"Is he 'avin' a laugh?"

For anyone that is a fan of the original (British) version of The Office, made by and starring Ricky Gervais, I highly recommend that you check out his latest series - Extras. This series is now complete and available as 3 seperate bits (the 2 seasons and the series finale) or as one package of DVDs.

In this series, Ricky plays a similar character to the manager in the Office, but this time he is an aspiring actor (Andy Millman) who only manages to get non-speaking extra parts in movies. Stephen Merchant comes out from behind the camera and plays a role as well, as Andy Millman's useless agent Darren. Each episode features at least one 'star' playing themselves, but often a very exaggerated version of themselves, making it even more hilarious. Ben Stiller and Orlando Bloom are ego-maniacs extraordinaire, Kate Winslet gives tips on how to talk dirty during phone sex. Patrick Stewart is a pervert. David Bowie is a great sport making fun of the Andy Millman character in song. There are a few cameos by stars only those familiar with the UK scene may recognize, but it's all good. Andy finally does get a taste of the spotlight when someone is interested in his sit-com script, but it only serves to humiliate him more when they warp his idea into complete trash. Ashley Jensen steals the series as Andy's dim-witted friend and fellow extra Maggie.