Sooty and Weep - Comedy Writing Engines

Prince Charles hands himself into the British Association of Comedy Writers.

I meant “Paki and weep.”

A short homage to the glory of Windsor:-

SCENE 1
INT/DAY
THE HOUSE OF WINDSOR

PRINCE CHARLES:
Now Harry. No more using the word ‘Paki.’

PRINCE HARRY:
What about Coon?

PRINCE CHARLES:
Coon is fine. Just don’t film yourself saying it.

VOICE:
Umama ingane!

PRINCE CHARLES:
Holy fuck son what’s that?

PRINCE HARRY:
That’s one of my Zulus.

PRINCE CHARLES:
I’ve told you before you have to put them back into the wild.

PRINCE HARRY:
But Dad I’ve only got one Impi left.

PRINCE CHARLES:
I’m fed up with you recreating Rorke’s Drift every evening, you’re bedroom is a complete tip. For god’s sake this is the nineteenth century.

- END -


COMEDY WRITING ENGINES
What do you mean the comedy engine?

The comedy writing engine is what drives the comedy, the idea, in whatever writing discipline. At it’s simplest , in the piece above it was Prince Charles , or PC calling a friend ‘Sooty.’

It’s funny living in the past…

For longer work it underpins the whole piece. A sitcom or a play may have more than one engine, it may have a different engine for each scene.

A fun way to come up with an engine is to think of: X versus Y.

A WORK IN PROGRESS
The Tiger T’s

Currently I’m working on some short films or ‘blips’ as I call them to promote a commercial Web site and also to use as a comedy writing calling card, and because it’s fun.

So I have two Tiger hand puppets that will be filmed in scenes of no longer than one minute. O’ and they live in bra (Tiger T’s?).

Kevin and Leftie as I’ve christened them need some character, a physical difference and a RANGE of engines that I can use, play with, and develop.

Here are the engines I first come up with:-

Leftie v Kevin
Left v Right
Sensible Tiger Good Time Tiger
Neurotic v Carefree
Homebody v Outgoing Extrovert
Intellect v Appetite
Logic v Creative

Now I imagine ten scenes to work on One of the first I come up with is going on a date. How would each react to being ‘fondled?’

Kevin is the right ‘Good Time Tiger. Leftie is the sensible Tiger.

When Kevin has his head rubbed he will rub back and:-

KEVIN:
Purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Leftie on being fondled:-

LEFTIE:
I was looking for a more cerebral approach.

The engine is Left v Right brain. This contrast, two opposites, in the same bra, will motivate, ie be the engine, for all the comedy.

Tune in Next Time for…
How I develop the Tiger T’s.
Prince Charles finally joins Amnesty International and seeks asylum in the last century.
The credit crunch gets nasty when, due to an administrative error, the UK’s last credit card is confiscated.

Random Band Mix
The Clash v Smokey Robinson
‘Rock The Clown’