It's about to fall off iPlayer, but it's
worth checking out.
Rubbish is a Radio 4 sitcom that I listened to but abandoned before, but 4Extra repeats have allowed its subtle charms a second chance to shine on me.
Written by Tony Bagley, it features a misanthropic recycling officer in local government, but neatly avoids the many clichés of 'workplace' and 'misanthrope' sitcoms. Martin is intelligent, but neurotic; alone, but not without attractions to other women; and he finds himself wavering across moral lines in a very human, very inconsistent way.
The satire is also sly, with dashes of the pleasingly surreal - Martin's inner conscience turns out to have the voice of a 10 year-old girl, and he is frequently visited by the Fifth Horseman of the Apocalypse - Embarrassment.
With an excellent cast (Reece Dinsdale, Kevin Eldon, Nicola Walker in series 1, Pippa Haywood in series 2, and cameos from Emma Kennedy, Katy Brand and Russell Tovey) it's fabulous.
"When you think about it, everyone's phobic about something. Look at Barney and his scratching in public phobia. No matter how much he itches, he can never bring himself to scratch in front of someone else. Then there's John Kedge - phobic about choking to death in his sleep... but that might be associated with the pressures of having a secret second family in Upfield."
