Online Review: Matt Berry Does...Summer Holidays, BBC iPlayer

Matt Berry Does...Holidays

The third instalment in Matt Berry’s online series finds our seductive-toned narrator guiding us through his version of the history of summer holidays. Or to be more precise, the “UKAY summer holiday” as Berry deliciously phrases it. 

Actually after some stock footage of seaside jollity in times past and the explanation that people away from work prefer “fannying about like they were Lord and Lady Hoo-Ha” the emphasis is on fannying about with nature documentary footage rather than stiff-haired bathing beauties. Oh, sorry, there is also a juicy bit of background about camping which involves Native Americans, decking and preposterous shoes.

Berry’s finest voiceover moment here is when he takes on the persona of Gary Dent, a downtrodden bagworm heading across the road for his summer break in a nearby warehouse. Well, it would be nearby for humans, for a bagworm it’s an epic trek which is briefly interrupted by an ant crawling up its back passage. Along the way we hear about Gary's wife, who has scuttled off with a millipede with a colourful line in footwear, and his two mischievous kids, Dent A and Dent B. I suspect creative collaborator Bob Mortimer might have had a hand in coming up with these names.

The idea of giving animals human voices and personalities is hardly new, but Berry is the most perfect person ever to do it. His particularly exotic enunciation makes even the slightest offhand remark bladder-bustingly comical. And special respect to whoever came up with the idea of making turtles rushing into the sea have German accents. 

While previous instalments have majored on the funnies, this episode even has a bit of philosophy in it too as Berry's narration concludes by suggesting that while you might see some new scenery this summer, it is never a complete getaway as “misery travels with us”. Spare a thought for poor old Gary Dent, whose plans definitely end in misery for him.

Matt Berry Does...Summer Holidays is on BBC iPlayer here.

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