Toast of London [DVD]

This must have been a fairly hard sell:"Well, you see it's about an actor. A pretty bad one, actually. He's appalling pretentious. He's currently in the worst play ever. And he does lots of bad voiceover work too. Oh, and his agent's a total bitch.""Right...."The best sitcoms work for many reasons. sometimes it's about relationships (think Steptoe & Son, Arkwright & Granville), sometimes it's about putting an ensemble into fully-formed world (like the Young Ones). Toast kind of falls into the latter camp, but beyond that it's hard to categorise.Berry himself is wonderful, with that fruity, rather louche voice being put to the best use possible. The running voiceover jokes are just priceless (the phrase "Yes, I can hear you Clem Fandango" is now a tone on my phone) and they are just one part of a beautiful mix. What makes it eve n better is the supporting cast of characters: his agent, Ray Purchase, Mrs Purchase, the parade of faces in the voiceover booths. In plotting terms it reminds me a lot of the little regarded Labrats: a succession of seemingly tangentially connected events build up to a final, preposterous set up with a winning pay-off every time. The use of the repetition devices is also very...Harry Hill. But it takes those influences and runs somewhere new with them.Others have mentioned it was something of a slow burner and this is indeed true, but stick with it. That repetition beds in very quickly and those themes pay off week after week. Each episode has something to recommend, though it is true the later ones are just a little stronger.Roll on series 2!

I had the pleasure of meeting David Arnold in Soho. I was over the moon meeting the Bond composer but then couldn't believe my luck that Matt Berry was with him. After speaking to Mr Arnold I asked Mr Berry "any more snuffbox" Mr Berry replied "I've got something coming up". That was in 2012 and after the best pilot of the channel 4 comedy showcase this got a series. It is sureal to an extent but hilarious. We have a infamous Bruce For-syyth episode. We have Toast and an embarassing escort situation and for me one of the best James Bond spoofs with Mr Arnold involved and a great opening title sequence with the brilliant Michael Ball sending himself up as a villain. I hope that Arthur Mathews and Matt get a second series (man down gets a xmas special?) as this as the others have said a slow burner but gives Matt Berry the chance to be the main solo lead with a great support cast as opposed to a character like in the brilliant IT crowd.

This is up there with league of gentlemen and mighty boosh. Matt Berry and his amazing voice stars in this very well written and very funny almost sitcom about a failed actor and his galavantings ! Many brilliant moments,where we were laughing out loud and rewinding again and again. Funniest bit is the bruce forsythe special feature !!!

Fantastic series, my entire family is hopelessly in love with it. Even my mother who frequently admits that she, "doesn't understand comedy" Matt Berry is supremely watchable and the writing is just superb. Not as avant-garde as his previous works, so if you didn't enjoy "snuff box" or "darkplace", you should definitely give this a go.

Perhaps the most underrated genius and funny tv show made, it is just full of nonsense and ridiculousness that just make it unique. Matt Berry is superb...its totally off the wall but absolute class too, i laughed my way through both series and several times just thinking about it...brilliant

This made me cry with laughter in places. In other places, for me, it fell a bit flat but there were plenty more hits than misses.The tales of a jobbing actor who dreams of the big time but takes what he can get (if it's not beneath him - and there's not much beneath him) are brilliantly written and performed. I think it's a Marmite style of humour, you'll either love it or hate it. Steven Toast is both utterly self-centered and unlikeable and yet very compelling. His voice-over work is stunning!

I watched it at Netflix at the first time and repeated a lot. Every time I found something funny trick in it. It’s really great.

Judging by the reviews, I think I am an exception. Not once during the first two episodes did my lips so much as twitch into a smile as I squirmed in embarrassment at such silly, pointless and unamusing tripe. But then maybe it's just me.

Wie immer schafft es Matt Berry ein skurriles Unikat zu Produzieren. Jeder der etwas mit the Mighty Boosh, Darkplace, The IT-Crowd, Snuff Box, ... etc anfangen kann/konnte darf getrost zuschlagen.Es ist, glaube ich, auch unwahrscheinlich das jemand hier landet der die besagten Serien nicht kennt.Toast of London ist Fies, Lustig, Seltsam und dank der Gesangseinlagen sogar einen tick melancholisch. Am ehesten lässt sich der Stil mit Snuff Box vergleichen wobei Toast of London keine Sketchaneinanderreihung ist. Jede folge beschreibt ein Abenteuer im Leben des weniger erfolgreichen Schauspielers Toast.In England waren die Kritiken überwiegend positiv.Eine zweite Staffel ist aktuell in der mache.Die DVD enthält die komplette erste Staffel, die Pilotfolge und einige kurze Extras zur Produktion. Englisch sollte man können da es weder eine Synchro noch deutsche Untertitel gibt.möp

Matt Berry als Londoner Theater-, Kino- und Fernsehschauspieler Steven Toast ist eine der besten Serien, von denen man hierzulande selten etwas hört. Die ständigen Duelle mit seinem Erzrivalen Ray Purchase, die Tischgespräche mit seinem WG-Mitbewohner Ed Howzer-Black, seine Agentin Jane Plough oder Clem Fandango vom hipsteresken Tonstudio, das ihn für absurde Aufnahmen engagiert, bilden grandiose Running Gags ("'Yes I can hear you, Clem Fandango!'"). Die zwanzigminütigen Episoden sind ohnehin so knapp, dass jede Folge eine kurzweilige Aneinanderreihung subtiler und weniger subtiler Gags ist. Großartig!