Jeff Global's Global Probe is a short-lived regional comedy sketch show first seen on ITV Wales in 2004.
Shown exclusively in Wales, the show was intended as a follow-up to the popular Barry Welsh Is Coming, which had concluded in 2004 with the sacking of the geeky Barry Welsh (John Sparkes) as presenter (and subsequent rehiring as a lavatory attendant). The show is replaced by a clip-based review of cable television hosted by the more competent Jeff Global (also played by Sparkes).
Jeff was, according to Sparkes, "smart, strong, attractive...basically, everything Barry isn't". New characters and segments were introduced including The Rectifiers (a Midlands-based parody of the 60s espionage/sci-fi series, The Champions), Eddie Giraffe (a short but tough New York cop) and Jay Clough (a series of badly edited crime drams from the 1950s). Hugh Pugh and Mr. Ffff were brought over from the original Barry Welsh series.
The series' supporting cast consisted of former Barry Welsh Is Coming cast members Kim Wall, Gordon Kennedy and Felicity Montagu, actress Harriet Halfhead and singer & television presenter Emma Walford.
Only two episodes of the six-part series were broadcast in March 2004 with the remaining four episodes shown in August 2004. The programme was not recommissioned for a second series.
Related Research Articles
Sir Harry Donald Secombe was a Welsh actor, comedian, singer and television presenter. Secombe was a member of the British radio comedy programme The Goon Show (1951–1960), playing many characters, most notably Neddie Seagoon. An accomplished tenor, he also appeared in musicals and films – notably as Mr Bumble in Oliver! (1968) – and, in his later years, was a presenter of television shows incorporating hymns and other devotional songs.
Pobol y Cwm is a Welsh-language soap opera produced by the BBC since October 1974. The longest-running television soap opera produced by the BBC, Pobol y Cwm was originally transmitted on BBC Cymru and later transferred to the Welsh-language station S4C when it opened in November 1982.
Absolutely is a British comedy sketch show. The cast and crew are mainly Scottish; the principal writers and performers are Moray Hunter, Jack Docherty, Peter Baikie, Gordon Kennedy, Morwenna Banks (English) and John Sparkes (Welsh). The original television series, produced by Absolutely Productions, aired on Channel 4 for four series between May 1989 and February 1993. Following an award-winning one-off radio reunion special for BBC Radio 4 in 2013, the show returned for a new four-part radio series with most of the original cast in September 2015. A second Radio 4 series of four programmes was broadcast from 25 June 2017, and a third in July 2019.
Robert Brydon Jones is a Welsh actor, comedian, impressionist, presenter, singer and writer. Brydon gained prominence for his roles in film, television and radio. Brydon was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in Queen Elizabeth II's Birthday Honours in 2013 for services to comedy and broadcasting, and for charitable services.
John Sparkes is a Welsh actor and comedian. He portrayed Barry Welsh, presenter of the HTV Wales series Barry Welsh Is Coming. He has also had major roles in Naked Video, Absolutely, Fireman Sam, Shaun the Sheep, and Jeff Global's Global Probe, and is the narrator of the children's television show Peppa Pig.
Blue Collar TV is an American sketch comedy television series that aired on The WB from July 29, 2004 to July 26, 2006 starring Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall, and Larry the Cable Guy. The show's humor dealt principally with contemporary American society, and especially hillbilly, redneck, and Southern stereotypes. The show was greenlighted on the heels of the success of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour, which the series' three lead actors toured with in the early to mid-2000s. It was created by Fax Bahr and Adam Small, in addition to J.P. Williams and Jeff Foxworthy. "Blue collar" is an American phrase used to describe manual laborers, as opposed to white collar for office or professional workers.
Rainbow is a British children's television series, created by Pamela Lonsdale, which ran from 16 October 1972 until 6 March 1992, made by Thames Television. The series was revived by Tetra Films from 10 January 1994 until 24 March 1997, in two different formats from the original Thames Television series, with differing cast members. The series was originally conceived as a British equivalent of Sesame Street.
Who Do You Think You Are? is a British genealogy documentary series that has aired on the BBC since 2004, in which celebrity participants trace their family history. It is made by the production company Wall to Wall. The programme has regularly attracted an audience of more than 6 million viewers. More than ten international adaptations of the programme have been produced.
Film '71 – Film 2018 is a British film review television programme, which was usually broadcast on BBC One. The title of the show changed each year to incorporate the year of broadcast until its cancellation in December 2018.
Elizabeth Sarah Greene is an English television presenter. She co-presented Blue Peter from May 1980 until June 1983, and hosted the Saturday-morning series Saturday Superstore and Going Live!.
Eve Myles is a Welsh actress. She is best known for her television roles portraying Ceri Lewis in the long-running BBC Wales drama series Belonging (2000–2009), Gwen Cooper in the BBC science-fiction series Torchwood (2006–2011), and Faith Howells in the bilingually produced BBC / S4C drama series Keeping Faith / Un Bore Mercher (2017–2020). She is also an accomplished theatre actress.
Derek Clifford Brockway is a Welsh meteorologist. He joined the BBC in 1995. Brockway is based at BBC Cymru Wales in Cardiff, Wales and presents weather forecasts on radio, television and online as well as appearing in other programmes.
Barry Welsh Is Coming is a Welsh sketch show produced by Absolutely Productions for HTV Wales. The programme was first broadcast at 10:40 pm on Friday 6 September 1996 and originally ran for six series with some episodes later broadcast on the Paramount Comedy Channel. It was produced by Pete Baikie, and almost all the main characters were played by John Sparkes, who also played the inept presenter Barry Welsh. For the final series, the show was renamed Barry Welsh Is Going and consisted of three compilation specials. The series was replaced by Jeff Global's Global Probe, which ended after six episodes.
The Ray Bradbury Theatre is an anthology series that ran for three seasons on First Choice Superchannel in Canada and HBO in the United States from 1985 to 1986, and then on USA Network, running for four additional seasons from 1988 to 1992; episodes aired on the Global Television Network in Canada from 1991 to 1994. It was shown in reruns on the Sci Fi Channel and later on the Retro Television Network. It currently airs on Comet and can be streamed on IMDb TV, Peacock, Pluto TV and The Roku Channel.
Gerran Howell is a British actor from Barry, Wales, best known for playing the titular character in Young Dracula, a CBBC television series that initially aired in 2006.
Fireman Sam is a British animated children's television series about a fireman named Sam, his fellow firefighters, and other residents in the fictional Welsh rural village of Pontypandy. It was broadcast for the first time in November 1987 on Welsh TV channel S4C and is shown in more than 155 countries across the world.
Absolutely Productions is a British media production company, working mostly in television, formed in 1988 by Morwenna Banks, Jack Docherty, Moray Hunter, Pete Baikie, John Sparkes, and Gordon Kennedy, all of whom were the cast of British television comedy sketch show Absolutely.
Heno is a Welsh television magazine and chat show programme. Broadcast live on S4C weeknights at 7:00 pm, it features topical stories and studio guests. Various reporters also assist with subject-specific presenting, both in the studio and on location or through filmed segments. Its afternoon sister programme is called Prynhawn da.
Emma Walford is a Welsh actress, singer and broadcaster. She is best known as a member of the girl group 'Eden' and as a presenter for the S4C reality show Priodas Pum Mil.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
