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 possibly in their 20s who are beginning to experience full independence but to the point where they are still finding their footing and rely on other people (such as their mum) sometimes.

 Audiences also relate to her relationship with Stevie (her best friend) who she seems to compare herself and look up to. This is because Stevie is almost the complete opposite of Miranda as she is :petite,blonde and more attractive. In addition, Stevie also sees herself as more successful socially and romantically, boasting about her 'allure' comparing Miranda with mearly having 'Wiles' in season 1 episode 6. Miranda constantly finds herself competing with Stevie for men, being a running gag in many more episodes.

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 shown as a stereotypical middle aged woman from surrey. 
Miranda's mother makes us laugh because of her over exaggerated representation of the snobbish stereotype with factors such as marked RP accent and her determination of hiding emotions (keeping a stiff upper lip). However, not only for herself. The character of Penny also tries to push here stereotypical values of the ‘middle aged woman from surrey’ onto her helplessly socially awkward daughter.
Miranda's group of girl friends are stereotypes. For example, sitting for lunch they all pretend to be pained by the choice of ‘bad’ foods such as pizza but end up choosing a type of salad. Showing them as being the typical girls watching their weight.
Her girl friends often make us laugh at Miranda, such as in the episode when her friends say " she is probably half-naked in public somewhere as we speak" when ,at that moment, Miranda was exactly that.
However, in many ways, Miranda is an anti-stereotype because she is not the typical stylish and cool thirty year old that would be the sitcom ‘heroin’. She plays the character of an awkward 6ft joke shop owner who struggles in social occasions and like to have quirky but competitive competitions with her feisty co-worker Stevie.
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 as she is determined control Miranda in social occasions even going as far as disowning her as her daughter. She insists on preparing Miranda for a tricky social event (something a middle class audience may recognise) and once again uses stereotypical missle class conversation to spark humour in ironic recognition (such as talking about gardens and workmen). Another narrative strand that makes audiences relate to her is her trouble love life. To explain: she is shown as being on the search for a husband and has a crush on her friend Gary however struggles to confess her feelings to him. In addition she chases a man who lost his wallet in her shop however she ends up making a fool of herself infront of him. I feel this narrative strand is something audiences could relate to if they are single and the struggles of dating (confessing feelings or good first impressions).

Each episode also features predictable running gags such as, for example, the competitions between Stevie and Miranda. In Episode 6 Miranda addresses the audience telling them about ‘Another one of me and Stevie’s silly competitions’. While cutting to a scene of them eating spaghetti with chopsticks. While strengthening personal relationships with the audience this also makes the gag funnier because of the recognition of it happening again. 
Miranda always manages to lose her clothing, such as in the episode when she accidently takes of both her shirt and jumper at an important social event.
Stevie and Miranda always compete for boyfriends, such as the episode when they fight over a man who left his wallet in the joke shop. Both go to extreme lengths, such as buying dogs, to gain his attention.
Miranda always embarrasses her friends socially, such as laughing inappropriately at someone’s death when she thought they were laughing about a joke in front of other ‘important’ people.

The sitcom addresses audience’s lifestyles, concerns, hopes about relationships. Miranda always fails to explain her true feelings for Gary, such as when he is about to leave for Hong Kong Miranda is asked if she is pleased ,when Gary is nowhere to be seen, and she confesses “Of course not!”
She competes with, quarrels and makes up with Stevie, for example, when they both buy dogs to impress the guy who left his wallet in the joke shop But end up with neither of them choosing to go out with him.
She gets scolded by her mother, such as in the episode when her mother says "You haven’t been blessed by the goddess of socialising." 

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 using an aside and facing directly to the camera. She confides in us, the audience her feelings, saying:  "The girls always underestimate me”

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. Examples of these include firstly, her plain clumsiness or physical humour when she manages to kick a plate of salad out of the waiters hand when she wants to demonstrate something or when she simply pushes her petite friend Stevie off her chair in one of their ‘Silly competitions’. Another example is her helpless social skills when she is asked about her opinion on the Chinese Human rights record, she comments on, oblivious to the embarrassment, her sweaty thighs. Finally, humour is also used with the unfortunate timing where Miranda seems to humiliate herself. When people are talking and she tries to get their attention, she thinks no one is listening so she shouts out something embarrassing. At which point everyone happens to hear when she thought they couldn’t.

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 Stevie changes the wrong song at the party where she and Gary finally get to dance together, she doesn’y get angry at stevie and instead lets it go and tells her she ‘Did good’.
Audiences pick programmes with actors that they know and like. It is also significant that Miranda Hart is a well-known comedian as well as the character Chummy in the popular drama ‘Call the Midwife’.

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 her friend (one of the Girls) seeing her with her trousers down in the park Miranda bounces back, for example, then ‘hanging out with her homies’ and making light of the situation by making new friends.


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 Gary leaving to Hong Kong. Miranda feels happy for him that he is leaving but isn’t saying what she truly feels. Leaving us the questions: will she tell Gary? Or will he be gone forever? In addition we also see the part of the story that Miranda herself doesn’t see for example Gary leaving without saying anything to Miranda at the end The audience is placed at a point of importance as we everything that is going on.

In conclusion, Miranda is a humorous, relatable and out of the ordinary sitcom. It includes both stereotypes, which are recognisable for most of the target audience of the BBC (diverse but older and leaning towards middle class) but also anti-stereotype which is refreshing and is what makes the sitcom interesting. Miranda is not the kind of main character that most audiences would see in a sitcom and look up to or aspire to be like meanwhile on the other hand, this makes her character so much more relatable and moreover encourages the audience that relate to embrace their flaws. Overall it pleasures the audience in all aspects of surveillance, personal relationship (with Miranda when she breaks the fourth wall), values and escapism