As it is commonly portrayed on TV, the 70s are remembered as the most laugh-out-loud era, defined by obligatory worn-in leather jackets, novelty-sized furry dice, and strikingly prevalent sexism in the workplace. All these were set to the tunes of disco music, funk, and the legendary David Bowie. No wonder Mike Bubbins, creator and lead actor of the whimsically amusing and frequently odd sitcom Mammoth, found it irresistible.
In Mammoth (airing on BBC2, 10pm, Wednesday), Bubbins plays a PE teacher who, after being frozen in ice since 1979, resumes his old job following a 45-year break. Upon return, he realises societal norms have shifted dramatically – flirting with mothers during parent-teacher meetings while sipping a home-made piña colada is no longer deemed suitable.
The sitcom hilariously revolves around a central jest – the blatantly uncouth and sexist tendencies of the 70s and how the central character, Tony Mammoth, struggles to adjust to a significantly transformed world. Bubbins pulls off this joke successfully, sprucing it up with an aged man trapped in corduroy dancing to funky music.
Finding himself in the modern age, Mammoth is taken aback by the fact that his usual drinking companions are now octogenarians, incapable of an all-day drink-a-thon. At school, he still holds high expectations of his students, discarding notions such as workplace safety, promoting a more rough-and-tumble approach. To him, anything less is as if taking a holiday at Pontins – after all, it’s PE, not a vacation.
However, hilarity derived from workplace sexism isn’t enough to carry a comedy, and Mammoth also features a touching storyline involving the character Mel Jones (played by Siân Gibson) – one of many mothers who find Mammoth’s large-scale uncouthness altogether vexing.
Undeniably, the revelation that he was actually her father she never got to know, a result of one last frolic in a ski lodge before the catastrophic avalanche that engulfed him for years, comes with a twist.
Clearly, she appeared less than pleased. After all, who wouldn’t be, upon realising their father, whom they thought perished long ago, is actually a chauvinistic man sporting a walrus moustache and attire that’s a peculiar mix of Studio 54 and The Sweeney?
Yet, their clash is skilfully woven into the overall sweetness of Mammoth, a comedy full of belly-laughs, which makes a mockery of the decade that saw no political correctness and relentlessly exploits this joke, yet still managing to tickle the audience’s sense of humour.
If the mental picture of a Ford Capris coated in a shimmering copper bronze evokes laughter in you, then this is the comedic treat you’ve been patiently waiting for since 1979.