There has been a lot of talk lately about AI deep fakes making us wonder if the news is real so it was only a matter of time before someone came up with a comedic use for the new technology. For those who grew up with Mike Yarwood, Deep Fake: Neighbour Wars puts a whole new spin on celebrity impressions.
On the other hand, anyone who grew up watching Stella Street with Mick Jagger and David Bowie leading trivial, mundane lives might see a similarity in a programme about superstars living ordinary suburban existences. In the first episode for example, Kim Kardashian is a London bus driver involved in a dispute with Idris Elba who lives downstairs in their Catford house. Elba says Kardashian is hogging the communal garden from morning until night and mugging him off. Things soon escalate when she is driving past and sees him up to no good...
Elsewhere Greta Thunberg has recently moved into Southend-on-Sea and all seems lovely until she see that next door Conor McGregor and Ariana Grande had a year-round Christmas display in the front drive. Think of all the electricity. The humanity!
Once you've got the set-ups the scripts sort of write themselves but there is a strong team of familiar comedy names making sure that as many lines as possible get a laugh. Sometimes cheesy, sometimes clever. The series is created by Edinburgh Comedy Award-nominee Spencer Jones with a writing team including Jordan Gray, Josh Pugh, Travis Jay, Erika Ehler, Laura Smyth, Jason Lewis, Leila Navabi, Nico Tatarowicz and Lucy Pearman.
As for the lookalikes the faces look about as spot on as you can get. It is no surprise that the programme starts with a disclaimer making it clear that these are fakes and that this is a comedy. Comedians Aurie Styla and Katia Kvinge are among the cast whose bodies play the roles and, if I'm honest, Styla is maybe a bit to chunky for Elba. But Greta Thunberg is so accurate I nearly ran round the house turning the lights off when she came on.
Deep Fake: Neighbour Wars available now on ITVX
Picture of Harry Kane and Stormzy: ITV
