Fire Me...Please
Encyclopedia
Fire Me...Please is an hour-long hidden camera
reality series which aired on CBS
in summer 2005. It was based on a BBC
series called The Sack Race. Two contestants each reported to a new job at separate locations and figure out how to get fired as close to 3:00 p.m. as possible (the store owners are in on the gag, but the managers are not). When both contestants are fired, they report back to host Dave Holmes
, and whoever was fired at the right time wins $25,000.
Fire Me...Please was believed to be the first reality show to employ a laugh track
. The show was also believed to be the first reality series to have one half of an episode feature a repeat, and the other half feature new material. Although critics were not overwhelmed, the series did fairly well in the 18-49 year olds demographic, often placing second against the popular drama House
. The show was announced as one of the debut selections on CBS's Innertube website in May 2006, but never appeared on the website.
The show's on-air title was Fire Me Please! but CBS insisted the official title was Fire Me...Please.
The show is a close adaptation of a short-lived British
format, The Sack Race, devised by Hugh Rycroft and first broadcast on BBC Three
in 2003, with a repeat run on BBC Two
in 2004. (Although the show is often considered to parody
the popular series The Apprentice, The Sack Race in fact debuted some months earlier.) The main difference between the two versions is that the UK version was played entirely for laughs, with all of the contestants being young stand-up comedians (including an early appearance by Laura Solon
), and no significant prize money at stake - the prize being merely the average daily wage for the job they took on. While The Sack Race was promoted purely as a comedy programme, Fire Me...Please was advertised as a reality television
show.
Hidden camera
A hidden camera is a still or video camera used to film people without their knowledge. The camera is "hidden" because it is either not visible to the subject being filmed, or is disguised as another object...
reality series which aired on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
in summer 2005. It was based on a 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...
series called The Sack Race. Two contestants each reported to a new job at separate locations and figure out how to get fired as close to 3:00 p.m. as possible (the store owners are in on the gag, but the managers are not). When both contestants are fired, they report back to host Dave Holmes
Dave Holmes
David Robert "Dave" Holmes is a television personality who gained national attention as the runner-up on MTV's first Wanna Be a VJ contest in 1998. From the beginning, he distinguished himself from other candidates with an encyclopedic knowledge of music trivia.Despite his loss to Jesse Camp, MTV...
, and whoever was fired at the right time wins $25,000.
Fire Me...Please was believed to be the first reality show to employ a laugh track
Laugh track
A laugh track is a separate soundtrack invented by Charles "Charley" Douglass, with the artificial sound of audience laughter, made to be inserted into television programming of comedy shows and sitcoms.The term "laugh track" does not apply to the genuine audience laughter on shows that shoot in...
. The show was also believed to be the first reality series to have one half of an episode feature a repeat, and the other half feature new material. Although critics were not overwhelmed, the series did fairly well in the 18-49 year olds demographic, often placing second against the popular drama House
House (TV series)
House is an American television medical drama that debuted on the Fox network on November 16, 2004. The show's central character is Dr. Gregory House , an unconventional and misanthropic medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in...
. The show was announced as one of the debut selections on CBS's Innertube website in May 2006, but never appeared on the website.
The show's on-air title was Fire Me Please! but CBS insisted the official title was Fire Me...Please.
The show is a close adaptation of a short-lived British
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...
format, The Sack Race, devised by Hugh Rycroft and first broadcast on 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...
in 2003, with a repeat run on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
in 2004. (Although the show is often considered to parody
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
the popular series The Apprentice, The Sack Race in fact debuted some months earlier.) The main difference between the two versions is that the UK version was played entirely for laughs, with all of the contestants being young stand-up comedians (including an early appearance by Laura Solon
Laura Solon
Laura Solon is an English comedian, actor, writer, and winner of the 2005 Perrier Comedy Award, only the second woman to win as a solo performer .-Background:...
), and no significant prize money at stake - the prize being merely the average daily wage for the job they took on. While The Sack Race was promoted purely as a comedy programme, Fire Me...Please was advertised as a reality television
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...
show.