The great thing about this sketch is that it serves no other purpose than to demonstrate what it would have been like if Chairman Mao got off his sick bed to sing 'Virginia Plain'.
We won a pub quiz based on this sketch once. We'd been talking about it just before the quiz, and the question which we got right to win it was "What year did Chairman Mao" die?
I remember when Roxy first got famous, one of the music mags NME? described him as sounding like a "Pakistani Lou Reed". It`s a short hop over the mountains to the Chinese Lou Reed, I guess.
Genius! : ) What a great Band - Kevin Eldon, Arthur Mathews, Mark Heap and Simon Pegg (Think the bassist is Julia Davis, hence the huge beard and shades)! Love how they captured the look of 70's Top Of The Pops. Arthur Mathews, as the drummer, reacting to the camera makes this. Fried Gold!
Worth noting that the start of the sketch when Julia Davis? says 'No... No.... No... Noooooo!' in response to Mao's flatlining she uses the same sinister intonation that Ferry uses on the same words in the opening uptempto section of 'Mother of Pearl' -- one for the anoraks I know, but kudos to the team as Big Train's attention to detail is spot on.
How is it that someone pretending to be Chinese actually makes the lyrics easier to understand than someone from the north east of England?! I could never understand what Ferry was singing but somehow Chairman Mao makes sense!!
The actor Kevin Eldon, how ever was an revelation upon his birth upon earth back in an other time, since we admire his excellent sense of proportion and unusual temperament, we can be sure to to remember him the next time we wipe the tears from our mouths
My guess is Arthur Matthews who’s playing the drummer. He co-wrote father ted and toast of London. I heard him speak recently of a sketch in a similar vein he wrote called Amish Bill Grundy
The great thing about this sketch is that it serves no other purpose than to demonstrate what it would have been like if Chairman Mao got off his sick bed to sing 'Virginia Plain'.
hilarious comment
the consolation of art
this is useful information
I think Mao would have liked the song, and this kind of makes it canon.
The Belovered Leader was a well known long time Loxy Music fan.
Arthur Matthew's as a drummer on TOTP spotting himself in a monitor always gets me.
Best bit haha
Like every TOTP 70's performance. The drummers always seem to gurn for the camera close up. Genius
It's genuinely a brilliant act, really well observed
Yeah, that nice touch did it for me 'n all. Genius!
Observational comedy that's actually funny! V good Arthur
I saw this on the show when it was first broadcast and have never forgotten it.
I love how they make absolutely no attempt to explain the joke.
Kevin Eldon as Chairman Mao doing Bryan Ferry. 🏆
Magnificent. ♥
if you think that's good, you should see Chairman Mao as Bryan Ferry doing Kevin Eldon! his execution is excellent, but then they always were!
@@philipditchfield439 😂👍
The Eno imitation is freakin awesome and the fact that they have the girls dancing in the background is exactly like the original performance.
We won a pub quiz based on this sketch once. We'd been talking about it just before the quiz, and the question which we got right to win it was "What year did Chairman Mao" die?
When I saw this for the first time, I laughed so much, tea came out of my nose...
I laughed too. 😂 But my nostrils were dry. 👍
Besides Alan Partridges ABBA medley this is my fave ever parody song/video.
The roxy music version was on BBC tonight, which obviously brought me straight here.
I remember when Roxy first got famous, one of the music mags NME? described him as sounding like a "Pakistani Lou Reed". It`s a short hop over the mountains to the Chinese Lou Reed, I guess.
I love that this is supposed to be satire/parody, but just comes across as awesome
Wasser name.. Virginia Pwaaaain?
Utterly brilliant.
I am so glad this popped up into my suggestions
Brilliant! The only thing missing is the jazz hands at "We are flying down to Riooooooo"
Genius comedy
Can’t hear this song without seeing this in my head.
Lovin Mark Heap as Eno
Hi who did the chinese music at the beginning regards andy
Genius! : )
What a great Band - Kevin Eldon, Arthur Mathews, Mark Heap and Simon Pegg (Think the bassist is Julia Davis, hence the huge beard and shades)!
Love how they captured the look of 70's Top Of The Pops. Arthur Mathews, as the drummer, reacting to the camera makes this. Fried Gold!
Worth noting that the start of the sketch when Julia Davis? says 'No... No.... No... Noooooo!' in response to Mao's flatlining she uses the same sinister intonation that Ferry uses on the same words in the opening uptempto section of 'Mother of Pearl' -- one for the anoraks I know, but kudos to the team as Big Train's attention to detail is spot on.
I remember when I first saw this. It was just so random.
How is it that someone pretending to be Chinese actually makes the lyrics easier to understand than someone from the north east of England?! I could never understand what Ferry was singing but somehow Chairman Mao makes sense!!
16 years late but I totally agree. Never got more than 1 word in 5 from BF but a near dead Mao Tse Tung annunciates beautifully
He missed the two hands wave at "we are flying down to Rio" from the original which was always funny anyway.
The actor Kevin Eldon, how ever was an revelation upon his birth upon earth back in an other time, since we admire his excellent sense of proportion and unusual temperament, we can be sure to to remember him the next time we wipe the tears from our mouths
Golden.
Im just wondering who came up with the idea of Chairman Mao coming back from the dead to sing Virginia Plane??? British pure gold comedy!
My guess is Arthur Matthews who’s playing the drummer. He co-wrote father ted and toast of London. I heard him speak recently of a sketch in a similar vein he wrote called Amish Bill Grundy
This is totally awesome
Brilliant 😂
I think it's just that Ferry sounds a bit like what Mao might sound like if he sang.
i dunno about the bassist (i think it's graham linehan), but the drummer is arthur matthews, who wrote alot of big train with graham.
Julia Davis, I believe
Pity this clip is not from the start of the sketch, this was the funniest bit from big train for me
Up..town...girl....
@@darylcatpiss wooo woooo che che che
Love the Jet bit at the start
The full version has been uploaded by Scatterkeir, if you want to browse that users videos
Documentary about Roxy Music on TV, so naturally I'm here
Kevin Eldon playing Chairman Mao here.
If it's Kevin Eldon, you know it's gonna be fucked up brilliant!
To Wobert e Lee I show it I hope and pway he dont blow it - its jonathan Ross singing! Brilliant stuff.
So no one else is gonna point out how Chairman Mao is singing "Jet" by Wings on his deathbed, then.
Hot legs
Funny that the most compassionate Julia Davis character was Madame Mao
the bloke can sing
Is this allowed today? Led here by watching Vic and Bob's P%$S funny effort. Totally forgot about this version. Nearly as good as Roxy...🤣🤣
The thing is, if you then go and watch footage of the real Roxy Music doing the song, it's even MORE ahine!!!!! Ahine! :)
Is that also a heavily disguised Linehan as the guitarist?
Do you remember that Reeves and Mortimer did it some years later,
no, it Arthur Matthews
mao is a poor man...viva Roxy Music!
Looks like Rat Scabies (The Damned) on drums!?
The lyrics please.
is tamsin greig the girl at the begining?
Episode #, anyone?
Series One, Episode Six
Lol !
Better than Vic Reeves' abomination.
hi lek
It's called being silly....
Better than the original (except for Eno)
Well not even Eno's as good as Eno these days 💀
Wat
I don't think comedy needs to make sense!
Why is this better than the real thing?
This would be classed as cultural appropriation these days lol
Only by people who have had their sense of humour removed ;-)
Funny at the beginning but then gets boring.
A metaphor for life.
It's only 3 minutes. What has become of us?
Shite compared to the shooting stars sketch.