

In the trailer for the show, The Special One, Sven and Wayne Rooney are shown, so there are no hints of new characters. But the new logo for the show as well as the trailer has a completely different color scheme adopting green and black instead of the previous yellow and black synonymous with Setanta.

Be sure to stay tuned to EPL Talk for the latest news regarding Special 1 TV. One of our sources reveals that we should be able to share exclusive news about the show before the new TV show launches on late Saturday.

Here’s the trailer for Special 1 TV:

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I’m On Setanta Sports Returning As Special 1 TV

The Gaffer — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 02:04:34 +0000

I’m On Setanta Sports, the cult TV hit featuring a parody of Jose Mourinho, will be returning as a new show entitled Special 1 TV.

EPL Talk broke the news on January 9th. The rumor has now been substantiated in the January 17th episode of I’m On Setanta Sports, which clearly shows the “office” door having the words “I’m On Setanta Sports” removed and being replaced by the new name.

At press time, it’s unclear how different the show will be and whether it’ll appear on Setanta more often than its current weekly spot. What we do know is that we can look forward to more fantastic shows courtesy of creator Mario Rosenstock.

Watch the latest episode of I’m On Setanta Sports to see the clues about Special 1 TV.

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