Have we had a thread about Headcases, that ITV comedy series which is being pushed as 'the new Spitting Image' (only with computer-generated celebrities instead of latex puppets)?

I caught precisely one sketch from the opening episode, in which 'Madonna' sang an unfunny song about how she's turning into a man.

It was enough to convince me that the entire thing must be an irredeemable pile of shit.

Am I wrong?

Shamefully, I assumed it would be shit without watching any of it.

I failed to laugh at any of it. Maybe it will get funnier.

Horrible, horrible, horrible. Even the animation was atrociously sterile.

Just horrible.

Only just saw this. Yes, I had to review it. Funereally unfunny. However, I wondered if that was just because this sort of popular satirical format really isn't adequate to raise laughs any more. Maybe we've been spoiled by the virulence of Chris Morris, etc. Maybe there's a parallel with the way in which, shortly after punk, directly political lyrics became trite, obvious and embarrassing and a more oblique strategy needed to be devised.

I think the biggest part of the problem is that most emerging comedy writers and performers don't engage with current affairs. They write these shows because it's a step on the career ladder, but they don't have the zest for it that (say) Richard Curtis or Ian Hislop had for attacking the establishment in the 80s.

Of course, the other problem is that these things are commissioner-led, and they often have unusual ideas about what they want to see. I had an audition to write for a currently airing topical show (not Headcases) shortly before Christmas. The brief was "satirical but upbeat". As I couldn't work out what this meant, I wasn't surprised that I didn't get the gig.

You raise a good point there, Lucy. I think really good satire needs about it some desire to destroy, a la John Heartfield, and accept that that is a distinctly downbeat proposition - although generally a good deal funnier and more effective than the "upbeat" variety.

Oh yeah, I PVRed this a couple of weeks ago. Didn't make it past halfway. No laughs, and a lot of moments where I stared in disbelief at the screen as a sketch ended, astonished that, yes, that was all they could think of for that one so they're moving on.

I gather it's not got any funnier then. 'Course it's not got a chance when it's being put up against Adrian Chiles...

Yep, just to echo everyone else, this is a truly dire, witless programme. Really abysmal stuff.