Opinion: Justin Bieber, The New Alan Partridge?

justin bieber

I presume Justin Bieber's latest exploits at the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam were not being filmed, which is probably a good thing, given the kerfuffle his "Belieber" scribble has prompted. But when this incident hit the headlines I did wonder for a moment whether it was part of the proposed Bieber sitcom that I heard American television network ABC was talking about making last year. Maybe they had decided against an initial reported idea of casting someone else and setting it during Bieber's early years and were now going for a more foot-in-mouth comedic Alan Partridge-meets-Bruno docucomedy approach.

There have been plenty of sitcoms where fact and fiction have blurred. Curb Your Enthusiasm, starring comedian/writer Larry David as comedian/writer Larry David springs immediately to mind. Lead Balloon contained a hint of what its star Jack Dee might have been if Dee had not been a rip-roaring stand-up success. They, of course, both played their alter egos. And are funny, which helps.

In this celebrity-obsessed age there is some logic basing a sitcom around one of the world's most famous people. It's blindingly obvious really. I should know, I had the idea years ago. I can remember in the past suggesting that a sitcom should be made about Victoria Beckham or Kate Moss. On the one hand the best sitcoms are about very ordinary people – Steptoe, David Brent – but there is no reason why they cannot be about extraordinary people. Not that Victoria Beckham and Kate Moss should play themselves, before anyone starts getting ideas of giving screen-time to either of them.

Absolutely Fabulous, Episodes and The Larry Sanders Show certainly showed that there is plenty of comedy gold to be dug out of the showbiz swamp. And then there are the docusoaps featuring the Osbournes and the Kardashians, etc, which are kind of sitcoms by any other name, even if the scripts and the acting are not always up to scratch.

But back to teeny, tiny, Justin Bieber, who might be a great mover onstage, but has been known to put his foot in it offstage. Of course his life could be the basis of a sitcom. It is not really the sit that is important, it is the com. And the Anne Frank incident does have a twisted Partridge/David Brent-ish comedy logic to it. Get some good writers in and almost any situation can be a success. Look at The Office. There had been plenty of desk-based sitcoms before, but nobody nailed the mixture of ennui and absurdity quite as brilliantly as Ricky Gervais.

The only real problem is the casting. Would Bieber have the time to play himself? I have a possible solution. Maybe they should do it as an animation in the same way The Jackson Five and The Osmonds used to have their own series. Think of the advantages. No tantrums. No limits on how many hours the cast work. And no chance of the cast going too far when they are visiting areas of historical interest. As Alan Partridge almost said, "Unbeliebable". 

Articles on beyond the joke contain affiliate ticket links that earn us revenue. BTJ needs your continued support to continue - if you would like to help to keep the site going, please consider donating.

Zircon - This is a contributing Drupal Theme
Design by WeebPal.