A stacked British comedy starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon as fictionalised versions of themselves has been added to BBC iPlayer. Originally released in 2005, A Cock and Bull Story stars the two comedians in a film-within-a-film comedy as they try, and fail, to film an adaptation of Laurence Sterne's 1700s humorous novel Tristram Shandy.
Directed by Michael Winterbottom from a script by Martin Hardy, the film, also known as Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story, takes place on a stately home that serves as the set of the film adaptation.
Coogan stars as protagonist Tristram Shandy, while Brydon plays Captain Toby Shandy, as the duo attempts to one up one another in an ongoing passive-aggressive feud.
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Premiered in July 2005 at the Cambridge Film Festival, the film is now available to watch on iPlayer.
The Alan Partridge and Gavin & Stacey stars are joined by a host of famous British faces, including Sex Education star Gillian Anderson as herself and Sterne's character Widow Wadman, as well as The Assassin's Keeley Hawes as herself and Tristram's mother Elizabeth Shandy.
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The ensemble also includes Trainspotting and Dept Q star Kelly Macdonald as Jenny, 28 Days Later's Naomie Harris as Jennie, and Marvel star Benedict Wong as Ed, as well as Roger Allam, Stephen Fry, Shirley Anderson and Ian Hart, among many others.
A Cock and Bull Story received critical acclaim upon release and is currently Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with a critic score of 88% out of 128 reviews.
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Empire branded it "both funny and clever" and "a successful mix of literary adaptation, meta-fictional discourse and inside-showbiz comedy", while The Seattle Times noted that "sometimes it's the most unfilmable novels that make the best movies", referencing Sterne's famously convoluted Shandy autobiography.
Similarly, Rolling Stone stated that Winterbottom's film may sound "confusing", but it's "really inventive and bizarre and marvelously entertaining".
The BBC called it "irresistible" and "one of the funniest British movies in years".
A Cock and Bull Story is streaming on BBC iPlayer.
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Reporter, Digital Spy
Stefania is a freelance writer specialising in TV and movies. After graduating from City University, London, she covered LGBTQ+ news and pursued a career in entertainment journalism, with her work appearing in outlets including Little White Lies, The Skinny, Radio Times and Digital Spy.
Her beats are horror films and period dramas, especially if fronted by queer women. She can argue why Scream is the best slasher in four languages (and a half).
