In the US: Sundays, 10.30pm, HBO
In the UK: Will air on BBC2 this year
Christopher Guest is a god, of course. One of the originators of Spinal Tap, he is the premier maker of the improvised ‘mockumentary’, with films like Best in Class that are cuttingly funny social observations. He is America’s Mike Leigh.
Except, of course, Guest is half-British, the son of a UN diplomat, and shared his childhood between London and New York. Which is why we shouldn’t be surprised that BBC2’s latest co-production with HBO – following on from the likes of Rome and Parade’s End – is set predominantly in Britain. Family Tree follows Chris O’Dowd’s (The IT Crowd, Bridesmaids) attempts to trace various members of his family after his great aunt dies, leaving him a box of memorabilia. Along the way, he’s helped and hindered by his sister (Nina Conti, best known for her stand-up act, but also from Guest’s For Your Consideration), who still uses the therapy monkey she had when she was a child to say things that would otherwise be unsayable, and his dad (long-time Guest collaborator Michael McKean from Spinal Tap).
Again, largely improvised by the cast, it’s well observed and engrossing, flirting with British stereotypes while undermining them and having far more depth than a whole load of US shows I could name. But is it funny? Well…
Here’s a trailer:
