Jun 16, 2009

Big Surf Island Celebrating British TV

Categories: Microsoft | PC / Mac | Sony | Video's & Trailers

I’ve been playing Burnout Paradise’s Big Surf Island quite a bit since it became available and one thing I’ve noticed is it’s connection classic British TV. This came to light when I first discovered the “Tel Wogan” building and as time progressed I realised that the majority of the roads and buildings were so named.

I decided to take a tour of Big Surf Island and jot down all as many of the names as I could find and see how many I recognised. What I found was that as a kid I watched far too much telly because I recognised a lot without needing any help.

Here a few picks of what I found:

There is a biker bar called Byker Grove which was a popular children’s soap opera set in Newcastle, as was the road named Grange Hill, which was set in a London School. Popular Grange Hill characters also feature as buildings too, in Tucker Towers and Zammo Mansions that stand side by side on the beach.

These two characters were known as Peter “Tucker” Jenkins and Samuel “Zammo” Maguire and were played by Todd Carty and Lee MacDonald respectively. The character Zammo was a bit of a rogue and eventually became drug addict, this prompted the “Just Say No” campaign and this wonderful video (warning, it can’t be unwatched).

Another TV show featured on the Island is Krankee’s Chili which is a reference to the Krankies, a kids comedy show with Janette Tough and her husband Ian. As the Krankies they portray schoolboy Wee Jimmy Krankie (Janette), and Jimmy’s father (Ian). Yes TV really was this wierd in 80’s UK.

Other notable UK celebrity refenrces include:

The Price is Right at Brucie’s Autos: Bruce Forsyth and the game show The Price is Right.
Noel’s: Noel Edwards from his TV show Noel’s House Party.
Blackburn: Tony Blackburn, a noted TV and Radio personality.
Monkhouse Royal: Bob Monkhouse, a popular comedian and TV personality.
Chegwin Hotel: Keith Chegwin, a portly kids entertainer between 80’s and 90’s.
Saville Tech: Jimmy Saville, Cigar smoking and tracksuit wearing host of Jim’ll Fix it.
Tel Wogan: Terry Wogan, or “Tel” as he’s affectionately referred to is a Radio and TV presenter.
Holness: Bob Holness, Host of the quiz show Blockbusters and a Doppelgänger of one of my old School teachers.

Finally Honourable mentions to:

Deckard’s Sushi: The Ridley Scott film Bladerunner
Itchy Starfish: Kudos for slipping it in!
Hairy Cornflake: This one too!

I did also considered detailing the locations of these buildings and possibly even including pictures to help. Since the game encourages exploration I decided, that if you really want to find these buildings you should head out and explore Big Surf for yourself.

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2 Responses to “Big Surf Island Celebrating British TV”

Mike Ballan Says:
June 17th, 2009 at 6:23 am
It’s nice to know that the developers have a good sence of humor..!

I wonder what other roads or building in the game have a simular naming to the new island..?
Stu Mitchell Says:
June 21st, 2009 at 12:37 am
I’ve just passed the Crackerjack Hotel…!