This is Jinsy
GenreSurreal comedy, Sitcom
Created byChris Bran
Justin Chubb
Written byChris Bran
Justin Chubb
Directed byMatt Lipsey
StarringChris Bran
Justin Chubb
Alice Lowe
Janine Duvitski
Geoff McGivern
Harry Hill
Jennifer Saunders
Country of originUnited Kingdom
No. of series2
No. of episodes17 (+ 1 pilot)
Production
Executive producerLucy Lumsden
ProducersChris Carey
James Dean
EditorCharlie Philips
Running time30 minutes
Production companyTiger Aspect Productions
Original release
NetworkBBC Three (pilot)
Sky Atlantic (series)
Release1 March 2010 (2010-03-01) –
12 February 2014 (2014-02-12)

This is Jinsy is a British comedy television series. The pilot was first broadcast on 1 March 2010 on BBC Three. The programme is about the bizarre residents of the fictional island of Jinsy which is based on Guernsey, where the two writers are from.[1] The show was written by Chris Bran and Justin Chubb who also play the leading roles. Although the pilot episode was made for the BBC, the full series of eight episodes was picked up by Sky Atlantic.[2][3] The first series began airing with a double bill on 19 September 2011 and ended on 31 October 2011.[4] A second series was commissioned and was first broadcast on 8 January 2014.[5]

Cast

Episodes

Series 1

No. Title Directed by Written by Guest(s) Original air date Viewers
(millions)
Pilot"Bandy Dog Red"Chris Bran and Justin ChubbChris Bran and Justin ChubbChristopher Fairbank1 March 2010 (2010-03-01)-
Maven and Sporall are tasked with the historic installation of the first tesselator on Old Jinsy, a tribal island covered in brambles.
1"Wedding Lottery"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbDavid Tennant19 September 2011 (2011-09-19)0.179[9]
The islanders are married off in the wedding lottery. Maven enters Sporall into the draw.
2"Cupboards"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbPeter Serafinowicz19 September 2011 (2011-09-19)0.100[9]
Maven is convinced cupboard salesman Eric Dunt is their deity. Sporall is unconvinced.
3"Beardboy"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbCatherine Tate26 September 2011 (2011-09-26)0.187[9]
While Maven prepares for an interview with the editor of Glove Hygiene Monthly, the beard-growing contest is disrupted by an attacker with a taste for facial hair.
4"Ool Bat"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbKevin Eldon, KT Tunstall and Adam Gillen3 October 2011 (2011-10-03)0.111[9]
An environmentalist threatens to scupper Maven's project for a new bridge in the shape of his nose.
5"Nameworm"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbSimon Callow and Nigel Planer11 October 2011 (2011-10-11)0.096[9]
Maven embarks on a journey in treacherous winter conditions accompanied by a former teacher, who torments him on the way.
6"Vel"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbJane Horrocks, Don Warrington and Marek Larwood17 October 2011 (2011-10-17)0.114[9]
Maven attempts to cheat in order to join Jinsy's Intellectual Elite.
7"Zoop"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbMarcia Warren24 October 2011 (2011-10-24)0.089[9]
After a banned rock band plan to break the Arbiter's rules, Maven himself tries to foil their plans.
8"Kelpman"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbBrian Murphy and Colin Hoult31 October 2011 (2011-10-31)0.088[9]
Maven becomes the highlight of Jinsy as he tries to fix a desolate tessellator. Meanwhile, Sporall discovers a new form of entertainment.

Series 2

No. Title Directed by Written by Guest(s) Original air date Viewers
(millions)
1"Intelligent Hair"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbStephen Fry8 January 2014 (2014-01-08)0.067[10]
Maven's annual Arbiter ceremony goes catastrophically wrong when the historic wig used to crown him suddenly becomes reanimated.
2"Acco!"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbBen Miller8 January 2014 (2014-01-08)0.063[10]
Time is of the essence as Maven races against the clocks to get his accounts done in time. The only problem is, Jinsy's ink-addicted accountants have gone feral, forcing him to strike a deal with the Chief Accountant involving his daughter, Berpetta.
3"Double Duck"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbKaty Brand15 January 2014 (2014-01-15)0.049[10]
Maven and Sporall are in high spirits as they attend Jinsy's Firelock Festival, but the mood soon sours when they stop by to see Madame Astralina. The local astrologer specialises in rat bum-reading and she's got some dire news to share with poor Maven: he's going to be assassinated.
4"Penny's Pendant"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbEileen Atkins22 January 2014 (2014-01-22)0.058[10]
Decency levels may have plummeted from Mildly Vulgar to Severely Smutty across the island, but Maven is refusing to let his slip.
5"Nightly Bye"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbRob Brydon29 January 2014 (2014-01-29)0.041[10]
Party pooper Maven is dreading the arrival of forbidden festival Nacken, so much so that he's being extra vigilant about everyone taking their nightly bye pills.
6"Speckled Pom Pom"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbStephen Mangan, Debbie Chazen and KT Tunstall5 February 2014 (2014-02-05)0.052[10]
Preferring crackpot theories to common sense, Maven is convinced that the island is going to be overthrown by a group of subversive residents communicating via coded textile messaging. His evidence? The number of islanders wearing novelty knitwear.
7"Population 791"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbDerek Jacobi12 February 2014 (2014-02-12)0.078[10]
The Great He orders Maven to dispose of a resident when the island population exceeds its limit of 791. Favourite for the chop is Jinsy's oldest inhabitant, the romper suit-wearing Robunce Barnatty, but an unexpected revelation changes everything.
8"The Golden Woggle"Matt LipseyChris Bran and Justin ChubbPhil Davis and Olivia Colman12 February 2014 (2014-02-12)0.062[10]
Maven is shocked to discover that he's been wearing a makeshift woggle and sets out to retrieve the official one from former Arbiter, Roley Jenkins. Obstacles arise, however, in the form of his wife Joan and a pesky parrot.

Production

The pilot of This is Jinsy was produced by the Welded Tandem Picture Company and filmed at Greenford Studios in July 2009. It was directed by Chris Bran and Justin Chubb; the script editor was Emma Kennedy.

Production for the first series started at the end of January 2011 and was directed by Matt Lipsey. Charlie Phillips, who worked with Lipsey on Psychoville, is the editor.[11]

Reception

The Radio Times described the pilot as "infectiously funny as an overstuffed owl. A full series please."[12] Time Out described it as "a lo-fi joy to behold".[13]

Alice-Azania Jarvis, reviewing the first two episodes for The Independent, calls it "brilliantly done" and "genuinely surreal".[14] Keith Watson writes in The Metro, Bran and Chubb "teetered on the brink of drowning in the ocean of whimsy", but that "This is Jinsy pulled off the trick of turning its multifarious influences into something that felt fresh and new."[15]

Awards

The pilot episode (directed by Bran & Chubb) was nominated in the Sitcom category for the Rose d'Or 2010.[16]

Series 1 of This is Jinsy (directed by Matt Lipsey) was nominated in the Best Sketch Show category for the British Comedy Awards 2011.

References

  1. ^ "What is Jinsy?". BBC comedy blog.
  2. ^ "Sky1 Announces New Comedy Line-up". Sky UK. 29 July 2010.
  3. ^ a b c d "This is Jinsy: Amazing Guest Stars Announced". Sky Atlantic. 2011. Retrieved 2 June 2011.
  4. ^ "'This Is Jinsy' Air Date Announced". Entertainment Focus. 31 August 2011. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
  5. ^ "BSkyB gives comedy This is Jinsy a second series". The Guardian. 16 December 2011. Retrieved 14 January 2012.
  6. ^ "Daily TV round-up – Harry goes drag in new comedy". Yahoo! TV. 2011. Retrieved 28 July 2011.
  7. ^ "Greg Davies in This Is Jinsy - Pictures". Comedy.co.uk. 10 December 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  8. ^ "This Is Jinsy - Season 1 Episode 1". TV Pixie. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h "Weekly Top 10 Programmes". Broadcasters' Audience Research Board. Retrieved 14 September 2011.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h "Weekly Top 10 Programmes". Broadcasters' Audience Research Board. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
  11. ^ "Sky Atlantic Announces 'This Is Jinsy'". entertainment-focus.com. 2 May 2011. Retrieved 19 May 2011.
  12. ^ Radio Times 27th - 5 February March 2010 issue
  13. ^ Time Out Magazine TV preview Wed 24 March
  14. ^ Jarvis, Alice-Azania (20 September 2011). "This Is Jinsy Review". The Independent. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  15. ^ Watson, Keith (19 September 2011). "This Is Jinsy, series 1, episode 1: TV review". Metro. Retrieved 20 September 2011.
  16. ^ Rose d'Or Nominees Archived 7 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine. The Rose D'Or 2010 Website

External links

Sky Atlantic original programming
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