Cunky Town

Among all streaming services, Netflix has really mastered the "art" of releasing things I might be interested in without me ever knowing they're there. Even if I spent more time browsing within the app, their recommendation algorithm always falls short; I wind up having to hear about things from other places (if at all).

One such place was the "Top Television of the Year" lists that critics were posting throughout December 2023. In a few places, the odd title "Cunk on Earth" popped up, making me pause to take note without exactly leading me to want to investigate further. But then, independently, my husband also mentioned having heard about this show, and we decided to check it out.

Cunk on Earth is a 5-part mockumentary series about human history, hosted by journalist Philomena Cunk. She is as pretentious as she is fictitious. Each episode plays all the documentary hits, from "talking head" interviews to stern narrations directly to camera to low-budget reenactments. Starting from ancient civilizations and working up to the space race and the internet, the series lampoons all the accomplishments that a real documentary on human history might feature -- while ultimately suggesting that the cornerstone of civilization was the release of "Pump Up the Jam" by Technotronic.

Although each half-hour episode isn't continually hilarious, each one does deliver a handful of true laugh out loud moments. Your mileage may vary as to what those are, but the show really is firing a barrage sure to appeal to any taste -- dumb puns, sight gags, running jokes, cringe comedy... it's all there.

And it all relies on the pitch perfect performance of Diane Morgan, who plays Philomena Cunk to the hilt. While much of the humor here is scripted, and much more surely "found in the edit," Morgan does actually have to conduct interviews with many real academics. She perfectly walks them into traps the writers have set up, getting them to say the most ridiculous things. She's quick-thinking and inserts plenty of jokes that had to have been ad libbed in the moment. She is, quite simply, brilliant at playing an idiot.

No, Cunk on Earth wasn't so great that it would have made my own personal Top 10 List for 2023 television. Nevertheless, I enjoyed popping one in the right moments, working my way through the five episodes over the several weeks. Some jokes will likely stay with me forever (the description of the Titanic, for example). I give Cunk on Earth a B+. If you love dry British humor, you'll probably love this.