REVIEW: Alpha Papa (15)

Alpha Papa (15)

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WATCHING television titan Alan Partridge on the big screen is unnerving - particularly when the ageing chat show host/DJ is embroiled in a hot and heavy encounter in a disabled toilet - which is interrupted by his nasal squeaking.

“It happens when I get tense”, he tells the undeterred lady, who swiftly pinches the offending nostril and resumes their tonsil tennis.

Later in Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa we are spared a full frontal shot of the main man who adopts an emergency tactic, much to the paparazzi’s delight.

More than 20 years after Partridge made his debut on Radio 4 before progressing to the BBC, actor and comedian Steve Coogan brings his most memorable character to the movies.

Our very own naff British television personality has upgraded from his graffiti splattered Rover to a sponsored Kia and is a presenter on a Norfolk digital radio station.

However, an incoming regime fixated by the bottom line change the station’s name to the yoghurt reminiscent Shape and set about a clear out.

DJ Pat Farrell (Colm Meaney) is sacked but the volatile shotgun-wielding Irishman then precedes to take the executives and colleagues hostage.

Partridge, who had urged the board to sack Pat to save his own skin, is caught between both camps and puts on his “siege face” as he becomes the police negotiator.

Like a Big Brother-rejuvenated Z-list celeb he revels in the attention and resurrected fame. A particular highlight is when Partridge starts joshing with some fans outside the station, which includes his cheesy chat show walk/strut, and there is a twinkle in his eyes as he is plainly dreaming of a return to the big time.

An action-centred “three Jasons” sequence is also hilarious as is the Radio One roadshow inspired climax.

For Partridge virgins they meet an endearing, tragic figure who doesn’t need a back story despite the television shows, but is ably supported by a cast of familiar and not so familiar faces, including the hapless Geordie Michael, like a Big Brother-rejuvenated Z-list celeb whose survival techniques provoke respect and alarm in equal measures.

You can see a trailer for the film at the bottom of the website home page, where you'll also find a first look at loads of other new movies too.