Back to the feature
Spaced, the ’90s TV show about two atmates and their motley neighbours, recently celebrated its 21st anniversary with a cast reunion. “We don’t feel as dated as Friends,” said Simon Pegg in what was also a celebration of the show’s ongoing relevance. And I wondered. Twenty-one years from now, what TV shows will we still be watching on our wristwatches or 5D glasses or whatever? What shows are likely to be the Fawlty Towers or Father Ted of 2040, still fresh and funny even as the planet is melting and the Donald Trump-inator is BIG BOSS of EVERYTHING?
Some years back, I met the great US novelist Richard Ford who stated that in 50 years time nobody would be reading his work just as many had already forgotten his late friend, the master storyteller, Raymond Carver. He may have been pitching for a demurral (“Ah no, Richard, I’ll still be reading Independence Day when I’m 100!) because as long as short stories are read, we’ll be reading Raymond Carver. And Ford’s Frank Bascombe trilogy is also likely to have a lo y place in the pantheon. Short of stepping into a time machine, though, we’ll never know.
But if great literary works are destined to disappear, what of the cultural fast food of television? Will the landmark shows of this Golden Age be relegated to the great unwatched? Will David Chase’s groundbreaking gangster drama, e Sopranos , be merely a quaint relic that only students of TV will ever pick asunder? Will the same go for Breaking Bad or Succession and all those other weighty dramas? Right now, how many of us re-watch the classic dramas of yesteryear such as e West Wing and e Wire ? Or is it just re-runs of Only Fools and Horses, Dad’s Army and Friends that keep us entertained, with comedies seemingly the best prospects for posterity.
Of course, there are some shows that may very well shudder onwards for the next 20 years, ever evolving to stay ahead or more likely pander to the latest trend or fashion. So that in 2040, Love Island will now be Death Island where the last one le alive gets to date Simon Cowell (or is it?). Dancing with the Stars will have morphed into Dancing on a Star (sponsored by Elon Musk) and Ryan Tubridy will be contemplating, once again, his last ever Late Late Toy Show. More likely, if history is any guide, we’ll still be enjoying the rst two seasons of Fleabag and the evergreen GameFace. Who knows, maybe even Spaced will be doing the rounds, still funnier than Friends.