''Standing Room Only'' was a

television programme A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is t ...

shown on British channel

BBC2 BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream ...

in 1991. ''Standing Room Only'' was produced by the BBC's Youth and Entertainment Features department, at the time headed up by

Janet Street-Porter Janet Vera Street-Porter (''née'' Bull; born 27 December 1946) is an English broadcaster, journalist, writer, and media personality. She began her career as a fashion writer and columnist at the ''Daily Mail'' and was later appointed fashion e ...

who was also executive producer. The first series consisted of six episodes broadcast in BBC2's "Def II" slot. The host was Simon O'Brien (who would later also co-present a series of Def II's "Rough Guide To The World" with

Magenta Devine Magenta Devine (born Kim Taylor; 4 November 1957 – 6 March 2019) was a British television presenter, journalist and music promoter best known for presenting the travel programme ''Rough Guide'' and youth programme ''Reportage'' on BBC2 in the 1 ...

) but other people, including Shelley Webb, presented small sections of the programme. The format was magazine style mixing current news stories with star interviews and comedy. Notably involved were comedians

David Baddiel David Lionel Baddiel (; born 28 May 1964) is an English comedian, presenter, screenwriter, and author. He is known for his work alongside Rob Newman in ''The Mary Whitehouse Experience'' and his comedy partnership with Frank Skinner. He has als ...

and Rob Newman who delivered weekly sketches under the banner of "Sepp Maier's Comedy Shorts",

Rory Bremner Roderick Keith Ogilvy "Rory" Bremner,"Rory Bremner". '' Who Do You Think You Are?''. Wall to Wall for BBC One. 2 February 2009. No. 1, series 6. (born 6 April 1961) is a Scottish impressionist and comedian, noted for his work in political sa ...

who recorded comedy voices, and Guardian cartoonist Steve Bell who drew a weekly graphic comic strip. The series was inspired by the growing mainstream interest in football and the popularity of so-called football fanzines magazines notably "When Saturday Comes" which offered the opinions of football fans themselves rather than professionals. It had an informal style, with presenters usually standing near football grounds rather than sitting in a studio. In 1994, Baddiel would go on to co-host the hugely successful football series "Fantasy Football League" with fellow comedian

Frank Skinner Christopher Graham Collins (born 28 January 1957), professionally known as Frank Skinner, is an English comedian, actor, presenter and writer. At the 2001 British Comedy Awards, he was named Best Comedy Entertainment Personality. His televisi ...

. One feature was the Supporterloo (a pun on portaloo), a small trailer with little more than a camera and a seat shaped like a toilet, which was taken to different grounds around the UK. Members of the public were invited to sit inside and give their views on their favourite team. On one occasion the

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...

reserve goalkeeper

Bobby Mimms Robert Andrew Mimms (born 12 October 1963) is an English football coach and former player who played as a goalkeeper. Mimms' career lasted twenty years, and is best known for his tenure with Blackburn Rovers, where he was a member of the Premie ...

sat inside and expressed his frustration on not playing regularly for Rovers' first team.

Episodes

This list is ordered by the original air dates on BBC2 in the United Kingdom.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, id=1229324, title=Standing Room Only
British Film Institute
1991 British television series debuts 1994 British television series endings BBC Television shows English-language television shows Association football television series