A curious tradition of German New Year is the yearly showing of Dinner for One. Every year since 1972 German television runs a short, english stage skit on New Year's Eve. It is arguably the most popular thing in German television: in 2003, it was broadcast 19 times on various channels on New Year's, and has been broadcast in total more than 230 times, making it the most frequently rerun television program in the world. All this despite being in in English, presented without subtitles, and being totally unknown in English-speaking countries.
My German host family knows the dialogue by heart, and was highly confused when I hadn't heard of it.
Seeing as it is a pretty average piece of British slapstick, with far better out there? I think the fact of its simplicity favored it, because very minimal English is required to understand it. Germans consider the British absolutely hilarious, I have noticed, because of their dry, sarcastic humour. Sarcasam is not something Germans are very good at, by and large, and so they are fascinated by it.
ReplyDeleteOh man, I was also just as fascinated in watching this program with my host family, and they were also confused when I said I had never even heard of it.
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