| Garth Marenghi's Darkplace | |
|---|---|
 Front cover of DVD release | |
| Genre | |
| Created by | |
| Based on | |
| Written by |
|
| Directed by | Richard Ayoade |
| Starring |
|
| Composer | Andrew Hewitt |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
| Production | |
| Producer | Charlie Hanson |
| Running time | 25 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | Channel 4 |
| Release | 29 January (2004-01-29) – 4 March 2004 (2004-03-04) |
| Related | |
| Man to Man with Dean Learner | |
Garth Marenghi's Darkplace is a Britishhorrorparody television series created byRichard Ayoade andMatthew Holness forChannel 4. The show focuses on fictional horror authorGarth Marenghi (played by Holness) and his publisherDean Learner (played by Ayoade), characters who originated in the stage showGarth Marenghi's Fright Knight.
The series is presented as a special release of the fictional television seriesDarkplace. Within the reality of the show,Darkplace was produced in the 1980s for Channel 4, but never broadcast anywhere butPeru, eventually becoming alost series. Saved footage has recently resurfaced, with Marenghi republishing with the intent of gaining interest from a modern audience. The "original footage" of the show is intercut or bookended with commentary from many of the "original" cast, where characters such as Marenghi and Learner reflect on what it was like to make the show.Darkplace parodies thefashion,special effects, production gaffes, and music of low-budget '80s television, as well as the arrogant attitude of certain writers and performers.
Darkplace was broadcast in a late-night timeslot, with very little advertising, and met with poor viewing figures.[1] It built up a significant internet following, leading Channel 4 to repeat the series and produce a DVD release. In 2005, Channel 4'sFilm4 asked Holness and Ayoade to write a script for a film adaptation,[2] but the project never saw further development.
The show was later broadcast in the United States on theSci-Fi Channel andAdult Swim[1] and is available to stream onPeacock.
"I'm Garth Marenghi: author, dreamweaver, visionary, plus actor: You are about to enter the world of my imagination; you are now entering my Darkplace."
The spoof comedy series, released in 2004, lampoons 1980s television drama, particularly horror, sci-fi, and "the rampant egotism of self-appointed 'mastermind' authors".[3] The show presentsGarth Marenghi's Darkplace as though it were a real, low-budget television series produced in the 1980s and is now getting its first screening, framed as part of a director's commentary series.Darkplace's fictionalshow-within-a-show includes deliberately poor production and special effects, sub-par acting, choppy editing and storylines that are "severely flawed and open-ended".[4][5] This is interspersed with present-day interviews with the cast.
The series' fictional premise is that some time in the 1980s, bestselling horror author Garth Marenghi and his publisher/publicist, Dean Learner, made their own low-budget television series with a single intent: "to change the evolutionary course of Man over a series of half-hour episodes."[6][7] Set in Darkplace Hospital, "over the very gates of Hell", inRomford, London,[3]Garth Marenghi's Darkplace shows the adventures of Dr. Rick Dagless, M.D., as he fights the forces of darkness while simultaneously coping with the pressures of "day-to-day admin". Within this fictional context, Marenghi wrote 63 teleplays from which 50 shows were produced (in the commentary, he mentions that there were 67 episodes at one point, though it may have been intentional by Holness to show discontinuity);[7] however, Channel 4 was eventually forced to reject the show due to its "radicality",[3][7] though Marenghi also cites possible government suppression: "MI8, which is actually three levels aboveMI6, pulled the plug. And they did it because I knew the truth."[4] In 2004, due to the "worst artistic drought in broadcast history",[5] Channel 4 decided to air six of the original episodes.
The makers ofDarkplace endeavoured to make the show seem authentic. From "the retro Channel 4 logo at the start to the distortion of the analogue music track at the start of scenes", "the fashion, ... the texture of film stock",[3] "[the] deliberately poor continuity, cheesy lines, wooden acting and cheap special effects"; it is delivered "in such a pitch perfect way you can't help but laugh".[4] Also included are "present-day interviews", in which Marenghi, Learner, and their co-star Todd Rivers comment on the show-within-the-show. The interview segments further reveal the delusional and self-absorbed attitudes of Marenghi and Learner.
As with promotion for their earlierPerrier Award-winningstage show,[8][9] the official website speaks of Garth Marenghi, and other characters as though they were real people, while making no mention of the real actors. Press releases also contained "realistic looking fake back stories for Marenghi and the other characters instead of making any mention of what the real cast have appeared in",[4] and an article by "Garth Marenghi" appeared inThe Daily Telegraph discussing his "groundbreaking television series".[10] "More than a few" people and media outlets were caught out by this fictional framing.[4][3]
The show's musical soundtrack, ostensibly composed by "Stig Baasvik" (but with a further credit stating that it is "based on melodies whistled by Garth Marenghi") parodies the same subjects as the writing, and gained its actual composer,Andrew Hewitt, aBAFTA Nomination as Best New Composer for Film and T.V. (2004).[11]
Noel Fielding appears as a mutant "Ape-oid" in Episode 4, "The Apes of Wrath".
This list is ordered by the original air dates on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom.
| No. | Title | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Once Upon a Beginning" | 29 January 2004 (2004-01-29) | |
New doctor Liz Asher arrives at Darkplace Hospital, where a mysterious cat portends disaster. Dr. Rick Dagless, M.D., must act in time to prevent unspeakable evil from leaking out from a portal to Hellmouth under Darkplace Hospital. Guest starringJulian Barratt. | |||
| 2 | "Hell Hath Fury" | 5 February 2004 (2004-02-05) | |
At Darkplace Hospital, lunch is delayed, and objects begin flying around. At first, suspicion falls on the hospital's temporary clerical assistant, but Dagless is determined to find out the truth. Guest starringStephen Merchant. | |||
| 3 | "Skipper the Eyechild" | 12 February 2004 (2004-02-12) | |
Somewhere on the wards of Darkplace Hospital, a man gives birth to a giant eyeball that brings outpaternal instincts in Dagless, still grieving for the loss of his half-human, half-grasshopper son. However, the eyeball could be a potential killer. Guest starringGraham Linehan. | |||
| 4 | "The Apes of Wrath" | 19 February 2004 (2004-02-19) | |
A mysterious illness spreads like a particularly virulent disease through the wards of Darkplace, causing doctors and patients to revert to an earlier genetic state. Dagless must stop it before he too becomes a primate. Guest starringJulian Barratt andNoel Fielding. | |||
| 5 | "Scotch Mist" | 26 February 2004 (2004-02-26) | |
A Scottish mist descends on Darkplace, and Dagless has to act fast to protect all the English people in the hospital from grave danger. Guest starringPaul King. | |||
| 6 | "The Creeping Moss from the Shores of Shuggoth" | 4 March 2004 (2004-03-04) | |
Dr. Sanchez's life is in danger from a patient with an extraterrestrial broccoli infection. Dagless must save both his friend, and the world. Guest starringJulian Barratt andGraham Linehan. | |||
Rotten Tomatoes gives the series an 87% rating based on reviews from 23 critics, with an average rating of 6.7/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "The short-livedGarth Marenghi's Darkplace is strangely brilliant, even while buried under its own layers of satire."[12]
Darkplace originally aired in 2004. Only one series was produced. There is media speculation that the "average" or "poor" viewing figures ledChannel 4 to decide against commissioning a second series.[4][13] Channel 4 started a re-run of the series in October 2006 and released the show on DVD in the same month, while allowing the show to be re-broadcast onVirgin Media's On-demand service.[14] In 2005, it was reported that the channel's cinema division,Film Four, had asked Holness and Ayoade to write a script for a film version of their programme.[2]
On 27 July 2006,Darkplace made its U.S. debut on theSci-Fi Channel.[13]
The series had aspin-off, the spoof chat showMan to Man with Dean Learner, which began on 20 October 2006 on Channel 4. Dean's first guest was Garth Marenghi. During the interview with Garth a clip from the supposedly forthcoming movie,War of the Wasps, is shown, again featuring Dean Learner and his acting ability. Marenghi would also appear on the final episode of the series, which featured a clip from avideo nasty that Garth and Dean had supposedly produced, which featured cameos from variousDarkplace cast members.
As of 2022[update]Darkplace is available to watch onAll 4 (Channel 4's free streaming service) andBritBox, and was screened onUK Gold in January 2016. In the United States it is available onAmazon Prime andPluto TV.
The complete series was released onDVD (PAL,region 2 only) on 16 October 2006, including the following special features:
The cover of the DVD also features a play on the DVD logo, which instead reads "DEANVD".
Holness and Ayoade reprise their roles as Garth and Dean inMan to Man with Dean Learner, which is also available on DVD.
