Gogglebox (2014 to present)

At the moment Bell TV is offering free previews of some of its channels. Last night, we watched an episode of this show from some time earlier in its latest season on a channel called “Cottage TV”. Because “Gogglebox” follows “The Graham Norton Show” we just kept on watching. Here’s the episode that aired on UK television, according to the title. As it features some St. Patrick’s Day clothing, it seems topically up-to-date.

What I like about the show is the candid, but diverse, British humour. Their reactions are similar to how my wife and I respond to what we’re watching. For instance, while reviewing a clip of a program called “Educating Greater Manchester” (or I think it was), a boy acting up in class was diagnosed with ADHD, after hearing that he came to school loaded up on sugary cereal, with added sugar. After his diet was changed, he seemed much calmer. Susan said, “He reminds me of a young Macaulay Culkin.” Almost immediately, one of the Gogglebox watchers said the same thing.

While thinking about the name Gogglebox, I thought of Honeysuckle Weeks from “Goggle Eyes”.

The year was 1993, and the main character, Kitty, always reminds me of my daughter, Rosanna. I believe she watched this show, too. A grownup Honeysuckle Weeks played Doyle’s driver on “Doyle’s War”.

Isn’t it funny how the mind works?