"The High Life" (1994) TV series 1994-1995

Seasons:

1

Release Date:

2 October 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

Welcome aboard Air Scotia - flying out of Scotland's Prestwick Airport with the most useless cabin crew ever to push a drinks trolley...

Plot Keywords:

Sitcom | Flight Attendant

Cast

Alan Cumming	...	Sebastian Flight (6 episodes, 1995)
Forbes Masson	...	Steve McCracken (6 episodes, 1995)
Siobhan Redmond	...	Shona Spurtle (6 episodes, 1995)
Patrick Ryecart	...	Captain Hilary Duff (6 episodes, 1995)

Runtime:

30 min (6 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

In the title sequence, Alan Cumming [Sebastien Flyte] does an incorrect dance move. Whereas the rest of the stewards leap with their arms up, Cumming performs a move which is a throwback to his days in Cabaret in London's West End - a Nazi salute with two fingers of his other hand forming a 'moustache'.

Quotes:

Shona: I intend to win that grand, it's as good as in my hand, it's all planned, d'ye understand?

I wanna fly Air Scotia!

STARRING Alan Cumming, Forbes Masson, Siobhan Redmond, Patrick Ryecart

Camp classic The High Life ranks right up there with Absolutely Fabulous as one of the funniest sitcoms of the 1990s. Written by its two comic leads, Cumming and Masson, The High Life delights viewers with its mix of Scottish sensibility and camp outrageousness.

The High Life revolves around the lives and loves of flight attendants who work for fictitious Scottish airline Air Scotia. Cumming (Sebastian Flight) and Masson (Steve McCracken) demonstrate perfect comic timing, while Redmond (Shona Spurtle) proves adept as the antagonist who always wants to show Sebastian up as a narcissistic egocentric. Ryecart (Captain Hilary Duff) is hilarious as the absentminded captain, who, despite never being 'all there', has control of the plane!

The Scottish accent is, at times, a bit hard to follow, but is funny nonetheless. Versatile Scot Cumming, who has done a few accents in his career: a Russian accent in GoldenEye; an American accent in Romy and Michele's High School Reunion; has a ball spouting all the lines in his native tongue! And speaking of accents, I think this must be the only sitcom to ever include the F-word. In one episode, Steve asks Sebastian: "You for coffee?", but with a Scottish accent it sounds very similar to: "You F*** off, eh?"

It's a shame this comedy gem ran for only six episodes. Who knows what other story lines Cumming and Masson may have come up with.....

A MUST SEE!