Stupid!

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Stupid! is a comedy television series for children in the UK, broadcast first on CBBC, then on BBC One. It is written by Dean Wilkinson, who also wrote SMTV Live.

1 Plot
2 Other Deed Monarchs in the Show
3 Characters
4 Trivia
5 External links

[edit] Plot

The show centres around the mythical King Stupid (Marcus Brigstocke, later Phil Cornwell), an immortal who is the instigator of all stupidity on Earth. King Stupid has files on every human and can make them behave as stupidly as his whim desires. He resides in his castle in the Ether World, a pan-dimensional realm home to many Deed Monarchs, each of which with different facet of human behaviour to rule over: Queen Sensible, King Angry, Count Cruel, and so on. The Ether World is also home to a myriad of ogres, imps, banshees, witches, and boggarts.

Stupid’s work is made all the more difficult by his annoying purple gremlin butler Goober, who he refere's him to a "bog house rat" goes out of his way to make the King’s life hell. The love-hate relationship between the King and Goober provide a sitcom element to the show with a self resolving story arc throughout each episode. The two main characters act like video jockeys introducing King Stupid's work on earth – the sketches – in which children and adults are manipulated into doing seemingly random and stupid acts for no apparent reason.

[edit] Other Deed Monarchs in the Show

King Wonderful (Mitch Benn) - comes to stay at Stupid's castle during one episode, much to Stupid's annoyance. He is gotten rid of when Stupid invites King Angry, Wondeful's rival over. Goober puts him in the teleportation device, but instead of sending him back to his castle, he is sent to Earth. He is seen by a human and promptly turns into a tree.

Queen Shy - is only mentioned once, in the same episode as King Wonderful. He wishes to go to her castle when he finds out that King Angry is coming to visit.

King Angry - is only seen once, in the same episode as King Wonderful and Queen Shy.

Count Cruel - Stupid's twin brother. Tries to kill Goober and take over the world. Sent to Earth and turned into a tree.

Queen Sensible - Stupid's apparent rival. Oddly, she is turned into a tree during one episode, but appears again in her real form in the second series- (where she gets turned into a tree again)

Curiously enough, Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom was shown in one sketch when a boy who constantly tries to recuscitate people who don't really need it, and he tries it when she's having a slice of cake. Surprisingly, she thrashes the boy with her handbag. The commentator muses on the unique event of the Heimlich manoeuvre administered on her.

[edit] Characters

There are many characters that King Stupid and Goober interact with; these include:

Devil Finger! - David believes that his finger is possessed by the Devil, and tries to hurt people with it by using repetitive stabbing and poking actions whilst shouting "DEVIL FINGER!!", and, on one occasion, "DOUBLE DEVIL FINGER!!" (Failing the above, he uses the "EVIL ELBOW!"). However he can't protect himself against other people who claim their finger is possessed, like Cow Bite (possessed by an ancient cow) or Bendy Wendy who David falls in love with. The role of The Devil finger Kid is played by Travis Yates, who is currently playing the lead role in Billy Elliot the Musical at London's Victoria Palace Theatre.
Court Casey - Casey wears a Barrister's wig and always has to judge a "crime", especially against her teacher in class, and even if it means convicting her own parents.
My Gran Keeps Dying - Graham is a boy who always has to put up with his gran, who will pretend to play dead, making Graham get into a flap. She always says when she has tricked him "Oh, your face!" and laughs at him.
Want It? Can't Have It! - A girl who thinks it's fun to tease someone at the most inopportune moments by not handing them the tool or object they desperately need, like an operating tool in a hospital in a matter of life and death, or a ticket to a Busted concert to a doorman.
Gotta Go Joe - Joe is a boy constantly trying to 'escape' in whatever way necessary, like crashing in his garden using a strand from a tent his parents bought him. He is one of the main characters in the series and is often shown alongside a friend, Steve, the would-be-voice of reason.
Box Boy This boy pretends to be a post box, washing machine and even a jukebox. He has never revealed himself to the public. However he sounds like the boy who plays Devil Finger. His hands are often seen in a blue jumper slotting out of the box. His inventions include:
- Cashpiont
- Duke box
- Post boks
- Foto booth
Time Team Jasper - Archie wants to be an archeologist like his hero, Tony Robinson (Time Team) He goes around excavating on things like football pitches and fields, and even once featured in his bedroom! His trademark phrase is, "I am the new Tony Robinson!".
Frank Boffin - his a unmistakable wig and glasses, and is always pestering a man with his strange inventions, like "an orange, genetically modified to look and taste like a banana." Whenever his inventions are actually praised he says "you're just mocking me. If you don't think they are good then just tell me." and leaves. His trademark phrase is, "Consider the potential."
Invisible Boy - Wears glasses, and thinks that he can turn invisible.
Emotionally Unstable Scout Leader - After a bitter divorce in which his wife left him for a "fancy man", the Scout Leader keeps getting his Scouts to wreck the lives of his wife and her new husband. The "fancy man"'s ex-wife runs a Girl Guides team and when the two meet, they ally and ransack the "fancy man's" house (he wasn't in at the time!)
Jeff the Chef - Only appeared in one episode, he is a TV chef who kept putting his shoes in his recipes, and singing "My Shoes, my shoes, my shoes" or "Don't take me away from my ingredients"
Over Reaction Jackson - Karen Jackson starts screaming over trivial matters, often resulting in a person getting fired or sued. She also laughs insanely when a story or joke is told to a person other than her, and often falls over.
Piano Teacher - A supposed gifted pianist who can only play Chopsticks, but when the student leaves the room, he plays more exotic pieces.
Rude Waitress - Delivers food, but is then extremely rude, eating the food, starting food fights, stealing people's chairs, and interrupting everybody. The Restaurant Manager sacks her but he's just as bad, as he once did the same with a pudding trolley.
Child Reporters - A pair of siblings who pretend to present a news programme, managing to annoy their mother every time. The girl tends to announce the news in the kitchen or the car, and the boy is "at the scene of the action", e.g. in the car park, toilet or the kitchen at teatime.
Neil Bell - "Unusual and interesting", with big curly blonde hair, a pink shirt, braces, and a droopy bow-tie. He goes around the park, trying to impress people with his ineresting facts and unusuality. His main victim is a boy he keeps trying to make friends with, by showing off to, with Tarzan impressions, imaginary royalty, a dog, amongst other things.
Screaming Fan Girls - 3 friends who scream about people like binmen and check-out girls as if they were celebrities.
The Wailing Walls - The Wall family are deeply disturbed and think they can get whatever they want by wailing in a loud monotone yell continuously at shopkeepers and the like, also using this to jump or interrupt queues. They meet their match when they confront the qually bizarre Ringing Ding family.
Teenage Concentration Span - A teenager who's already short attention span is made stupidly shorter by King Stupid whenever he is required to take in important information, like where a ward in a hospital is, or tea and biscuits for a church coffee morning (even though his mother wrote the things down on a list!).
Makeover Mandy - A makeover show presenter who specializes in making over gardens like putting nail varnish on conifers, or putting clothes on a tree for example (this usually happens in an unwilling person's garden!). Her catchphrase is "...but not too tarty!" She is accompanied by a rather flamboyant fashion designer called André, and a stylist, and also by the Police if she's not too careful!
Piggyback Jockey - An ardent jockey always dressed with a horserider's hat and a pink jacket, who can't tell the difference between a horse or a man, because when one bends down, she shouts PIGGYBACK! and lands on the back of the person. She is a source of shame for her parents, who unsurprisingly, are shunted out of most parties, weddings, etc. Even the centenarian Uncle Albert cannot stop her!
Choir Manager - A school choir boss runs the choir as if it were a football team, threatening members of the choir with foreign transfers, and claims the school bell is half-time. He also speaks in a Manchester accent. Any critic of his is in trouble.
She fancies you! - 2 twin sisters argue and say "No! She fancies you!" when they meet people in the most inappropriate places, like to a boy hiding from them in a cupboard, or a robber in the middle of the night.
Spooky schoolchildren - 2 children who sit on a wall in a street or a school stage and when someone tries to enter they get into a spooky story to answer questions they don't know the answers to (like why they have a day off on Friday, or where a girl's bag is) with close ups of their faces, then they trail off and admit it was a made up tale.
And it was really brrg - A girl who does not speak properly by wildly overexaggerating using lots of onamatopoeia
Her Mother - A girl whose mother always acts like a teenager and joins in girl talk with her and her friends much to the annoyance of the girl who tells her mum to go away. It usually ends in her mum taking them all out.
FBI kids - a brother and sister who are dressed up as detectives with a suit and a walky talky who tell people to 'step away from the...'.
Erm, no yur not! - A girl who doesn't believe that someone is the person they claim to be when they are, this usually ends with her missing out on something really good, eg, she misses out on going to America with her uncle. it usually ends with her saying to herself "I'm such an idiot!".
Fancy dress parents - Dress up in fancy dress clothes for all events they go to (and do not involve fancy dress whatsoever), and always cause a scene in front of their daughter. Their trademark phrase is "I'm sure it said fancy dress on the invitation". But when there is a fancy dress party, they have no dress whatsoever.
Goth Girl - A female teenage goth thinks she is a witch and she thinks she can put curses on anyone who doesn't do what she says by bringing out soft toys dressed up in gothic clothes but then they get flattened by a bus or fall on the floor. The girl gets angry and throws the cuddly toy to the ground. Her sketches often contain a young boy called Ian and his lady-friend.
She knits me everything - An eccentric mum knits her son every imaginable luxury, such as a dog, the newest games console around or, what's worst of it all, she knitted a new father (don't ask!).
The "Professionals" - A duo act as if they were in The Professionals, going further than their "job" entails, such as tormenting their sister because of a half-biscuit found in one of the duo's room and tearing the head off their sister's doll.
He's Choking! - A young lad tries to do CPR on people that just put something into their mouth, like a harmless whistle or a bit of cake in the case of the Queen. He is mocked by his peers.
Judith Bibber - Stupid's worst enemy (in a cameo by Rebecca Ryan) who investigates his works and falls prey to his advances in front of the country on Newsround (see below), and she films the work on her phone and Stupid's work may come to an end. She is less a sketch, more an important part of the plot in the final episode of series two.
Scaredy Teacher - An otherwise strict teacher is reduced to tears when another adult enters the room, say the school inspector or an electrician.
Salesman - A Jamaican car salesman offers his clients a spacehopper and a tiny toy car much to their annoyance. His catchphrase when they storm off is "Timewaster!" His attempt to forget about annoying his clients is to no avail.
The Parents - These aren't necessarily the subject of a sketch, they are the affected. A man and his wife are on a wild goose chase to find babysitters for their young boy. They first choose:
- Megaphone Woman who upsets the baby with her loud noises.
- Devil Finger who attacks him
- Neil Bell, who the mum is against because she claims he is an idiot, but he actually entertains the baby with his unusual "facts" about babies. The dad chose him when it became clear he and his wife couldn't attend a function.
His Reverence - An unusual old reverend who is the first to discover a new planet, or naming the Beckham's new child, giving them strange names at the last minute, such as Tuppenny Snugglewoofer for his planet, and Chuffing Flannel hooter for Master Beckham(due to Stupid Rex's mind control see below)
Poor Decision Maker - A seemingly normal man who is affected by Stupid in the charity shop or in a shoe shop. The decision isn't heard but it varies from selling his son at the charity shop and other suchlike decisions. The sketch ends with his catchphrase "I've just made a terrible decision!"
Immature Dad - A thirtysomething businessman whose daughter controls his behaviour, when he refuses to take any cabbages or doesn't have enough for the Financial Times and The Guardian. In the dinner sketch, she bans him from listening to Radio 4 and as once the girl apologizes for his poor behaviour, the rest of the adults at dinner cry as a baby.
Romeo Jones - A young lad claims himself the world's finest romantic, who fails dismally in his persuits. When encouraged by a girl receiving flowers from an admirer, he brings it to a new proportion, and has an even larger bunch of flowers and because of hay fever, he sneezes in her face of all places.

[edit] Trivia

In the episode, This is Us, the wall sockets are upside down when Goober pulls out the console plug to put in the hoover plug.
King Stupid's contemporary King Manners was ousted in the episode when Judith Bibber investigates the works of Stupid.
Newsround presenters and the programme itself played cameo parts in certain sketches, including during Count Cruel's coup.
There is a portable version of the computer system that is used when the full computer system isn't available.
Scenes comprised in the show are shown on both screens of the system before they are plucked out by Stupid.
In more recent sketches, they begin as a normal situation and things go terribly wrong. This is because Stupid Rex is using Mind Control, a recent installment in the software. To activate it, he presses a large yellow button.