Mitchell and Webb - Acting Exercises

Series 1 Episode 6 of "That Mitchell and Webb Situation"

[@DukeOfKidderminster]

He must be a good teacher if one of his pupils won an Oscar.

[@cnelsonlv99]

Holy crap, I never knew she won an Oscar! Just watched her acceptance speech... classic!

[@enthusedtosing9655]

It's about the ebbing and flowing

[@zarabada6125]

@Fresh Turkey The award itself might not be much but it can have a big effect on an actor's career. She will probably receive more scripts for potential roles, giving her greater choice in her future projects. She will also be able to ask for a higher payment for those projects.

[@shawnholton5182]

M & W have 2 Oscar winners!

[@holliswilliams8426]

Awards don't mean much but they help a person's career in terms of giving them freedom to choose what they want to work on and so on.

[@axlglenn2156]

Lmao “you’re going to give me the clap?” “No Phil you misunderstood albeit very humorously” How do they not break?

[@DeathnoteBB]

There’s a reason there’s so many cuts ;)

[@sumvs5992]

Multiple takes is pretty common, and I would assume especially so when actors could end up corpsing at the same joke.

[@padredelaverde]

Watch the outtakes. Then pat yourself on the back for doing something nice for yourself.

[@kellysmith7357]

@@sumvs5992 corpsing ......?????

[@sumvs5992]

@@kellysmith7357 basically you become unusable for a few minutes by uncontrollably laughing. Don't know why it's called corpsing, but that's the term

[@shelbyvillerules9962]

There was a lot of new energy in the room tonight, and some of it was just so Rainbow Rhythms... and some of it was just so not Rainbow Rhythms.

[@KristinDeGroot]

Why don't you just say who you're talking about? You're talking about me, aren't you?

[@shelbyvillerules9962]

@Kristin DeGroot Well, yes alright. I am.

[@larrote6467]

@@KristinDeGroot I love that moment because a lot of times it is true: hippie-types being just as intolerant of others as the ones they complain about.

[@greernelson7419]

@@larrote6467 as Mark says, "if there's no place here for people who stand against everything you believe in, what sort of hippie free for all is this?"

[@MrJakePaddy]

"I should get extra points for not feeling a fucking thing"

[@KesselRunner606]

I can't tell if this is a piss take, or a painfully accurate documentary of acting lessons.

[@judychurley6623]

Both.

[@zapkvr]

The latter definitely

[@clayz1]

Acting classes scare me.

[@holliswilliams8426]

They made us do ''drama'' when I was in school up until the age of 14 for reasons I cannot understand. This is pretty accurate. It's actually pretty scary being forced to try and act when you really don't like doing it lol, in England there is something of a theatric tradition so everyone is forced to do it.

[@Charlz1980tv]

The tiranny that is theatre...😎 Edit ; *tYranny.

[@dicktracy3331]

“Cathy tell us about your noise” “Well, It’s difficult to describe” “Because it’s a noise, sure” Lmao

[@mofomo6209]

Webb’s mime sequence just cemented how talented an actor he really is

[@tomash9116]

I totally imagined that sequence done by Richard Ayoade...

[@mftmss7086]

i could do that bro

[@ShermanLeungpointofgravity]

WATCH! AS I TAKE THE KEY THAT UNLOCKS THE DOOR TO MY WORLD OF MIME! SEE AS I PICK UP THE CUBE THAT IS THE BAR THAT BECOMES THE ROPE WHICH I PULL AGAINST THE WIND THAT SNAPS ONTO THE CONVEYOR BELT WHICH LEADS TO THE SHRINKING ROOM. Excellent rhythm Phillip yes well done.

[@janesmith699]

😂

[@boobieshitthefloor]

Not all of those words were spoken capitalised

[@holyworrier]

Great little few seconds, there suddenly. Gotta watch it again.

[@coyotemojo]

that was actually pretty impressive

[@jjammmees]

thats not the kind of thing simon was looking for

[@PwnZombie]

I like the lack of background music/laughter

[@KristinDeGroot]

I do too! This is from their earlier series, That Mitchell and Webb Situation, which had a lower budget and no laugh track (which I prefer)

[@zeroeleven6551]

It's so bare and dry and just painful comedy

[@Electricshrock]

And this was before The Office!

[@reuben8140]

@@Electricshrock Okay?

[@Electricshrock]

@@reuben8140 Many people credit The Office for showing things could actually be funnier without a laugh track. But this came first.

[@kevinamcgill]

The mime one cracks me up - I wonder how many takes that took.

[@LilyGrace95]

This is so accurate to acting workshops it hurts xD

[@tengkualiff]

Ikr :(

[@janesmith699]

Yeah i hated those stupid exercises.

[@hamishwhitehenderson5197]

my experience looking back on GSCE drama is that it wasn't the "physical theatre" and "creative exercises" that annoyed me most, but people like Phil who where completely unable to act in any way, non-naturalistic Brechtian stuff included. because I had a special educational needs statement the bloody teacher kept putting me in the group with these other kids of a completely different (lower) level.

[@LilyGrace95]

@@hamishwhitehenderson5197 God. Yes. I used to get lumped with people like that too cos I wasn't in the "in crowd". Being stuck with them for an entire term too because that's how long the module lasted.... -shudder-

[@MeandMonkeyLP]

@@hamishwhitehenderson5197 I had the completely opposite annoance with people taking themselves so much more serious that any audience would ever

[@alexanderm2220]

"it requires lighting fast reactions, you know the kind of reactions i'm talking about?" ....*long pause*.... "you're talking about lighting fast reactions Simon"

[@DukeOfKidderminster]

I don't know what you want any more.

[@ForgotMyOrange]

Your icon reminds me of something

[@CalLadyQED]

Made me lol

[@midimojo]

I don't know what YOU want any more.

[@Electricshrock]

idanoWHAyouwonnanymoah

[@g0tfrohwned]

Now we know... now we know.

[@TheRustAdmin]

5:19 "Woah baby, I'm t'inkin' about your chocolate, Debomba woah whey. Woah baby, I'm t'inkin' about your taste, Debomba woah whey. Woah baby, I'm t'inkin' about your chocolate, t'inkin' about your taste, Woah omba whey whey, oooh."

[@sphinxtheeminx]

I once did a drama workshop where we were asked to mime the 'time we popped our cherry'. I had never heard this term before; my performance involved climbing an imaginary ladder to the top of a tree and some slapstick nonsense with me tripping over a bucket.

[@twospacedanimations5008]

Brilliant

[@jamesjameson4566]

That didn't happen

[@MemekingJag]

@@jamesjameson4566 your life must be so incredibly mundane if a story like that is unbelievable

[@jamesjameson4566]

@@MemekingJag I'd counter theirs must be if they have to make crap like that up

[@davidec.4021]

What kind of a fucked up request is that lmaoo

[@janesmith699]

David's face at the very end is the funniest part.

[@craigsbenedict2684]

That’s how I imagine his brain is like in most social things

[@funjuror]

So spot on. I remember Antony Hopkins, when asked the secrets to acting said " just pretend and have fun".

[@holliswilliams8426]

He also said ''You can or you can't, that's about it''.

[@russellmoore8187]

Surprisingly good moonwalk!

[@rowanaboat4523]

WATCH as I take the KEY that UNLOCKS the DOOR to my WORLD of MIME! SEE as I pick up the CUBE that is the BAR that becomes the ROPE which I PULL against the WIND but SNAPS onto the CONVEYOR BELT that leads to the SHRINKING ROOM!

[@clayz1]

“The sigh of regret the sea makes as it has to leave the shore”. IMHO a pretty good description of a sound.

[@stevem815]

You know they initially came up with that last part and then decided they needed the other two to softly build to it.

[@JMC77]

Painfully accurate depiction of acting classes lol

[@grandlotus1]

Mitchell & Webb have produced some of the very best satire this century. Thanks, guys!

[@jimmyutley2375]

"Is that cool?" "Yes, it is cool."

[@geoffreypiltz271]

Filming Marathon man Dustin Hoffman stayed up for three days before playing his character who had not slept for 3 days. When he told Laurence Olivier this Laurence replied smoothly “My dear boy, why don’t you just try acting?”

[@Simple1Jack]

I remember going to see their stage show years ago and Robert did the mime part randomly at one point, but I’d never seen the actual sketch that was from until now.

[@dinsy512]

Hey! For years I loved their twin sketches of A Bigger Spoon and I Don't Know What You Want Anymore, and I was always hoping to discover a third sketch with a similar theme of someone not understanding what is required of them to complete a sort of a Triumvirate of Cognitive Disconnect. And I think that this is the kind of thing I meant!

[@liamparkin3697]

Yes it’s a common sketch theme in writing called an ‘i’m with stupid’ sketch

[@danielgalef994]

Also the "Not this but..." sketch with the author and publisher, where the one not understanding is actually the straight man

[@deyesed]

The first scene had great acting through tone and body language - Mitchell's character tries to stay professional and patient but you can hear the strain in his voice start to creep in at 1:05, and he then purses his lips and puffs his cheeks every time he claps. Webb copies the little knee bob as he earnestly does the double clap. I'd like to see the bloopers after that one.

[@nawbruv]

O baby am tinkin about your chocolate

[@ColinIngus1]

Hope that chocolate is Lion bars

[@zapkvr]

Ooh baby

[@kabalofthebloodyspoon]

Would be brilliant if they could eat Lion Bars the whole time

[@Lucifronz]

"...was that the kind of thing you were talking about?" That second to last one must have been hard to do.

[@littlegelland]

And then Phil changed careers and came to design his own spoons...

[@Kris.G]

One just like that, but... you know... bigger.

[@lolus8974]

@@Kris.G no I’m sorry I don’t really get what you mean

[@Kris.G]

@@lolus8974 watch the sketch with spoons

[@doger944]

@@Kris.G you want me to watch spoons?

[@slinkerdeer]

@@Kris.G /whooosh

[@lukedavies6716]

Just when I thought this was going to be the first M&W sketch I didn't find remotely funny the last one absolutely killed me

[@KristinDeGroot]

Luke Davies they always get you.

[@deyesed]

The layers to it too... using a satirically racist act to mock the premise of an all-white actor improv show about black people.

[@newbarker523]

I felt the same. I almost didn't click on the video. I was actually crying in laughter at the last one!

[@gemstonerose4648]

This is so much like acting classes....

[@cesteres]

Spot on

[@Isalala3000]

This is especially funny if you have ever taken any improv class.

[@99Plastics]

You can just say worked as a barista.

[@LilyGrace95]

@@99Plastics Kind of unnecessary, don't you think?

[@namelessarm6273]

@@99Plastics barista or bar-ee-sta?

[@bzakie2]

Great moon walk!

[@dudesayingthings]

Olivia Colman can rock any roll. That woman is a national treasure. ❤️❤️

[@lpsp442]

God I love Robert here

[@FrankieParadiso4evah]

Mitchell's cute Bill Haley lock of hair is the icing on this hilarious comedic cake!

[@nathanmitchell295]

David Mitchell taught an Oscar winner

[@lls6001]

How I hated this kind of bull. I remember once having to play a game where you stood in a line, passed a ball through the line to the last person, who would then run to the front and start the whole thing off again until everyone had been at the front. We were then asked how it had made us feel (I felt like I'd just wasted five minutes of my life) and someone said 'It was a bit like a story, with a beginning, middle and an end.' WHAT???

[@DeathnoteBB]

Well, there was an end, a middle, and a start. And you gotta say something

[@lls6001]

@@DeathnoteBB 'What bollocks can I can come up with to try and impress?'

[@DeathnoteBB]

@@lls6001 Yeah basically XD It sounds ridiculous but I can see the logic, and if you can think of it, might as well say it

[@judychurley6623]

And it might be true. BUT how does it help deliver the play (something like the intent of the author) to the audience - which is the SOLE GOAL of the actor.

[@Kris.G]

I don't know what you want anymore!

[@misterguy2329]

Thanks for posting these!

[@milind006]

I haven’t ever been in an acting workshop, but that was gold!

[@lukess.s]

Was that the _kind_ of thing you meant?

[@wolftales5203]

bigger

[@derekpink]

Was watching Bobby McFerrin and remembered this sketch. Now I’m here.

[@finlaychilds2008]

Your going to give me the clap 😂

[@davidec.4021]

Man i’m crying over this

[@fahadus]

5:20 Greatest ringtone of all time

[@fmulder6564]

m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/r2KZl3aaftyNoK8 Finally found the song he's singing

[@gpolykra]

@@fmulder6564 You are a God!

[@mackhaddock5376]

3:20 That face cracks me up ha.

[@karolyhorvath7624]

2:32 I love how David can express additional layers with his voice. The other actor completely failed to keep his acting :D

[@j.j.c.s2802]

Oh no! Comments have been activated. You can read comments below. Oh dear me. Always with the comments.

[@kinsmed]

And guys like Phil always land on their feet. Somehow.

[@lasal8613]

They’re so good!

[@zsazsab5393]

This cracks me up so fucking much.

[@peterfireflylund]

Amazing what you can do with a Cambridge education.

[@brainstemriff]

His eyes won best optical shot in a Broadway play that won an oscar as I recall

[@anardine6176]

"Yes it is cool !"

[@silverysnowfox]

Rob looks great here

[@adjustableisland8806]

David is so good here, he really is one hell of an actor isn't he?

[@jjammmees]

if he interrupted him during the first sentence that would have been a great example of lightning fast, sort of like an interrupting cow joke, thats probably the kind of thing simon was looking for phil!

[@tom-moroney]

This gives me flashbacks to the exercises they used to make me do to help with Dyspraxia 👍

[@panopticonoctopus560]

This feels more like a Blue Jam sketch.

[@sparkstron73]

I remember bobby mcferrins original and the tv ad for cadburys with body substituted for chocolate . This is the best version and in no way offensive to anybody

[@nathaniellevy7956]

Oh thank God I hadn't been able to find the original ad (with the Cadbury name I did)... Which, in its absence, makes the last sketch reaaallly sketchy

[@christschinwon]

No, not money.... Lion bars

[@rp1455]

Yes it is cool

[@chuckwagon5518]

This could be any hollywood actor!

[@Football__Junkie]

Don’t be afraid. This is what acting is.

[@oliver7901]

No Phil; that was not the kind of thing I meant.

[@malteserwfj]

Inventor of the clap back

[@smoath]

👍🏻

[@aintnobodyherebutuschicken1418]

Brilliant and hilarious! Reminded me of Daniel Craig and his acting coach on SNL!,, 🤣

[@aaronbarlow4376]

Now I feel like Chocolate.

[@patrickbarrow9060]

This is the best

[@af98]

Yes that's kind of what he means.

[@Volcan0oo]

I died at the “New York, New York!”😂😂😂😂

[@lifeisgood420365]

04:24 caught me so off guard! LOL

[@Fredric_Cedrich]

There’s always one

[@LeMonsieurBanane]

Ironic thing is Phil would not stop working.

[@thehotyounggrandpas8207]

Has anybody got any orange juice? Similar!

[@hemipemi]

EXCUUUD BE!! HASSANYBODYGODANNYBODDLORANJOOS!?

[@dickottel]

eskewed beef!

[@jonathanross149]

This is me trying to explain any computer related thing.

[@isaacs8783]

have you tried turning it off and on again?

[@RaggedM88]

So funny, this.

[@willmcpherson2]

3:16 HIS FACE

[@benpeterson4998]

Was that supposed to be bobby mcferrin at the end? Hahaha

[@RadagonTheRed]

Ben Peterson yeah exactly! Baby I’m thinking about your body! Because here in the U.K. Cadbury’s used a version of that song to advertise a chocolate bar. 😆 that’s what he’s singing!

[@aintnobodyherebutuschicken1418]

@@RadagonTheRed Thank you for that. I don't think I have heard that song, or any variation of it, before. 💕

[@Jackleber]

@@RadagonTheRed THANK YOU. lol that's so good. Was trying to figure that out for like a year.

[@dtutssel]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/r2KZl3aaftyNoK8

[@reav3rtm]

There is similar Big Train sketch about sprinting

[@joselimai]

Sometimes I dont whut you want anymore...

[@ShitStaindGod]

4:25 Webb going full Francis E. Dec.

[@dirkdiggler8769]

Fry and Laurie anyone?

[@ZENegade]

I am ashamed that the last bit got me. Right in the White Guilt...

[@jrs4516]

the teacher character is quite similar to "leslie" the super villain

[@fromchomleystreet]

Only people who worked in theatre could fully appreciate this. Rehearsal sometimes really is this wanky.

[@craigroaring]

Hello Mr Thompson.

[@SalamVeteramexHappyDagger]

Is that Rob Brydon in the grey shirt? Looks a lot like him.

[@KristinDeGroot]

It does a bit, but it's actually Gus Brown.

[@SalamVeteramexHappyDagger]

Thanks!

[@danashton7677]

Looks absolutely nothing like rob brydon lol

[@petejones879]

David is so feeble in this sketch lol

[@nunyanunya4147]

i think i dated this dude when he was a stripper named Lotus...

[@FaknOath]

4:47

[@luvmomoxo3107]

he protecc he attac but most importantly he got the sacc

[@RoskinGreenrake]

The last bit is soo Prince Harry

[@j.j.c.s2802]

480p. Pity.

[@notthebeaver1532]

...maybe this class should have been called, "How To Fake Having an Actual, Personality."🙄

[@oldvlognewtricks]

So: “Acting”?

[@holliswilliams8426]

This is very much like an acting class at a sixth form college, if you pause it at 5:09 the guy on the right actually looks eerily like me when I was younger.

[@Naytonmusic]

When Richard Dawkins decided to direct his own film