The KNTV Show
Encyclopedia
The KNTV Show is an educational television programme that was broadcast on Channel 4
in the United Kingdom
beginning in 2006, which taught about science
, and philosophy
(on its sister show KNTV - Philosophy).
The show is presented by two animated fictional teenagers from Eastern Europe
(specifically the fictional state of "Slabovia", the "last remaining communist state in Europe
"), called Kierky and Nietschze, named after Søren Kierkegaard
and Friedrich Nietzsche
. Among the other recurring characters is the suave English gentleman Burgess MacPhilbin, who presents a series of reports on the given subject of that week's episode in the form of a spy's dossier: his name is actually a reference to 'Cambridge' spies Guy Burgess
, Donald Maclean and Kim Philby
.
The show is divided between animated parts in which the two teenagers discuss ideas in a humorous
manner, and running commentary about science and philosophy over home video clips of people in comical situations, similar to those on You've Been Framed
. In this way, the show melds comedy
and education
into one as form of edutainment
.
The show won a BAFTA award in 2006.
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...
in the United Kingdom
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...
beginning in 2006, which taught about science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, and philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
(on its sister show KNTV - Philosophy).
The show is presented by two animated fictional teenagers from Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
(specifically the fictional state of "Slabovia", the "last remaining communist state in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
"), called Kierky and Nietschze, named after Søren Kierkegaard
Søren Kierkegaard
Søren Aabye Kierkegaard was a Danish Christian philosopher, theologian and religious author. He was a critic of idealist intellectuals and philosophers of his time, such as Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling and Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel...
and Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...
. Among the other recurring characters is the suave English gentleman Burgess MacPhilbin, who presents a series of reports on the given subject of that week's episode in the form of a spy's dossier: his name is actually a reference to 'Cambridge' spies Guy Burgess
Guy Burgess
Guy Francis De Moncy Burgess was a British-born intelligence officer and double agent, who worked for the Soviet Union. He was part of the Cambridge Five spy ring that betrayed Western secrets to the Soviets before and during the Cold War...
, Donald Maclean and Kim Philby
Kim Philby
Harold Adrian Russell "Kim" Philby was a high-ranking member of British intelligence who worked as a spy for and later defected to the Soviet Union...
.
The show is divided between animated parts in which the two teenagers discuss ideas in a humorous
Humour
Humour or humor is the tendency of particular cognitive experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement...
manner, and running commentary about science and philosophy over home video clips of people in comical situations, similar to those on You've Been Framed
You've Been Framed
You've Been Framed is a British television show, produced by ITV Studios for ITV where viewers send in humorous home videos. It is currently narrated by the comedian Harry Hill....
. In this way, the show melds 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...
and education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
into one as form of edutainment
Edutainment
Edutainment is a form of entertainment designed to educate as well as to amuse.-Overview:...
.
The show won a BAFTA award in 2006.