User Reviews

"The Young Person's Guide to Becoming a Rock Star" follows the ups and downs of making it in the music industry. A young band from Glasgow stumble across talent, get good and become famous by mistake. The band consist of: Joe, Fiona, Jez, Psycho and Wullie, the weirdest mix you have ever seen! I have "The Young Person's Guide to Becoming a Rock Star" on VHS and i never get sick of watching it. I would strongly recommend that you watch it. It is well worth it and each time you watch it, it will have you in hysterics.

You never get sick of the ridiculous antics that the band pull! Excellent!!!

A YOUNG PERSONS GUIDE TO BECOMING A ROCK STAR (1998)---- This TVseries (6 thirty minute episodes) reminds me of the recent "Almost Famous" about the trails and tribulations of finding the right mix of performers and material to hit it big in the rock field. The price of fame and the characters who become so in love with themselves they forget they are humans, is touched on and explored.

The lead - Ciaran McMenamin - Jez, is a callow youth who seems to be sleepwalking through much of the film. He does manage to get some energy in a few scenes. One wonders if the director purposely had him play the scenes this way or that was all she could get out of him.

The strange buddy, with cornrow hair and a weak stomach, is just tedious. The girls are okay, and try to liven things up.

Gerry Butler, as Marty Claymore, the rocker from hell, is perfect. Comedy is hard to do well, but Gerry is flawless as an idiot so completely gone on himself he doesn't even know he is ridiculous. I love the scene in the agents office where he can hardly talk he is so traumatized because he doesn't have a private loo on the airplane. And no avocados, dammit!! "No one loves me." Priceless!! I quite enjoyed this little series. A lot was filmed in Dunbarton,Scotland with a mostly Scottish cast. The music was tolerable and some quite good. And the over-the-top characterizations of 'types' in the rock music business keeps this film perking along nicely.

Eight years ago, Gerard Butler had hardly a wrinkle in his face and was quite thin. Already could hold the screen and you rarely look away from him. Whatever "it" is - he had it!! 7/10

If you've never come across this gem, think a Scottish version of "The Commitments", but less gritty.

This is a very funny series that is knowing in a self-deprecating way. What a pity it was so short and has been aired so few times; at least in Australia, where I saw it.

The original music by Guy Pratt is catchy with lyrics that partner well with the wise-cracking script.

Ciarán McMenamin is winning and believable as Jez. He and Simone Lahbib (Fiona) create some real chemistry.

Genuinely entertaining!

Sweet, lighthearted, punchy and pacy, this is a worthy and hugely enjoyable update on the "Rock Follies" concept that delivers plenty of laughs. I loved it the when it first came out, watched again recently, and I reckon it still stands up as fine, funny satire on the pleasures and pitfalls of the pursuit of pop success. The scripts are clever and witty, the cast is great, the photography, editing, direction and production design are distinctive and add greatly to the impact of the show - I especially love the montage of the band going hog-wild spending their record company advance, which is overlaid with a counter graphic that adds up how much money they're wasting. The original songs are pretty good, and of course there's the added attraction some very funny cameo appearances by real rock stars and music industry faces like Chrissie Hynde and Noel Gallagher. Some viewers might have a little trouble negotiating the Glasgow accents (myself, I could listen to them all night) but if that's not a problem for you then I reckon you're probably going to love this series. A wee gem.

Gerry Butler is truly hilarious and highly entertaining playing the stuck-on-himself rock star in Guide to Becoming a Rock Star, and a great example of 28-year-old Gerry's talent and star presence. However, note that he is only in episodes 2, 3 & 4 for a grand total of 10 minutes screen time. But if you are a die-hard Butler fan as I am, it is well worth it, even if you aren't a music business fan. Also, the series itself is very funny. Gerry's singing in this series had to be dubbed - it doesn't sound like his voice at all and looks dubbed. I can't find a credit online for who did his singing, or one that states it is in fact his voice.

Watch this for no other reason than the glorious Simone Lahbib. A superb actress who, amazingly after this fun bit of fluff, went on to great acclaim and notoriety as the indomitable Helen Stewart on "Bad Girls," a landmark series and performance. Lahbib has the kind of smoldering sensual self-awareness and knowledge of just what effect it has on you as those great English actresses Francesca Annis or Helen Mirren, and she possesses the authority of the latter as well. (Which is saying a lot, since she's one of the best ever.) She should've broken out into a major career after BG, but seems stuck in TV genre cop/det/law shows. Alas. But, damn, I'd watch her in anything.

Okay, let's bring some sanity to these reviews here. Now this show is certainly entertaining in parts, but several scenes of sheer stupidity and annoying nonsense must be endured to get to them. The band itself is fair, but mainly just sing the same inane chorus over and over again. The guitarist is pretty and a decent actress. I'd say her personality is one of the few that's real and easy to take. The drummer as well. I enjoyed his acting and way he conducts himself. While the lead singer is quite dull and isn't really believable as a lead singer, his parents are hilarious as aging metal metal heads. And if you're going to name your bassist Psycho, why make him into a sniveling little snot of a loser? The keyboardist is simply gorgeous and a delight to watch. A consistent and credible presence throughout. The manager is played over the top to distraction and is difficult to enjoy. Same deal with the manager they had prior to him. I realize it's a sitcom, but that doesn't mean it has to resort to silly almost slapstick scenes that just don't work. As for the appearance of Gerard Butler that everyone seems to rave about, he was such an an idiot it was beyond dense. As each eposode unfolds it's less quirky and interesting. Mildly entertaining the first episode and a half, then a steep decline into mediocrity. Unfortunately a few pretty faces and a few mildly funny jokes don't sustain a show, and the six episode run could have easily been condensed to three or four. By episode four this show was just plain dumb.

This is without doubt one of the best 6 episode TV series ever. Not only is it funny, entertaining, it deals with a lot of issues for up and coming bands.

noticible are the twists and the plots that "Jocks Wa Hey" come up with to get signed, using their scotch strength and charm from stealing their equipment back, to their 1st TV apearance.

as if that wasn't good enough The Young Persons Guide... also contains a fantastic sound track and Cameo appearances from JK from Jamiroquai and Noel Gallagher from Oasis!!! this is a MUST See!!

I saw this when I was in the UK and thought it was one of the funniest shows I have seen. Very campy and very funny. Hoping it will show again here in North America! A good jab at the music industry!

I loved this show - it was incredibly funny! I particularly loved Forbes Masson as the agent - he was hysterical!

Who did the singing for Gerard Butler? I know it wasn't him. Sounds definitely dubbed. But some people think he did sing it. I am sure he didn't sing anything on film until Phantom AFTER he had singing lessons. Sure, he sang after this TV series in a band on stage but that was just for fun,not professionally, and besides he and the band were probably as drunk as the audience. And what songs did he sing in this? Can someone list them? Someone put The First Time Ever on You Tube and said it was from Lucy Sullivan is Getting Married with scenes from that show, but I don't think he did any singing in that show either. I think it was from this TV show. Can anyone clear this up?