Andy the Beardy Sound Man: so it appears that my ex flatmate from Brisbane has his own TV show.
Me: about what?
AtBSM: I think it's just Dave being Dave. On TV.
Dave Being Dave on TV (officially billed as A Dave in the Life) premiered on SBS last night. I missed the original broadcast. I was at my girlfriend's house eating nutella cream pavlova and watching the NRL getting massacred on Four Corners for its ongoing attitude towards women, including controversially, naming Matty Johns as the central character in the disgusting abuse of a 19 year old New Zealander while touring there with the Cronulla Sharks. I truly have no words for the kind of men that would treat a girl who is basically a child with such animalistic disrespect and not recognise it as intimidation. I leave you to face your mothers.
So seeing as my screen time was otherwise occupied last night, I was pretty pleased to discover that SBS were streaming the entire episode online this morning. I'll be honest, this show isn't the best content I've ever seen. The writing needs some time to mature. But I have to congratulate SBS on their courage and their intelligent distribution approach.
A Dave in the Life borrowed much from Safran and Theroux, and while our hero didn't have quite the same charisma as either of those cultural curiosities, I was relieved that something like this was going to air. The first episode was a light look at Australia's shock jock culture that touched on our national acceptance of racism and bigotry as long as it's all part of 'showbiz'. It allowed the lowest common denominator to shine through on its own without ridicule or judgement, and encouraged a conversational debate between two different sides of Australian culture. Its host has a sense of humour about himself and a humility that is refreshing in a world of self-aggrandising career comedians.
It's even more encouraging to see that SBS had the sense to make sure that the entire episode was available online after broadcast. It's this simple recognition that linear broadcast is no longer an appropriate way to reach a mainstream audience that will differentiate the content leaders in the media in the next few years.
Somehow, though, I don't think Dave will ever rise to the status of a hero of family viewing time quite like Matty Johns. More's the pity.
