Dutch Elm Conservatoire
Encyclopedia
The Dutch Elm Conservatoire is a British
sketch comedy
group, made up of five writers and actor
s: Stephen Evans, Jim Field Smith
, Rufus Jones, Dan Renton Skinner
and Jordan Long.
They performed on the comedy
circuit in London
, Edinburgh
and on tour. In 2005 they were nominated for the prestigious Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
The troupe first met together as a five towards the end 2002, with their stage debut in February 2003.
Subsequent to this, the BBC
commissioned
them to record a BBC Radio 4
pilot. The resulting script, CONSPIRACY, was then developed for the stage. They took this new live show back to the Edinburgh Fringe
in August 2005, again at the Pleasance Courtyard playing to sell-out audiences and picking up a Perrier Award nomination
and a rare 5-star review from the Scotsman, amongst others. The show was directed
by Ed Curtis. On returning to London they performed the show to a sell-out West End
audience, and early in 2006 they embarked on their first UK Tour which finished in March 2006.
As a group, the Dutch Elm Conservatoire have appeared on various TV and radio
programmes
, including Loose Ends, The Milk Run and 28 Acts in 28 Minutes (all for the BBC). However, the four of them are busy actors and writers in their own right, with an extensive range of credits for screen, stage and radio. Between them, they have infiltrated almost every new comedy series of recent years on British television
, including Hyperdrive
(BBC), Nighty Night
(BBC), Snuff Box (BBC), Mike Bassett: Manager (ITV
), Secret Smile (ITV
), The Office
(BBC), My Life in Film(BBC), The Robinsons (BBC), According to Bex (BBC), The Only Boy for Me (ITV
), Peep Show
(Channel 4
), My Family (BBC), Coupling
(BBC), Extras
(BBC), Love Soup
(BBC), Fear of Fanny (BBC), 15 Storeys High (BBC) and Bedsitcom
(Channel 4
), not to mention films and radio
. They also crop up frequently in voice-overs, commercials and corporate
work in Britain and abroad, and have writing credits across all the major terrestrial
and digital
channels.
They last performed as a five at the August 2006 Edinburgh Fringe
and the Belfast
theatre festival (Nov '06), with a show entitled Dutch Elm Conservatoire in Prison.
During 2007/08 The Dutch Elm Conservatoire could be seen performing on the BBC Three
comedy show entitled Comedy Shuffle and heard on BBC Radio 4
's series of 28 Acts in 28 Minutes. They also made several appearances in the second series of Comedy Cuts for ITV2
during 2008.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
sketch comedy
Sketch comedy
A sketch comedy consists of a series of short comedy scenes or vignettes, called "sketches," commonly between one and ten minutes long. Such sketches are performed by a group of comic actors or comedians, either on stage or through an audio and/or visual medium such as broadcasting...
group, made up of five writers and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
s: Stephen Evans, Jim Field Smith
Jim Field Smith
Jim Field Smith is a British film director, comedy writer, and actor.-Background:Field Smith attended Wellington College, Berkshire, England from 1992 to 1997, and then went on to the University of Birmingham, from where he graduated in 2001...
, Rufus Jones, Dan Renton Skinner
Renton Skinner
Daniel "Dan" Renton Skinner is a British actor and comedy writer, working in stage, film and television. Renton is a member of the popular British five-man sketch troupe Dutch Elm Conservatoire...
and Jordan Long.
They performed on the comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
circuit in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
and on tour. In 2005 they were nominated for the prestigious Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
The troupe first met together as a five towards the end 2002, with their stage debut in February 2003.
Subsequent to this, the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
commissioned
Contract
A contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
them to record a BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
pilot. The resulting script, CONSPIRACY, was then developed for the stage. They took this new live show back to the Edinburgh Fringe
Edinburgh Fringe
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is the world’s largest arts festival. Established in 1947 as an alternative to the Edinburgh International Festival, it takes place annually in Scotland's capital, in the month of August...
in August 2005, again at the Pleasance Courtyard playing to sell-out audiences and picking up a Perrier Award nomination
Nomination
Nomination is part of the process of selecting a candidate for either election to an office, or the bestowing of an honor or award.In the context of elections for public office, a candidate who has been selected by a political party is normally said to be the nominee of that party...
and a rare 5-star review from the Scotsman, amongst others. The show was directed
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
by Ed Curtis. On returning to London they performed the show to a sell-out West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
audience, and early in 2006 they embarked on their first UK Tour which finished in March 2006.
As a group, the Dutch Elm Conservatoire have appeared on various TV and radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
programmes
Radio programming
Radio programming is the Broadcast programming of a Radio format or content that is organized for Commercial broadcasting and Public broadcasting radio stations....
, including Loose Ends, The Milk Run and 28 Acts in 28 Minutes (all for the BBC). However, the four of them are busy actors and writers in their own right, with an extensive range of credits for screen, stage and radio. Between them, they have infiltrated almost every new comedy series of recent years on British television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
, including Hyperdrive
Hyperdrive
Hyperdrive is a name given to certain methods of traveling faster-than-light in science fiction. Related concepts are jump drive and warp drive....
(BBC), Nighty Night
Nighty Night
Nighty Night is a British dark comedy sitcom written by and starring Julia Davis. It was first broadcast on 6 January 2004 on BBC Three before moving to BBC2....
(BBC), Snuff Box (BBC), Mike Bassett: Manager (ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
), Secret Smile (ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
), The Office
The Office (UK TV series)
The Office is a British sitcom television series that was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 9 July 2001. Created, written, and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the programme is about the day-to-day lives of office employees in the Slough branch of the fictitious...
(BBC), My Life in Film(BBC), The Robinsons (BBC), According to Bex (BBC), The Only Boy for Me (ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
), Peep Show
Peep Show (TV series)
Peep Show is a British sitcom starring David Mitchell and Robert Webb. The television programme is written by Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain, with additional material by Mitchell and Webb themselves, amongst others. It has been broadcast on Channel 4 since 2003. The show's seventh series makes it...
(Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
), My Family (BBC), Coupling
Coupling (UK TV series)
Coupling is a British television sitcom written by Steven Moffat that aired on BBC2 from May 2000 to June 2004. Produced by Hartswood Films for the BBC, the show centres on the dating and sexual adventures and mishaps of six friends in their thirties, often depicting the three women and the three...
(BBC), Extras
Extras (TV series)
Extras is a British sitcom about extras working on TV and film sets and in theatre. The series was co-produced by the BBC and HBO, and is created, written, and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, both of whom also star in it...
(BBC), Love Soup
Love Soup
Love Soup is a British television comedy-drama produced by the BBC and first screened on BBC One in the autumn of 2005. It stars Tamsin Greig as Alice Chenery and Michael Landes as Gil Raymond . The series is written by David Renwick of One Foot in the Grave fame, and was produced by Verity Lambert...
(BBC), Fear of Fanny (BBC), 15 Storeys High (BBC) and Bedsitcom
Bedsitcom
Bedsitcom is a British reality television series that was broadcast on Channel 4 in December 2003. Pitched as "somewhere between a sitcom and a reality TV show", the show documented the lives of six young people living in a loft flat in London...
(Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
), not to mention films and radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
. They also crop up frequently in voice-overs, commercials and corporate
Corporation
A corporation is created under the laws of a state as a separate legal entity that has privileges and liabilities that are distinct from those of its members. There are many different forms of corporations, most of which are used to conduct business. Early corporations were established by charter...
work in Britain and abroad, and have writing credits across all the major terrestrial
Terrestrial television
Terrestrial television is a mode of television broadcasting which does not involve satellite transmission or cables — typically using radio waves through transmitting and receiving antennas or television antenna aerials...
and digital
Digital
A digital system is a data technology that uses discrete values. By contrast, non-digital systems use a continuous range of values to represent information...
channels.
They last performed as a five at the August 2006 Edinburgh Fringe
Edinburgh Fringe
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is the world’s largest arts festival. Established in 1947 as an alternative to the Edinburgh International Festival, it takes place annually in Scotland's capital, in the month of August...
and the Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
theatre festival (Nov '06), with a show entitled Dutch Elm Conservatoire in Prison.
During 2007/08 The Dutch Elm Conservatoire could be seen performing on the BBC Three
BBC Three
BBC Three is a television network from the BBC broadcasting via digital cable, terrestrial, IPTV and satellite platforms. The channel's target audience includes those in the 16-34 year old age group, and has the purpose of providing "innovative" content to younger audiences, focusing on new talent...
comedy show entitled Comedy Shuffle and heard on BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
's series of 28 Acts in 28 Minutes. They also made several appearances in the second series of Comedy Cuts for ITV2
ITV2
ITV2 is a 24 hour, free-to-air entertainment television channel in the United Kingdom owned by ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998, and is available on digital television via satellite, cable, IPTV and terrestrial platforms. The channel has the...
during 2008.