The Regina Monologues

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"The Regina Monologues"
Max Pross
Mark Kirkland
David Silverman
Episode chronology
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The Simpsons season 15
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"The Regina Monologues" is the fourth episode of the

Abraham Simpson journeys to find Edwina, his long lost love, who is voiced by Jane Leeves
.

Plot

Grampa suggests they go to Britain, where he hopes to meet his long-lost love, Edwina. During World War II, he made love to her the night before he was shipped out to the front lines on D-Day
(having been unaware that he actually was).

Upon their arrival in

Foot Guards
.

At the

Sir Walter Raleigh built to escape. However, the tunnel leads straight into the Queen's bedroom, and she calls her guards. Homer pleads with the Queen to find it in her heart to forgive him, and she allows him to leave the country on the condition that he and the rest of his family take Madonna
back to America with him. As they prepare to leave, Edwina appears and introduces Abe to her daughter Abbey, who is essentially a British female version of Homer. Realizing he is her father, Grampa runs away quickly to the plane, while Homer appears smitten by his half-sister.

Production

It took eight months of negotiation to get Tony Blair to guest star.

"The Regina Monologues" is the last episode written by longtime Simpsons writer John Swartzwelder (though Swartzwelder was credited for contributing to the script to the show's film).[1] The title is a reference to Eve Ensler's play The Vagina Monologues, with "Regina" being the Latin word for "queen".[2] The episode was directed by Mark Kirkland.[3] The plot of Homer hitting the Queen's carriage was recycled from a spec script that previous Simpsons showrunning team Al Jean and Mike Reiss had pitched to The Golden Girls. In that script, Dorothy Zbornak was injured after a collision with Mother Teresa's car.[4]

Stop! Or My Dog Will Shoot") the only other politician to guest star.[9]

J. K. Rowling recorded her part via satellite from her home in Scotland,[10] and Ian McKellen recorded his over the phone.[5] Evan Marriott, contestant on the first series of Joe Millionaire appears as himself, while Jane Leeves plays Edwina.[11] Manchester United soccer player Ryan Giggs is mentioned by Homer, something which Giggs thought was "brilliant".[12]

The writers originally drew up a list of ten British celebrities they wanted to appear in the episode.[13] The Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams (a fan of the show) was included in a draft of the script acting as a tour guide and showing some of his relatives around London. Williams had to reject the part due to other engagements.[13] The script also included a role for a musician; the staff had hoped to get David Bowie or Morrissey for the part but nothing came together.[13] David and Victoria Beckham were also originally sought to guest star in the episode, and would be seen bickering on the street. The idea was dropped after Blair agreed to guest star,[13] and it was deemed that they were not famous enough (as a married couple) in the United States and so were not approached.[13][14] Jean commented "We thought about it, we didn't ask. I've heard of him because my daughter plays soccer."[14]

Reception

The episode originally aired on the

war in Iraq.[8] The Sunday Telegraph journalist Jack Roberts noted that it was "not [Blair's] finest hour".[7] On the other hand, Simon Crerar of The Times named Blair's appearance as one of the 33 best guest appearances in the show's history,[17] and the BBC classified his appearance as a "PR masterstroke".[18] The episode is included on the Around the World in 80 D'ohs DVD.[19]

When Blair left office in 2007, it was reported that his successor as Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, was also being lined up to guest star on the show. Animator Dan Povenmire noted that American audiences would probably require subtitles to understand what Brown was saying.[20] Voice actress Yeardley Smith noted that she would like Brown to appear in The Simpsons, but Brown ruled a guest role out stating: "I think Tony Blair did that, I don't think that is for me".[21] Series creator Matt Groening confirmed that Brown would not be approached for a part.

I think with Tony Blair we've reached our quota of British Prime Ministers we're going to have on the show. We have one per century – I think that's our rule. Sorry, Gordon Brown, it's too late![22]

The episode has become study material for sociology courses at

University of California Berkeley, where it is used to "examine issues of the production and reception of cultural objects, in this case, a satirical cartoon show", and to figure out what it is "trying to tell audiences about aspects primarily of American society, and, to a lesser extent, about other societies". Some questions asked in the courses include:

• What aspects of American society are being addressed in the episode?
• What aspects of them are used to make the points?
• How is the satire conveyed: through language? Drawing? Music?
• Is the behavior of each character consistent with his/her character as developed over the years?
• Can we identify elements of the historical/political context that the writers are satirizing?
• What is the difference between satire and parody?[23]

References

  1. ^ "About the DVD". The Simpsons Movie. Archived from the original on March 23, 2013. Retrieved November 29, 2007. On the main page, click on "About the DVD" then on "Production Notes".
  2. ^ a b Staff writer (November 24, 2003). "Tony Blair a 'Simpsons' guest star". CNN. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Goldman, Eric; Dan Iverson, Brian Zoromski (September 8, 2006). "The Simpsons: 20 Seasons, 20 Episodes". IGN. Retrieved May 2, 2007.
  4. ^ Jean, Al (2006). The Simpsons The Complete Eighth Season DVD commentary for the episode "Simpsoncalifragilisticexpiala(Annoyed Grunt)cious" (DVD). 20th Century Fox.
  5. ^ a b c Thurlow, Lorraine (May 30, 2004). "The man who finds friends for Homer". Daily Express. Express Newspapers.
  6. ^ a b c Broadbent, Lucy (December 30, 2003). "Homer and Tony – how I set them up". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on November 14, 2012. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  7. ^ a b Roberts, Jack (April 16, 2006). "Guess who came to dinner". The Sunday Telegraph. Telegraph Group Ltd. Retrieved August 3, 2008.[dead link]
  8. ^ a b Viner, Brian; Kerrie Murphy (May 27, 2007). "When Ricky Met Homer". The Australian Magazine. p. 034.
  9. ^ "Listings". The Futon Critic. Retrieved July 9, 2008.
  10. ^ Patrizio, Andy (August 29, 2003). "An Interview With Al Jean". IGN. IGN Entertainment. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  11. ^ Susman, Gary (July 18, 2008). "Celebs plan Simpsons, King of the Hill cameos". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 9, 2008.
  12. ^ Dunn, Matthew (December 29, 2006). "Giggs' cartoon caper". Daily Express. Express Newspapers.
  13. ^ a b c d e Burrell, Ian (November 22, 2003). "When Homer met Tony for tea and tourist tips at 10 Downing St". The Independent. Independent News & Media. Retrieved August 3, 2008.[dead link]
  14. ^
    Newsround
    . BBC. Retrieved April 6, 2007.
  15. ^ Staff writer (November 23, 2003). "Blair lined up for Simpsons debut". BBC News Online. BBC. Retrieved May 2, 2007.
  16. ^ Buchanan, Kirsty (November 25, 2003). "Homer on Buch trail to meet PM and Queen". Western Mail.
  17. ^ Crerar, Simon (July 5, 2007). "The 33 funniest Simpsons cameos ever". The Times. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  18. ^ Brant, Robin (January 11, 2004). "Review: Blair's Simpsons role is great PR". BBC. Retrieved July 22, 2008.
  19. Trinity Mirror
    .
  20. ^ Brady, Enda (January 14, 2008). "Audiences Need Subtitles For Gordon Brown On Simpsons". Sky News. Retrieved July 28, 2008.
  21. ^ "Britain's Brown rules out cameo role on "The Simpsons"". International Herald Tribune. Associated Press. October 31, 2007. Retrieved July 28, 2008.
  22. ^ Kilkelly, Daniel (July 17, 2007). "No 'Simpsons' role for Gordon Brown". Digital Spy. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  23. ^ Thomas B. Gold (2008). "The Simpsons Global Mirror" (PDF). University of California Berkeley. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 7, 2009. Retrieved July 18, 2011.

External links

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