miranda

B323 Section B Media Topic: Television and/or Radio comedy

Question 4 b): Discuss in detail how one programme offers audience pleasures. Give examples from the programme.

I have chosen to analyse the audience pleasures of watching Miranda (BBC 1). I will give specific examples by close reference to episodes and by quotation. 
Miranda is mainstream family viewing, aimed at a target audience who would relate to middle class life. Miranda is a TV sitcom: socially inept Miranda always gets into awkward situations when working in her joke shop with best friend Stevie, being hounded by her pushy mother, and especially when she is around her crush Gary.

A comprehensive review of all four BBC TV channels by the governing trust (July 2014) found that BBC 1 could feel “middle class in focus and target audience" with Miranda cited as an example. They also found that the BBC is falling out of favour with younger people and BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic viewers). The average age of BBC1 viewers is 59, compared with 56 in 2010/11. However, the character of Miranda is also quite like a big child as she is unmarried, always making a fool of herself and getting into trouble with her mother, so I think that audiences such as younger audiences could relate to her.  

Audiences also relate to her relationship with her best friend Stevie  because they have lots of inside jokes and have quirky challenges that make them relatable and funny. They also use there contrast and is polar opposite, with Miranda being larger, brown haired and Stevie being short and Blonde. They are very dynamic and call each other funny names which lots of people could relate to. Stevie is one of those friends that your parents compare you to as she is more pretty, smarter, witty and doesn't make a fool of herself in public situations. Stevie has the 'allure' and is better in social situations and with men which is the joke in series 1 episode 6 'Dog' when Stevie is the favorite to a guy who came in the shop leaves his wallet behind. they both proceed to get dogs to have something in common with the wallet guy and it turns  into another funny competition. They also use they hight difference when they get ther dogs, Miranda who is taller and larger than Stevie gets a chuwawa, and  Stevie who is small gets a massive great Dane. 

Miranda offers the pleasures of the sitcom genre, such as characters that are recognizable that the audience can relate to, who are stereotypes. Miranda's mother, for example, is a very high class posh women. you ca tell this by the way she talks and her smart but fashionable clothes. Miranda's mother also talks about higher class topics such as gardeners suggesting that she can pay for people to work for her.
Miranda's mother makes us laugh because her character uses strong stereotypes of the higher class that are so different from her daughter Miranda.
Miranda's group of girl friends are stereotypes. For example, they both opt for the salad at the restaurant and talk about resent events.
Her girl friends often make us laugh at Miranda, such as in the episode when her friends say "Queen Kong" like king kong the gorilla . This is a joky nickname and is very funny as Miranda is a lot taller and less feminine like the girls.
However, in many ways, Miranda is an anti-stereotype because she is not the typical feminine role as she has a bigger build and has a childish side.

There are many points of recognition for middle class audiences in the ways in which the sitcom addresses audience’s lifestyles, concerns, hopes, such as Miranda's conflict with her mother when they were talking about the way Miranda acts and what she says and how her mother didn't want to be embarrassed by her.
Another narrative strand that makes audiences relate to her is her trouble love life. To explain: Miranda has not had the best love life or many people interested and the one person, Garry, who she might have a chance with is moving out of the country.

Each episode also features predictable running gags such as, for example, her and Stevie's nickname, there funny challenges and when Miranda pushes Stevie of a chairs.
Miranda always manages to lose her clothing, such as in the episode when she gets locked in the park at night and gets stuck in the fence without a top on.
Stevie and Miranda always compete for boyfriends, such as the episode when a man leaves his wallet behind and they both get dogs and join fitness clubs so they can have things in common.
Miranda always embarrasses her friends socially, such as when she goes to all their social events even though she isn't the best in those kinds of situations.

The sitcom addresses audience’s lifestyles, concerns, hopes about relationships. Miranda always fails to explain her true feelings for Gary, such as when Miranda tells us: "go to Hong Kong" when she ws trying to make him stay.
She competes with, quarrels and makes up with Stevie, for example, when they fought over a guy but realized they both didn't want him and moved on.
She gets scolded by her mother, such as in the episode when her mother says "are you insane" and "you must limit conversation" 

In most sitcoms, the audience is passive consumer but this show is filmed before a live studio audience. In addition, Miranda establishes a relationship with her audience by looking into the camera to say certain things. She confides in us, the audience her feelings, saying:  "i am going to pen the perfect romantic speech"

For Blumler and Katz, audiences use media to gratify needs (the uses and gratifications model of audience behaviour). Miranda offers the pleasure of entertainment, escapism and diversion by making us laugh. In particular, both slapstick humour and verbal humour entertain us. for example when Miranda pushes Stevie of the chair, when she is very relatable and talks to the audience it is also her comical delivery of her lines and tone of voice, she looks to the camera and says "whatever that means" with difficult words. she also alwasy embarrases herself in public like when she shouts "i have a unirary tract infection" in the resturant.


Audiences also like to relate to the characters in programmes;  I have shown that Miranda offers many points of recognition in its characters. It s also important that Miranda is a likeable character who does not hold grudges. For example, when she got into a fight with her best friend Stevie over a guy.
Audiences pick programmes with actors that they know and like. It is also significant that Miranda Hart is a well-known comedian.

Audiences tend to favour programmes that support their values and their sense of their own identity. Part of our sense of self is informed by making judgements about all sorts of people and things. This is also true of judgements we make about TV and film characters, and celebrities. The shows we watch, the stars we like can be an expression of our identities. One aspect of this type of gratification is known as value reinforcement. This is where we choose television programmes or newspapers that have similar beliefs to those we hold. Therefore, equally important is the upbeat, comic atmosphere of the show. Despite set-backs such as being found with her trousers down in a public park Miranda bounces back, for example, pretending she is part of a group of teenagers with their trousers low down which is also very comical.


Finally, audiences like to know what is going on in the world (surveillance). This relates to Maslow’s need for security. By keeping up to date with news about local and international events we feel we have the knowledge to avoid or deal with dangers. In a sitcom, the characters face all sorts of situations that we can experience vicariously, some of which are challenging, such as Garry moving out of the country.