312 - Sawdust

Failure To Launch

Ever wondered what it would be like to run a circus? Chartered Accountant Mac Galpin hadn’t, but that didn’t prevent him from ‘accidentally’ buying one, deciding to run it rather than on-selling the assets and forcing his family to join him on this foolhardy quest, as pre-2000s TV dads were want to do.

This is the premise of Sawdust, another pilot from the late-80s CBS Summer Playhouse (oh, how we love you, you bottomless shitbarrel.) That said, it’s less about circus administration and more about… unionised workforces versus the ruling class? I think? Also, there’s a sexy gorilla at one point.

There’s a lot going on, and not much going on at the same time. This is the paradox of bad television, and Sawdust does not disappoint.

Reviewers: James Ferris, Lisa Dib, David Shaw Soundboard: Andrew Cherry