He wove that dream like Charlotte wove her web. But Author/Dreamweaver/Visionary/plus Actor Garth Marenghi had a dream…that he weaved. It may be enough to put you off red Kool-Aid forever. There’s a scene wherein a decapitated head rolls across the floor and it ceases looking like a natural human head. You know, where the blood looks like someone spilled gallons of red Kool-Aid.
Garth marenghis dark place series#
Of course, the series is poking fun at the incessant and unnecessary gore of ’80s slasher films. If Jawsand any Quentin Tarantinofilm had a baby, Darkplace‘s overt gore would be the lovechild.
Perhaps that’s where the inspiration for Toast originated. Even when you watch the faux interviews with his other character Todd Rivers, you see he’s a slightly dialed down version of Toast. Think of him as a toned down Steven Toast, but with a different profession. His Lucien Sanchez isn’t nearly as crass as Laszlo and Douglas Reynholm. While Ayoade is my favorite in the miniseries, Berry is just as hilariously bad in this. You may even recognize him from the lesser known Toast of London. You may know him from What We Do in the Shadowsand The IT Crowd. Pictured (L to R): Matt Berry, Richard Ayoade, Matthew Holness, and Alice Lowe The Matt Berry!Īh, the Matt Berry of it all. The outlandish stories in the fake show are laden with plot holes and slipshod resolutions. While the writing for the fictional series is atrocious, the writing for Darkplace as a whole is brilliant. In addition, the show uses the green fog again, but this time said fog turns a beautiful woman into a piece of broccoli. There’s a green Scottish fog that overtakes hospital grounds while ghosts of Scots past haunt Marenghi for his racy comments against them. A man gives birth to a giant eyeball, of which Marenghi develops an unusual attachment.
Yes, Marenghi inadvertently opens a portal to hell and with it comes a surge of supernatural phenomena in the hospital’s day-to-day. The bad writing!ĭarkplace takes place in a hospital in the UK that’s located over a hellhole.
There’s loads of awkward pauses, strange intonations, and over-the-top crying. I was so used to seeing him as the adorable Moss in The IT Crowd, and while there is still a touch of that awkwardness present, Ayoade takes it to another level with Darkplace. His innate knack for adding inflection where one isn’t needed. We all know Berry is recognized for his ability to play with language. Berry and Ayoade are particularly adept in this arena. I know that sounds strange, but it’s true. It takes a talented performer to seamlessly pull off bad acting. Everything brims with truthfulness, which is where the funny is derived. No one “plays at” their roles or emphasizes the poor dialogue/clunky writing. Marenghi being serious about it is perhaps what makes it all the funnier. I’m sure there were shows of that caliber in the ’80s that took themselves very seriously. Firstly, it’s quite feasible that a hospital horror soap like Darkplace could exist in that era. That’s not to say parodies never existed prior to it, but this series took the genre and inventively updated it. There’s something innovative about how Darkplace operates. Which leads me to my next point… It’s inventive! You’ll laugh your arse off and then some. Have you ever watched something so bad it actually reverses over the threshold to good? That’s this show. Everything about the show is horrible - from the acting to the writing to the poor production values. Additionally, it parodies slasher flicks and the overly gory horror genre of that time. It spoofs soap operas, particularly ones airing in the 1980s. One thing you should know off the bat about Darkplace - it’s a parody. Pictured: Matthew Holness and Richard Ayoade It’s so bad it’s good! So, why should you watch it? I’m glad you asked! Here’s a comprehensive list of reasons why Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace should be on your radar. It’s become somewhat of a cult comedy classic. Liz Asher, had gone missing years prior.ĭarkplace was written and directed by Holness and Ayoade. Unfortunately, Madeleine Wool ( Alice Lowe), who stole hearts as resident psychic Dr. Rick Dagless, a charismatic man who marched to the beat of his own drum. Outside of the series, Learner also served as Marenghi’s publisher. Dean Learner ( Richard Ayoade) played Thornton Reed, head of the Darkplace hospital. There’s Todd Rivers ( Matt Berry) who portrayed the enigmatic Dr.
Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace also contained interviews with the primary cast. A show so edgy, so ahead of its time that it only lasted six episodes. It told the tale of fictional author Garth Marenghi ( Matthew Holness) and the horror hospital soap opera he curated in the 1980s. Back in 2004, a six-episode miniseries aired across the pond entitled Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace. These are just some of the terms used to describe prolific horror aficionado Garth Marenghi.
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