Alan Partridge
Alan Gordon Partridge is a comedic character portrayed by English actor Steve Coogan. A parody of British television personalities, Partridge is an inept broadcaster whose inflated sense of celebrity drives him to treachery and shameless self-promotion. Coogan described Partridge as a Little Englander, with right-wing values and poor taste.
Alan Partridge | |
---|---|
Coogan in character as Alan Partridge at a 2011 book signing | |
First appearance | Radio: On the Hour (1991) TV: The Day Today (1994) |
Created by | Steve Coogan Armando Iannucci |
Portrayed by | Steve Coogan |
In-universe information | |
Occupation | Radio and television presenter |
Nationality | English |
Partridge was created by Coogan and Armando Iannucci for the 1991 BBC Radio 4 comedy programme On the Hour, a spoof of English current affairs broadcasting, as the show's sports presenter. In 1992, Partridge hosted a spin-off Radio 4 spoof chat show, Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge. On the Hour transferred to television as The Day Today in 1994, followed by Knowing Me, Knowing You later that year. In 1997, Coogan starred as Partridge in a BBC sitcom, I'm Alan Partridge, written by Coogan, Iannucci and Peter Baynham, following Partridge's life in a roadside hotel working for a small radio station. It earned two BAFTAs and was followed by a second series in 2002.
After a hiatus, Partridge returned in 2010 with a series of shorts, Mid Morning Matters with Alan Partridge, written with Rob and Neil Gibbons, who have cowritten every Partridge product since. It was followed by the spoof memoirs I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan (2011) and Nomad (2016), the feature film Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (2013), and several TV specials. In 2019, Partridge returned to the BBC with This Time with Alan Partridge, a spoof of magazine shows such as The One Show.
Critics have praised Partridge's complexity, realism and pathos. Vanity Fair called him a British national treasure and the Guardian described him as "one of the greatest and most beloved comic creations of the last few decades". He is credited with influencing cringe comedies such as The Inbetweeners, Nighty Night and Peep Show. In 2001, Channel 4 ranked Partridge seventh on their list of the 100 Greatest TV Characters.
History
1991–1995: On The Hour and Knowing Me, Knowing You
Alan Partridge was created for the 1991 BBC Radio 4 comedy programme On The Hour, a spoof of British current affairs broadcasting, as the show's hapless sports presenter.[1] He is portrayed by Steve Coogan, who had performed a similar character for a BBC college radio station at university.[1] Producer Armando Iannucci asked Coogan to do a voice for a generic sports reporter; according to Iannucci, "Someone said, 'He's an Alan!' and someone else said, 'He's a Partridge!' Within minutes we knew where he lived, we'd worked out his back story, what his aspirations were."[2] Iannucci, Patrick Marber, Richard Herring and Stewart Lee wrote much of Partridge's first material, although Herring credits the creation to Coogan and Iannucci.[3]
Coogan performed as Partridge and other characters at the 1992 Edinburgh Festival.[4] In December, BBC Radio 4 began broadcasting a six-episode spoof chat show, Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge. The series saw Partridge irritate and offend his guests, and coined the character's catchphrase, "Aha!".[5]
In 1994, On the Hour transferred to television as The Day Today, in which Partridge reprised his role as sports reporter.[1] Later that year, Knowing Me, Knowing You transferred to television.[6] The series ends with Partridge accidentally shooting a guest.[5] It was nominated for the 1995 BAFTA for Light Entertainment Performance.[7] A Christmas special, Knowing Me, Knowing Yule, followed in December 1995, in which Partridge attacks a BBC commissioning editor, ending his television career.[8]
1997–2010: I'm Alan Partridge and further appearances
In 1997, Coogan starred in a sitcom, I'm Alan Partridge, written by Coogan, Iannucci and Peter Baynham. The series follows Partridge after he has been left by his wife and dropped from the BBC; he lives in a roadside hotel, presents a graveyard slot on local Norwich radio, and desperately pitches ideas for new television shows. Iannucci said the writers used the sitcom as "a kind of social X-ray of male middle-aged Middle England".[1] It won the 1998 BAFTA awards for Comedy Performance and Comedy Programme or Series.[7]
In 1999, Partridge appeared on the BBC telethon Comic Relief, performing a medley of Kate Bush songs.[9] The BBC broadcast a second series of I'm Alan Partridge in 2002,[1] following Partridge's life in a static caravan with his new Ukrainian girlfriend after recovering from a mental breakdown.[10][11] In March 2003, the BBC broadcast a mockumentary, Anglian Lives: Alan Partridge, about Partridge's life and career.[5] In 2008, Coogan performed a tour, "Steve Coogan as Alan Partridge and other Less Successful Characters", featuring Partridge as a life coach.[12]
2010–2013: Comeback, memoir, and feature film
After a hiatus, Partridge returned in 2010 in a series of YouTube shorts, Mid Morning Matters with Alan Partridge, as the host of a digital radio show with co-presenter Sidekick Simon (Tim Key).[13] Coogan wrote the shorts with brothers Neil and Rob Gibbons, who submitted scripts to his company Baby Cow Productions. The Gibbons have co-written every Partridge project since. According to Neil, Coogan "invited us in, our sensibilities chimed, and before we knew it, Mid Morning Matters was up and running. We wrote it as if it was our baby, and though there was a sense that we were standing on the shoulders of giants, I think we were like two pairs of fresh eyes, and Steve seemed to fall in love with the character all over again."[1] Coogan said they chose the web format because "it was a bit underground, a low-key environment in which to test the character out again. And the response was so good, we realised there was more fuel in the tank."[1] The shorts were later broadcast by Sky Atlantic.[1]
In 2011, a spoof autobiography, I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan, written by Coogan, Iannucci and the Gibbons brothers, was published. An audiobook version recorded by Coogan as Partridge was released on CD and downloadable audio formats. In the book, Partridge recounts his childhood and career, attempts to settle scores with people he feels have wronged him, and dispenses wisdom such as his assertion that Wikipedia has made university education "all but pointless".[14] Coogan appeared as Partridge to promote I, Partridge on The Jonathan Ross Show[15] and BBC Radio 5 Live.[16] It received positive reviews[17] and became a bestseller.[1]
On 25 June 2012, Partridge presented a one-hour Sky special, Alan Partridge: Welcome to the Places of My Life, taking the viewer on a tour of Partridge's home county Norfolk.[18] The programme earned Coogan the 2013 BAFTA for Best Male Performance in a Comedy Programme.[7] It was followed the next week by Open Books with Martin Bryce, a mock literary programme discussing Partridge's autobiography.[18]
On 7 August 2013, a feature film, Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, written by Coogan, Iannucci, Baynham and the Gibbons brothers, was released in the UK. It was directed by Declan Lowney[19] and co-produced by StudioCanal and Baby Cow Productions, with support from BBC Films and the BFI Film Fund.[20] The film sees Partridge enlisted as a crisis negotiator during a siege at his radio station.[18] It received mostly positive reviews[21] and opened at number one at the box office in the UK and Ireland.[22]
2015–present: Scissored Isle, This Time and podcast
In 2015, Coogan co-presented a special Christmas episode of the Channel 4 chat show TFI Friday as Partridge.[23] In February 2016, Sky Atlantic broadcast a second series of Mid Morning Matters, in which Partridge continues his relationship with divorcee Angela.[24] Alan Partridge's Scissored Isle, a mockumentary in which Partridge examines the British class divide, followed in May.[25] A second Alan Partridge book, Alan Partridge: Nomad, a travelogue in which Partridge recounts a journey across the UK, was published on 20 October 2016.[26]
In July 2017, Partridge appeared in an episode of the BBC Radio 4 programme Inheritance Tracks, in which guests choose music to pass to future generations; he selected "Who Put the Bomp (in the Bomp, Bomp, Bomp)" by Barry Mann and the theme from Grandstand.[27] Iannucci guest-edited an October 2017 issue of The Big Issue, featuring a debate on Brexit between Partridge and Malcolm Tucker, a character from The Thick Of It, another sitcom created by Iannucci.[28] On 27 December, BBC Two broadcast a documentary about the history of Partridge, Alan Partridge: Why, When, Where, How and Whom?.[29]
Partridge returned to the BBC in February 2019 with a six-part series, This Time with Alan Partridge, a spoof current affairs programme in the style of The One Show.[30] In the series, Partridge becomes the stand-in presenter after the regular host falls ill.[30] Coogan felt it was the right time for Partridge to return, and that he might represent the views of Brexit voters.[30] Neil Gibbons said the world of live television presenting had changed since Partridge's creation: "If someone fluffed a line or got someone’s name wrong or said something stupid, it was mortifying. But nowadays, those are the sort of people who are given jobs on TV."[30] In June 2020, Partridge launched an Audible podcast, From the Oasthouse, which sees him recording in his Norfolk shed during the Covid-19 pandemic.[31]
Character
Alan Partridge is an incompetent and tactless television and radio presenter.[6][32] He is socially inept, often offending his guests,[33] and has an inflated sense of importance and celebrity.[10] According to the Telegraph, Partridge is "utterly convinced of his own superiority, and bewildered by the world's inability to recognise it", in the tradition of characters such as Tony Hancock, Captain Mainwaring, and Basil Fawlty.[1] His need for public attention drives him to deceit, treachery and shameless self-promotion,[32] and sometimes violence; for example, in the Knowing Me, Knowing Yule Christmas special, he assaults a BBC boss and a paralysed man.[8]
Partridge holds right-wing views. Coogan described him as a Little Englander, with a "myopic, slightly philistine mentality".[35] He is a reader of the right-wing tabloid newspaper the Daily Mail, and supports Brexit.[36] Earlier versions of Partridge were more bigoted, but the writers found there was more humour in having him attempt to be liberal.[35] In I, Partridge, for example, Partridge stresses his friendship with gay television presenter Dale Winton.[14] Coogan said: "He's aware of political correctness but he's playing catch-up. In the same way that the Daily Mail is a bit PC – it wouldn't be openly homophobic now – Alan is the same. He tries to be modern."[35] Partridge lives in Norwich in the East of England; Iannucci said the writers chose it as it is "geographically just that little bit annoyingly too far from London, and has this weird kind of isolated feel that seemed right for Alan".[1]
According to Forbes, Partridge has "parochial bad taste",[37] and Coogan described him as "on the wrong side of cool".[38] He is a fan of James Bond films and Lexus cars[39] and his music taste includes Wings[39] and Abba; Partridge named his son Fernando and his talk show Knowing Me, Knowing You after Abba songs, and his talk show catchphrase, "Aha!", also comes from Abba.[11] In earlier incarnations, Partridge's wardrobe included a blazer, badge and tie, driving gloves, and "too-short" shorts, styles he describes as "sports casual" and "imperial leisure".[40] According to Iannucci, by the time of Alpha Papa his wardrobe had "evolved to the Top Gear Presenter Circa 2005 stage", with sports jackets and a foppish fringe.[1] As Coogan aged, the ageing make-up he wore in earlier performances became unnecessary.[1]
According to Coogan, Partridge was originally a "one-note, sketchy character"[41] and "freak show", but slowly became refined as a dysfunctional alter ego.[38] Baynham told the Guardian that "despite the fact that people say he's awful, a lot of the time we were trying to build empathy: you're watching a man suffer but also at some level identifying with his pain".[42] According to Marber, Partridge's fundamental characteristic is desperation.[29] Felicity Montagu, who plays Partridge's assistant Lynn, felt he was a good person "deep down" and actually "vulnerable and lovable".[35] Iannucci said that Partridge stays optimistic because he never sees himself as others see him,[33] and that despite his failings was "the perfect broadcaster for these times, when there are 24 hours to fill and dead time is a crime – he has a unique capacity to fill any vacuum with his own verbal vacuum".[1] Rob and Neil Gibbons felt that by the time of Mid Morning Matters, when Partridge is working for an even smaller radio station, he is more at peace with himself and that his lack of self-awareness saves him from misery.[42]
Reception
Vanity Fair described Alan Partridge as "a national treasure ... as cherished a part of British comedy heritage as John Cleese's Basil Fawlty and Rowan Atkinson's Mr. Bean".[43] According to Variety, in Britain "Alan Partridge is a full-on phenomenon, a multiplatform fictional celebrity whose catchphrases, mangled metaphors and social ineptitude are the stuff of legend and good ratings".[44] Partridge is less well known outside the UK, but according to Anchorman director Adam McKay, "every American comic knows who Steve is, whether it's Stiller or Ferrell or Jack Black or me ... and everyone watching those [Partridge] DVDs had the same reaction. How did I not know about this guy?"[43] IndieWire wrote that "before there was [Anchorman character] Ron Burgundy for the Yanks, there was Alan Partridge for the Brits".[45]
Brian Logan wrote in the Guardian that though Partridge was created as a satire of the "asinine fluency of broadcaster-speak" of the time, his study of character traits gave the character a timeless quality.[46] Guardian journalist John Crace wrote: "By rights, Alan Partridge should have been dead as a character years ago, the last drops of humour long since wrung out ... but Steve Coogan keeps finding ways to make him feel fresh."[47] The Independent wrote that Partridge was a "disarming creation" whom the audience root for despite his flaws.[48] In the Guardian, critic Alexis Petridis wrote that audiences find Partridge funny partly because they recognise themselves in him,[49] and Edmund Gordon called Partridge "a magnificent comic creation: a monster of egotism and tastelessness".[14] According to Gordon, Partridge allows liberal audiences to laugh at politically incorrect humour as "every loathsome comment is sold to us not as a gag, but as a gaffe".[14] Writing that Partridge "channels the worst excesses of the privileged white man who considers himself nonetheless a victim", New Statesman journalist Daniel Curtis saw Partridge as a precursor to "post-truth politicians" such as Nigel Farage and Donald Trump.[50]
Mandatory.com wrote that Partridge was "a fascinatingly layered and fully realised creation of years of storytelling and a fundamentally contemptible prick — he feels like a living, breathing person, but a living, breathing person that you want to strangle".[32] The Telegraph wrote: "Never has one actor so completely inhabited a sitcom character. We believe Partridge is real, from his side-parted hair down to his tasseled sports-casual loafers."[51] In 2014, Guardian writer Stuart Heritage described Partridge as "one of the greatest and most beloved comic creations of the last few decades".[11] He was ranked seventh on Channel 4's 2001 list of the 100 Greatest TV Characters.[52] In a 2017 poll of over 100 comedians, Partridge was voted best TV comedy character and Coogan best male comedy actor, and a scene from I'm Alan Partridge in which Partridge goes to the home of an obsessive fan was voted best comedy scene.[53]
The Telegraph credited Partridge with influencing cringe comedies such as The Inbetweeners, Nighty Night and Peep Show.[51] According to Den of Geek, he has so influenced British culture that "Partridgisms" have become everyday vernacular.[10] "Monkey Tennis", one of Partridge's desperate television proposals, has become shorthand for absurd television concepts.[54][55][56] Another, "Youth Hostelling with Chris Eubank", was used by the hostel booking site Hostelworld as the basis of a 2015 television advert with boxer Chris Eubank.[57] "Accidental Partridge", an unofficial Twitter account which collects quotes reminiscent of Partridge's speech from real media figures, had attracted 144,000 followers by May 2014.[58] In July 2015, an art exhibition inspired by Partridge opened in Norwich.[59]
Appearances
Radio and podcast
Year | Title | Format | Role |
---|---|---|---|
1991–92 | On the Hour | Radio series (BBC Radio 4) | Sports correspondent[60] |
1992–93 | Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge | Radio series (BBC Radio 4) | Host[61] |
2020 | From the Oasthouse | Podcast (Audible) | Host[31] |
Television and film
Year | Title | Format | Role |
---|---|---|---|
1994 | The Day Today | TV series (BBC Two) | Sports correspondent[62] |
1994 | Knowing Me Knowing You with Alan Partridge | TV series (BBC Two) | Host[63] |
1994 | Christmas Night with the Stars | TV special | Segment host[64] |
1995 | Knowing Me Knowing Yule with Alan Partridge | TV special (BBC Two) | Host[65] |
1995 | Alan Partridge's Country Ramble | TV special (BBC Two) | Host |
1997–2002 | I'm Alan Partridge | TV series (BBC Two) | Protagonist[1] |
1997 | Election Night Armistice | TV special (BBC Two) | Interview correspondent |
2011–16 | Mid Morning Matters with Alan Partridge | TV series (Sky Atlantic) | Presenter[13][24] |
2011 | Open Books with Martin Bryce | TV talk show (Sky Atlantic) | Interviewee[18] |
2011 | Alan Partridge: Welcome to the Places of My Life | TV special (Sky Atlantic) | Presenter[18] |
2013 | Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa | Feature film | Protagonist[19] |
2015 | TFI Friday | Talk show (Channel 4) | Co-host[23] |
2016 | Alan Partridge's Scissored Isle | TV special (Sky Atlantic) | Presenter[25] |
2017 | Alan Partridge: Why, When, Where, How and Whom? | Documentary (BBC Two) | Subject[29] |
2019 | This Time with Alan Partridge | TV series (BBC One) | Co-host[30] |
Guest appearances
Year | Title | Format | Role |
---|---|---|---|
1997 | Clive Anderson: All Talk | TV talk show | Interviewee[66] |
1998 | Brit Awards | TV awards show (ITV) | Presenter of "Best British Video" award[67] |
2000 | British Comedy Awards | TV awards show (ITV) | Musical performer[68] |
2003 | Anglian Lives: Alan Partridge | TV interview special (BBC Two) | Interviewee[5] |
2011 | The Jonathan Ross Show | TV talk show (ITV) | Interviewee[15] |
2011 | The Richard Bacon Show | Radio talk show (BBC Radio 5 Live) | Interviewee[16] |
2017 | Inheritance Tracks | Radio series (BBC Radio 4) | Guest[27] |
Books
Year | Title | Format | Role |
---|---|---|---|
2011 | I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan | Autobiography | Author[69] |
2016 | Alan Partridge: Nomad | Autobiography | Author[26] |
Fundraising
Year | Title | Format | Role |
---|---|---|---|
1995 | Comic Relief | TV fundraiser (BBC Two) | Fundraising presenter[70] |
1995 | The Big Snog | TV fundraiser (Channel 4) | Fundraising presenter[71] |
1998 | Stephen Fry's "Live from the Lighthouse" | TV fundraiser (Channel 4) | Interview correspondent[72] |
1999 | Comic Relief | TV fundraiser (BBC One) | Presenter[73] |
2001 | TV fundraiser (BBC Two) | Interview correspondent[74] | |
2005 | TV fundraiser (BBC Two) | Host[75] | |
2011 | TV fundraiser (BBC Two) | Host of Mid Morning Matters segment[76] | |
2016 | Sport Relief | TV Fundraiser (BBC One) | Single Segment[13][24] |
2017 | Comic Relief | TV fundraiser (BBC One) | Segment voiceover[77] |
2019 | Comic Relief | TV fundraiser (BBC One) | Correspondent[78] |
DVD
Year | Title | Format | Role |
---|---|---|---|
1998 | Steve Coogan Live: The Man Who Thinks He's It | DVD special | Presenter[79] |
2009 | Steve Coogan Live: As Alan Partridge and Other Less Successful Characters | DVD special | Presenter[80] |
References
- Husband, Stuart (5 August 2013). "Alan Partridge: the 'A-ha!' moments". The Telegraph. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Huddleston, Tom (1 August 2013). "Armando Iannucci interview - Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa - Time Out Film". Time Out. Retrieved 17 February 2014.
- Connelly, Brendon (4 January 2013). "Richard Herring On Co-Creating Alan Partridge, His Rasputin TV Show And Dave's New Comedy Competition - Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movies and TV News and Rumors". Bleedingcool.com. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "Edinburgh Festival Day 2 / Reviews : Steve Coogan in character with". The Independent. 18 August 1992. Retrieved 14 May 2019.
- "BBC - Alan Partridge - Anglian Lives". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Thompson, Ben (4 September 1994). "COMEDY / Knowing him, knowing us, ah-haah: Alan Partridge, smarmy master of the crass interview, is bringing his chat show to television. Ben Thompson meets the gauche celeb's comic creator, Steve Coogan". The Independent. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "BAFTA Awards Search | BAFTA Awards". awards.bafta.org. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
- Rees, Jasper (30 December 1995). "reviews: TELEVISION Knowing Me Knowing Yule... with Alan Partridge (BBC2) It's not easy being incompetent - Alan Partridge is to chat-show interviewing what Rudolf Nureyev was to spot welding. But maybe it's time to get real". The Independent. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "Alan Partridge's 10 Most Alan Partridge-y Moments Ever | NME.COM". NME.COM. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- Keeling, Robert (7 August 2013). "Alan Partridge's top TV moments". Den of Geek. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Heritage, Stuart (4 April 2014). "Alan Partridge: a guide for Americans, newcomers and American newcomers". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Masterton, Simon (6 October 2008). "Reviews roundup: Steve Coogan". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
- Aroesti, Rachel (15 March 2014). "Tim Key: from living-room poetry jams to comedy ubiquity". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
- Gordon, Edmund (23 November 2011). "I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - review". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
- Millar, Paul (2 October 2011). "Steve Coogan appears as Alan Partridge on 'Jonathan Ross' - video". Digital Spy. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "Alan Partridge on how he killed a restaurant critic - BBC News". BBC News. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- "Alan Partridge 'writes' second autobiography". BBC News. 16 April 2015. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Seale, Jack (25 June 2012). "Meet the men who made Alan Partridge funnier than ever". Radio Times. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- de Semlyen, Phil (30 April 2012). "Armando Iannucci On Alan Partridge Movie". Empire. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "'The Alan Partridge Movie' receives August 2013 release date". NME. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "BBC News - Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa tops the UK box office". BBC News. 12 August 2013. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Patrick, Seb (13 August 2013). "'Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa' is the 'Top Daddy' of the UK Box Office | Anglophenia". BBC America. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
- "Alan Partridge to host TFI Friday Christmas special with Chris Evans". Standard.co.uk. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
- Gibbings-Jones, Mark; Catterall, Ali; Harrison, Phil; Wright, Jonathan; Mueller, Andrew; Arnold, Ben; Virtue, Graeme; Howlett, Paul (16 February 2016). "Tuesday's best TV: It's Not Rocket Science; Back in Time for the Weekend; Happy Valley; Alan Partridge's Mid Morning Matters". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
- Delgado, Kasia (5 May 2016). "Alan Partridge's Scissored Isle is the broadcaster's very funny journey of (sort of) redemption". RadioTimes.com. Retrieved 19 May 2016.
- "Watch Alan Partridge announce new book Nomad and mercilessly diss Game of Thrones". 20 July 2016. Retrieved 24 July 2016.
- Monohan, Marc (11 July 2017). "Top Alan Partridge moments". The Telegraph. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
- "Alan Partridge vs Malcolm Tucker: The Great Big Brexit Grudge Match". The Big Issue. 23 October 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
- Saner, Emine (28 December 2017). "Alan Partridge: Why, When, Where, How and Whom? review – Aha! Alan's back on the Beeb". theguardian.com.
- Abbott, Kate (14 February 2019). "Part David Cameron, part Piers Morgan – Alan Partridge returns in time for Brexit". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
- Hogan, Michael (5 June 2020). "From the Oasthouse, Alan Partridge podcast review: 25 minutes of pure Partridge pleasure". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
- Currie, Tom (7 May 2014). "Characters We Love To Hate, ALAN PARTRIDGE". Mandatory. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "Alan Partridge's top 10 hits - in video". The Guardian. 27 July 2013. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "Alan Partridge premiere cinema closes". BBC News. 7 February 2019. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
- Barkham, Patrick (1 August 2013). "Steve Coogan: 'There is an overlap between me and Alan Partridge'". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Harrison, Ellie (15 October 2017). "Alan Partridge will return to the BBC to become the 'voice of Brexit'". Radio Times. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
- Leaf, Jonathan (25 April 2014). "Review: Steve Coogan Takes Flight In 'Alan Partridge'". Forbes. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Coyle, Jake (4 May 2014). "Steve Coogan On 23 Years Of Alan Partridge". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "Alan Partridge Quotes | I'm Alan Partridge | Gold". Gold UK. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Reynolds, Simon (24 June 2013). "The Alan Partridge Style Guide | Driving gloves, tie and blazer badge combo - Esquire". Esquire. Archived from the original on 26 June 2014. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
- de Semlyen, Nick. "Steve Coogan Talks Alan Partridge | interviews | empireonline.com". Empire. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Virtue, Graeme (27 July 2013). "Alan Partridge: a look inside his mind". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Kamp, David (March 2012). "Comedian Steve Coogan Goes from Cult to Classic". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Felperin, Leslie (24 July 2013). "Film Review: 'Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa'". Retrieved 14 September 2014.
- Drumm, Diana (28 March 2014). "Review: Why 'Alan Partridge' Isn't Just For Steve Coogan Fans". Indiewire. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Logan, Brian (6 October 2008). "Has Alan Partridge passed his sell-by date?". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
- Crace, John (28 March 2014). "TV review: Alan Partridge: Welcome to the Places of My Life; Veep; Walking and Talking". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Macnab, Geoffrey (8 August 2013). "Film review: Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (15)". The Independent. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Petridis, Alexis (5 August 2013). "Alan Partridge's music taste: surprisingly great". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Curtis, Daniel (7 August 2017). "We laughed at Alan Partridge – little did we realise he heralded the age of Donald Trump". New Statesman. Retrieved 2 August 2018.
- "The 10 best TV sitcoms of all time". The Independent. 24 February 2015. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "100 Greatest TV Characters". Channel 4. Archived from the original on 31 May 2009. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
- "Fawlty Towers named best British sitcom". BBC News. 4 January 2017. Retrieved 17 January 2018.
- Fleckney, Paul (29 May 2015). "Quiz: Monkey Tennis, Britain's Hardest Grafters … which are real TV shows?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Plunkett, John (24 March 2005). "Is there a place for Monkey Tennis?". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Gill, AA (14 February 2010). "Sir Christopher Meyer makes his move for more telly work". The Sunday Times.
- "Youth Hostelling With Chris Eubank: Alan Partridge's TV dream comes true". The Guardian. 20 August 2015. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- Hooton, Christopher (29 May 2014). "Accidental Partridge: TalkSport's Sam Matterface drops textbook Alan-ism on-air". The Independent. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "Alan Partridge inspires city art exhibition - BBC News". BBC News. 31 July 2015. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
- "BBC - Alan Partridge - On The Hour". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "Knowing Me, Knowing You - Episode guide - BBC Radio 4 Extra". BBC. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "BBC - Alan Partridge - The Day Today". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "Knowing Me, Knowing You... with Alan Partridge - BBC Two". BBC. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "Christmas Night With The Stars - British Classic Comedy". British Classic Comedy. 21 December 2015. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "Knowing Me, Knowing You... with Alan Partridge - BBC Two".
- "BBC - Alan Patridge - Clive Anderson Interview". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "1998 - British Video - All Saints". BRIT Awards. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- PPcorn (11 December 2015). "Elton John: 15 Things You Didn't Know (Part 2)". PPcorn. Archived from the original on 4 August 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "I, Partridge by Alan Partridge - review". theguardian.com. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
- "- Comic Relief". Archived from the original on 6 March 2014.
- "Pozzitive: The Big Snog". pozzitive.co.uk. Pozzitive Television. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
- "Pozzitive: Stephen Fry's "Live From the Lighthouse"". pozzitive.co.uk. Pozzitive Television. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "| Comic Relief". Comic Relief. Archived from the original on 20 May 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "| Comic Relief". Comic Relief. Archived from the original on 20 May 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "| Comic Relief". Comic Relief. Archived from the original on 10 March 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- "Alan Partridge does Comic Relief sketch". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 6 June 2016.
- Wollaston, Sam (24 March 2017). "Comic Relief: cast doubts and cynicism aside and stick a red nose on". theguardian.com. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
- Kang, Biba (15 March 2019). "Comic Relief 2019 highlights: what to watch this Red Nose Day". telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
- Benedictus, Leo (21 June 2012). "Comedy gold: Steve Coogan's The Man Who Thinks He's It". theguardian.com. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
- Masterton, Simon (6 October 2008). "Reviews roundup: Steve Coogan". theguardian.com. Retrieved 8 October 2017.