Not something I was expecting to appear on DVD, as it's a parody of the kind of show that's based heavily on contemporary content - panel shows, featuring guest stars from the various aspects of the worlf of entertainment - and this is one that flits between production and shooting the show in question, called, coincidentally, 'Annually Retentive'.
Yes, it's clearly heavily connected in style to Larry Sanders or Garry Shandling (and has both benefited and suffered in peopls perception as a result), both shows which aired in the U.K and both shows which were incredibly popular. This is a transplant of that basic idea done in a different tone, a little lighter, a little more obviously intended to be a comedy, slightly broader. It's also filmed in a very free style, with improvisation within scenes on certain themes or aspects of what they're going through and might also feature more scripted material than it's going to be easy to predict.
It's made interesting by this relative unpredictability within a format (of sorts), and also because shows like this rely on an aspect of both trust in the guests skills to do a good job on the night (here we see intentional planning and manipulation, scripting of the answers, something hinted at but never confirmed in similar shows) plus the intentional blurring of the lines between the showbusiness relationships that seem impossible or are revealed to be more or less than they might have otherwise seemed - these people are more often than not making their money by how they're intentionally isolated from one anothers fields of skill by the publics perception, and it's one of the ways in which peoples minds are being played with.
Granted, although those figures may not be that familiar to non-U.K audiences, the style is known and popular outside the U.K, the spin is different and interesting (if a little hit-and-miss because of the improvisation) and it's got more than enough charm, comedy, general entertainment to be worth a recommendation. It's an odd one to describe, but once you've seen a bit of it (or something like it) and because you now know that material that was USA-based was successfully transplanted outside those shores, the same might be true in reverse. The show is returning for a Second Series during 2007. For fans of Rob Brydon, it's another little something from the man himself fans of Dave Gorman (as seen on 'The Daily Show' in America) might also want to check it out.
'Annually Retentive' Information at Wikipedia, Information from Answers.com.
'Annually Retentive' Preview at TimeOut from July 2006.
'Annually Retentive' Official Subsite at BBC Three; Short Clip at YouTube.
Pre-Order 'Annually Retentive' (Series One) at Amazon.co.uk [Direct Link], Released on R2 UK DVD April 2nd 2007.