The Kendal-born director of one of Britain's most iconic and enduringly controversial TV comedy shows is bringing a rare treat for the show's fans back home.
Michael Cumming, the director of comedy legend Chris Morris' cult TV Show Brass Eye, is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the original airing of the programme in 1997 with exclusive screenings of his film Oxide Ghosts, a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the bizarre but brilliant series.
The event in Kendal will take place at the Brewery Arts Centre on Thursday 3 March, and is part of a nationwide tour from 25 February to 1 April, and the events are the only time the film will ever be screened.
Andy Murray, of Chortle comedy website, said: "Oxide Ghosts offers a well-judged and very rare insight into (Brass Eye’s) making, encapsulating the fun and covert excitement that went on while the project was still under wraps, before all the legal wrangling kicked in.
"If you're an admirer of the show and the opportunity should arise for you to see Oxide Ghosts, have some self re-cocking-spect and do so without hesitation."
The event will consist of a 10-minute introduction, the film, which lasts for one hour, and followed by a 30-minute question-and-answer session with Michael himself.
Brass Eye was the start of Michael's glittering career that saw him go on to work with a host of some of the most celebrated comedy talent on our screens, such as Stewart Lee, Matt Berry, Mark Thomas, Jo Brand, David Walliams, Matt Lucas, Sir Lenny Henry, Rashida Jones, Omid Djalili, Mark Steel, Doon Mackichan, Jon Hamm, Sanjeev Bhaskar and Larry David.
Brass Eye aside, Michael's body of work as a director and filmmaker is highly acclaimed, including The Mark Thomas Product, Snuff Box, Mark Steel Lectures, Lucas and Walliams in Rock
Profile, Matt Berry’s BAFTA winning sitcom, Toast Of London and its follow up, Toast Of Tinseltown and, with Stewart Lee, the critically acclaimed, break-out music film of 2021, King Rocker.
The film carries the blessing of the enigmatic Chris Morris, and Vanessa Thorpe of the Guardian said: "In honour of the Brass Eye birthday there have been tributes published and repeats scheduled, but the surprise popularity of an almost unpublicised touring event, called Oxide Ghosts: The Brass Eye Tapes, perhaps says even more about the enduring influence of the show.
"Oxide Ghosts has been quietly selling out in independent cinemas across the land"
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