INTERVIEW
METROLAND
JOHNATHAN RAMSAY TALKS TO THE COMEDY GENIUSES BEHIND NORTH EAST SKETCH SERIES METROLAND
COMEDY
METROLAND IS BACK! I’m kidding, I’m sorry…but, something just as fun that shares its name with the nostalgic Metrocentre theme park has recently taken social media by storm. Metroland is a seven part comedy sketch series written by Jack Stanley Robertson, who developed the show with Jon Dole and director Caden Elliot. Mixing mockumentary elements with cinematic shorts, Metroland features a slew of eccentric characters from across the North East, including Ann – a Nana who gets so high she “can’t feel her fucking cheeks” - and Harry – a homeless man who has an unfortunate run in with a radgie’s forehead. “Metroland is an expression of Northern spirit, built upon hard times and harder circumstances, the humour which emerged has sustained generations,” said director Caden Elliot. “It’s a mix of that rich heritage, with a few dick jokes thrown in!” “We wanted to make a comedy series with an amount of real-life truth that doesn’t point fingers at the people of North East, but instead celebrates the everyday quirks of the people,” adds writer and leading man Jack Robertson. The pair have been inspired by sketch comedy groups like Aunty Donna or Loiter Squad on Adult Swim. “Mockumentaries always excited me too. I really wanted to take a jab at it myself. Frustratingly we found that a lot of the comedy that was coming out of the North
METROLAND IS AN EXPRESSION OF NORTHERN SPIRIT, BUILT UPON HARD TIMES AND HARDER CIRCUMSTANCES. IT’S A MIX OF THAT RICH HERITAGE, WITH A FEW DICK JOKES THROWN IN! 24
East was quite caricatured and by the book. With stereotypes of Northern culture that looked to appeal to the South and had been milked for years – very surface level and cliché. That’s not what the people are like. “My aim was to flip that, with Metroland we’re telling jokes that make us laugh. We’ve still got those surface level Geordie tropes that provide a false sense of security, before breaking those walls down and going in a completely different direction. Metroland taps into concepts that you didn’t know were funny.” With thousands of views already racked up across Facebook and Instagram, Metroland has certainly struck a chord with the region, even attracting some praise from industry insiders like Eastenders writer John Hickman who said the skits “have a really nice offbeat tone and loads of potential,” and Newcastle’s indie rock sensation Sam Fender. In these difficult times, when many are constrained to their homes with limited real human contact, comedy is an extremely important medium for lifting the spirits and bringing a bit of happiness to people’s days. Metroland does just that, it’s filled with tongue-incheek humour and shamelessly low-brow gags that you can’t help but laugh at. It’s not only the humour that makes this ambitious project stand out, it’s the inherent relatability that really amps up Metroland’s charm. We all know a foul mouthed old lady, a pretentious ‘creative’ or an absolute fucking radgie. These people exist not only in the North East, but all across the UK. Next stop on this comedy rollercoaster…Netflix? Search Facebook and Instagram for ‘Metroland’ to watch the series so far www.instagram.com/metrolnd
